Ontario Soccer is pleased to announce the Board of Directors, newly approved, 2022-2026 Strategic Plan, which will serve as the road map for soccer in Ontario over the next five years.

The Strategic Plan will focus on three key areas of our sport - Govern, Grow and Develop and is fully aligned with the same three strategic pillars and plan term as our national governing body, Canada Soccer.  

Within these pillars, each have three strategic initiatives where Ontario Soccer will create new opportunities on and off the field of play.  The nine strategic initiatives were a result of membership survey and consultation that took place during the first six months of 2021.

“I am incredibly proud of how the Ontario Soccer membership have come together over the last two years as we went through some of the most challenging times in our sport’s history,” said Peter Augruso, President and Chair of the Ontario Soccer Board of Directors. “As we look forward, Ontario Soccer will be a leader in how we rebuild soccer in Ontario in this new era.”

Ontario Soccer’s Strategic Plan is always player-centric, which places the three strategic initiatives under Develop front and centre within the new plan.

That means, when it comes to Grassroots Soccer, we will be improving the way we provide value and support to our community Clubs.

It also means we need a strong Participant Development and Competition Pathway. To do this, Ontario Soccer is committing to refining the participant pathway, below the talented pathway (OPDL), in alignment with long-term participant development strategies.

We are also finishing what we started from the last strategic plan with Futsal, by transitioning from developing a provincial strategy, to growing the sport in Ontario and implementing new programming initiatives.

To do all this, Ontario Soccer will continue to Grow and with that is the need to bring about Financial Stability. As the last few years have shown, Ontario Soccer will need to roll out strategies for province-wide recovery and stabilization.

We are putting a renewed focus on Participant Recruitment and Retention so that we can capture our sport’s current positive momentum and profile.

And, in order to reduce the reliance on membership registration fees, Ontario Soccer will continue to focus on creating Alternative Revenue sources. Bringing on new partners will support our strategic initiatives within our plan and align with our brand objectives.

Under Govern, Ontario Soccer is putting our commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity into action, developing policies, procedures and programming that will ultimately help improve the culture and the face of leadership of soccer in Ontario.  

“Ontario Soccer’s Anti-Racism Access and Equity Committee, under the leadership of Ontario Soccer’s  Diversity Officer, Sandra Riberdy, has laid a solid foundation for what our organization wants to be,” said Johnny Misley, Chief Executive Officer, Ontario Soccer. “It’s important that our diversity of participants can see themselves reflected in the leadership of our Clubs, Districts and our Provincial Governing body.”

Similarly, guided by input from the membership, Governance Modernization will continue at the District level, with increased aligned operations and principles of good governance.

Lastly, Ontario Soccer’s Member Management Ecosystem will continue to evolve with the development and implementation of efficient soccer management tools with our technology partner SportsEngine.

We listened to the voices of our stakeholders and we have been told loud and clear that we must be an organization of value and continue to innovate and lead our country,” said Augruso. “From the clubhouse to the boardroom, Ontario Soccer’s strategic plan will continue to ensure that our province is the engine-room for development in our country and be a leader not just in soccer, but in sport.

Visit OntarioSoccer.net/strategic-plan to learn more about the Strategic Plan, its Strategic Initiatives or to watch the promotional video.