Alberta teams benefit from head start as Canadian Premier League kicks off
FC Edmonton and Cavalry FC have a running start on the rest of the teams in the Canadian Premier League as the inaugural season kicks off on Saturday in Hamilton.
With franchise structure already in place, the two teams could focus most of their energy on putting the best roster on the field, while other clubs dealt with logistical issues of forming a professional squad. “It is very tough to start from scratch,” said Valour FC head coach Rob Gale.
“We were fortunate on our side, we had the infrastructure of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. We have the stadium already, which is huge, we have the capacity for the classrooms, the dressing rooms, our offices.
“But it’s an enormous undertaking for all of us, and that’s why we’re such a close group, the head coaches and general managers and all the staff altogether really, because we’re all going through the same things, from equipment needs and kit (uniform) designs and then game-day operations and how that’s going to look. And then there is everything from the technical side, building a culture and values and clubs and things that you want to stand the test of time, and how you want to be known and perceived.” FC Edmonton spent seven seasons in the North American Soccer League before joining the CPL. Cavalry FC is a reincarnation of Foothills FC, which competed in the Professional Development League before joining the exclusively Canadian pro soccer circuit. “Take it outside of the realm of the technical side and you go to things like game-day management, what does running your first home game with 5,000 fans look like? That’s something that other clubs are going to get to experience,” said FC Edmonton head coach Jeff Paulus.
“I think that’s a steep learning curve, and then you have the Canadian championships right around the corner as well that start in our league, and now you have to manage that and the set of rules that go with that. We’ve been through all that, we know where we stand and we have some of those boxes checked off.” Cavalry FC’s advantage should come from team cohesion, as nearly half of their roster is comprised of former members of Foothills FC.