Image by Canada Soccer
Canada Soccer’s Player Development Program (PDP) Championships kicked off on August 13 in Edmonton, Alberta at the Bill Gilhespy Soccer Complex. In the first-ever edition of the competition, four Ontario Player Development League (OPDL) teams represented Ontario in the U15 division: North Toronto SC and Unionville-Milliken SC on the girls' side, with Hamilton United Elite SC and Ottawa South United SC on the boys'. The new annual event featured a higher level of competition for youth soccer players and organizations across the country like the OPDL.
Coming at the same time as the 10th anniversary of the OPDL, the launch of the PDP Championship is a milestone in the ongoing development of soccer in Ontario and across Canada as it will provide an opportunity for our players to compete in a national standards-based, best-on-best environment. For our players, coaches and other stakeholders to be able to benchmark themselves with other PDP programs on an annual basis will only serve to enhance the OPDL as we assess the performances of all groups present to identify technical areas of strengths but, more importantly, continued growth.
- Matt Ferreira, Ontario Soccer's Director of Development
Results
Ottawa South United Win Boys' PDP U15 Cup!
Ottawa South United won the Boys’ Final 3-2 on penalties over Surrey FC. The match ended in a 3-3 full-time score.
The team qualified for the gold medal match after finishing in the top spot of the group stage with two wins and a 2:2 tie.
Hamilton United Elite finish in 5th place
After one win and two losses in the group stage, Hamilton United Elite wins the 5th place match 2:0 over Calgary Villains FC.
North Toronto fc take 4th in girls' pdp u15 cup!
North Toronto has two wins and one loss in the group stage, sending them into the bronze medal match. The squad fell to Coastal FC (Youth) South Surrey 1:0, securing a 4th place finish.
Unionville-Milliken finish in 7th place
After three losses in the group stage, Unionville-Milliken beats North Vancouver FC (Youth) 1:0 in their final appearance to take 7th place.
This tournament gives our players a new opportunity to test themselves against other high calibre opponents from across the country that would pose a different challenge than we would face from within Ontario. This will provide a different learning experience for our players’ development that we would not have had without this layer of competition.
- Brandon Frith, Head Coach, OPDL – Girls U15 at North Toronto Nitros Soccer
Ottawa South United / Hamilton United - 2024 Boys' PDP Championship
| Date | Team A | Team B | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-08-14 | Ottawa South United SC (Youth) | 2:0 | AS Blainville (Youth) |
| 2024-08-14 | AS Laval (Youth) | 4:0 | Hamilton United Elite SC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-15 | Ottawa South United SC (Youth) | 5:0 | Calgary Villains FC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-15 | Calgary Foothills SC (Youth) | 0:2 | Hamilton United Elite SC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-17 | Surrey United SC (Youth) | 2:2 | Ottawa South United SC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-17 | Surrey FC (Youth) | 3:0 | Hamilton United Elite SC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-18 | Calgary Villains FC (Youth) | 0:2 | Hamilton United Elite SC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-18 | Ottawa South United SC (Youth) | 3:3 | Surrey FC (Youth) |
Unionville Milliken / North Toronto SC - 2024 Girls' PDP Championship
| Date | Team A | Score | Team B |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-08-14 | Unionville-Milliken SC (Youth) | 0:3 | AS Laval (Youth) |
| 2024-08-14 | Spatial CS St-Hubert (Youth) | 4:0 | North Toronto SC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-15 | Unionville-Milliken SC (Youth) | 1:3 | St. Albert Impact FC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-15 | Calgary Foothills SC (Youth) | 1:2 | North Toronto SC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-17 | Coastal FC (Youth) South Surrey | 2:1 | Unionville-Milliken SC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-17 | North Vancouver FC (Youth) | 0:1 | North Toronto SC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-18 | Unionville-Milliken SC (Youth) | 1:0 | North Vancouver FC (Youth) |
| 2024-08-18 | Coastal FC (Youth) South Surrey | 1:0 | North Toronto SC (Youth) |
Ontario Soccer did not send U17 squads to the 2024 PDP Championship since there was no U16 OPDL division in 2023.
As a result, no U17 teams were able to qualify for the competition this year.
To see results from the U17 Division, click here.
How to watch the PDP Championships
All 50 matches at the PDP Championship were broadcast live through Canada Soccer’s YouTube page, including all eight medal matches on Sunday's Finals Day, and all matches featuring OPDL teams.
You can still watch an archived recording of each match on Canada Soccer's 2024 Player-Development Program playlist.
