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Ontario Soccer 2018 - A Year in Photos

By Staff, 12/24/18, 8:30AM EST

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As we look back on the best photos from Ontario Soccer events in 2018, it was a year peppered with historic announcements

Play. Inspire. Unite. 

As 2018 winds down, Ontario Soccer are taking a look back at some of the best moments captured at events this year. 

From the pitch to the boardroom, 2018 was a year peppered with historic events on the field and ground-breaking moments off it.  

Thank you to all those who made our game beautiful in 2018. 

Ontario Indoor Cup kicks 2018 off right

An annual event, the Ontario Indoor Cup is the first competition of the year for most clubs and offers the opportunity to get your year off on the right foot.

This year's Finals take place at the Ontario Soccer Centre on Jan. 26-27 and Feb. 9-10. 

Click here to see the early rounds and draws

Ontario Futsal Cup continues to expand

Always a passionate, high-paced affair, the Ontario Futsal Cup expanded the number of divisions in 2018 and even featured a showcase event at the Ontario Soccer Summit. 

Registration is underway for the 2019 Ontario Futsal Cup and there are even more divisions available this year for the growing aspect of our game. 

Click here for more information on registration. 

Ontario Soccer Summit reaches new heights

The Ontario Soccer Summit, presented by Respect in Sport, was another rousing success in 2018.  

The Ontario Soccer Summit, which provides development opportunities for coaches, match officials and soccer leaders across Ontario, attracted over 500 delegates from across the province and Canada to hear from luminary speakers in the sporting world such as John Furlong, Andrea Shaw and Dr. Stephen Norris.   

Ontario Soccer has announced the roster for the Ontario Soccer Summit 2019 in London, Ont. and this year’s crop of speakers are certain to be a watershed moment in the history of the event.   

The speakers, which hail from across the soccer spectrum, will pull on their depth of experience and bring their vast expertise to the BMO Centre and Wolf Performance Hall in London from March 1-3, 2019.

Click here to find out more about the 2019 Ontario Soccer Summit. 

Two Ontario teams advance to Gatorade 5v5 Challenge Global Final

Two Ontario Player Development League teams qualified for the Gatorade 5v5 Challenge Global finals. 

The North Toronto Soccer Club U-15 Boys and West Ottawa Soccer Club U-15 Girls won their respective competitions over the weekend and, as well as receiving a Gatorade Sweat Test, they will now travel to Barcelona as the Canadian representatives in the Global Final. 

The Gatorade 5v5 challenge, which puts the emphasis on the social aspect of player development, included activities designed to promote player engagement and socialization.  

Click here to read more about the winners and competition. 

Spotlight on volunteers at Centre Circle Awards

Volunteers from all over the province were honoured at the Centre Circle Awards in 2018. 

A classy, gala event, presented by Nothers Signs and Recognition, it was the second year of the refreshed awards program, which expands the current awards structure to reflect a more inclusive and accurate representation of those who exemplify the best in Ontario and who have made outstanding contributions to the game.

Coaches, clubs, leagues, match officials, administrators and those who have dedicated a lifetime to the game, all took a moment to be honoured in the Centre Circle. 

Click here to read more about this year's winners. 

Ontario Soccer witnesses significant shift in governance

The weekend marked a historic moment in the legacy of Ontario Soccer.

At Ontario Soccer’s 117th Annual General Meeting, the final touches were put on a new governance structure that will modernize the Ontario Soccer Board of Directors.

Under the new governance structure, the business of Ontario Soccer will now be conducted by a Board of Directors, composed of 12 elected individuals and one senior staff. Previously the Board had been made up of 21 representatives from each District Association, as well as an elected executive of seven for a Board total of 28.

Click here to read more about the historic event. 

League1 Ontario sends first representative to Canadian Championship

In 2018, for the first time ever, pro-am teams were included in the Canadian Championships. 

The 2017 League1 Ontario Men's champions, the Oakville Blue Devils, faced off against AS Blainville, in a thrilling two leg event, which eventually saw the team from Quebec advance on to the next round. 

Click here to read about this historic game. 

Match Official Appreciation Day dishes out Awards to officials

Ontario Soccer honoured match officials at the Match Officials Appreciation Day on Sunday. 

The ceremony for the Match Officials Appreciation awards, which took place at the BMO Club at BMO Field, saw officials from across the province honoured for their role in either helping to develop match officials, or for their outstanding performances as match officials. 

As part of the day, a percentage of the proceeds from each ticket sold to Match Official Appreciation Day were donated to help equip Ontario Soccer fields with life-saving defibrillators. 

John Collie, the President and CEO of Rescue 7, was in attendance to present the defibrillator to Ontario Soccer's new President Peter Augruso.

Click here to find out this year's award winners

Ontario Soccer receives two Ontario Trillium Foundation Grants

Ontario Soccer received a $150,000 Capital grant to install a new HVAC system in the Ontario Soccer Centre, and a Provincial Impact grant of $294,500 over three years to continue developing its Long-Term Match Officials Development plan for referees.

The LTOD plan will go towards higher quality programming for referees and infrastructure to support their development.

Click here for more on the Trillium Grant

OPDL makes debut at the Ontario Summer Games

The U-15 OPDL Cup finals took place at the North London Athletic Fields as part of the Ontario Summer Games in 2018. 

The OPDL Cup, in its second year, is a single-game knockout format, which is intended to introduce another level of intense competition into OPDL. 

The Ontario Summer Games serves as the initial assessment platform for future athletes in the Canada Games and the Olympic Games.

Click here to find out who won and read more about the event. 

Six Ontario Cup champions move on to Toyota National Championships

Twelve teams were crowned Ontario Cup champions, with six of those moving on to the Toyota National Championships in 2018. 

The provincial soccer for life championships concluded for a number of divisions in Vaughan,with thrilling action across the board.

The U-15, U-17 and Women's and Men's division winners of the Ontario Cup, qualified for the Toyota National Championships, hosted by Canada Soccer. 

The other Ontario Cup champions were crowned the following weekend in Vaughan at the Ontario Soccer Centre. 

Ontario Soccer elects new board of directors

Ontario Soccer elected a new Board of Directors and with it put the final touches on a new modernized governance structure.

Under the new governance structure, the business of Ontario Soccer will now be conducted by a Board of Directors, composed of 12 elected individuals and one senior staff.

Click here to read more about the new board. 

League1 Ontario purchased by Canadian Premier League

It was another massive year for League1 Ontario, as the Canadian Premier League announced it would move the league under its operations starting in 2019. 

Starting in 2019 this ground-breaking arrangement will allow the Canadian Premier League, in its entirety, to facilitate the continuing development and growth of League1 Ontario. This unique model will become an integral part of the CPL and will provide future opportunities for players who are not quite ready, to further develop their skills and find success in the professional game.

Click here for more on this historic announcement. 

OPDL wraps up 2018 events in thrilling fashion

The top soccer athletes in Ontario were in action that weekend as the Ontario Soccer Centre played host to the Ontario Player Development League (OPDL) Charity Shield.

Twelve teams, across six divisions, competed for provincial glory as the U-14, U-15 and U-17 OPDL age groups wrapped up their 2018 seasons.

Scouts from around North America were in attendance all weekend to take in the action. As well, representatives from Canada Soccer were on site to witness the next generations of stars. 

Click here to read more about the winners.