2025 Forge FC season

Forge FC entered the 2025 Canadian Premier League season as the reigning regular season winners after having finished first and claiming the CPL Shield in the 2024 season.^[1] This was the club's second regular season title and sixth trophy in six years, continuing their dynasty.^[2] In the CPL playoffs, Forge advanced to the 2024 CPL final where they were defeated by rival side Cavalry FC, finishing as runner-up.^[3]

The Hammers also competed in the 2025 Canadian Championship, a domestic cup organized by the Canadian Soccer Association. In the 2024 edition, Forge defeated MLS side CF Montréal in the quarterfinal.^[4] They were knocked out in the semifinal by Toronto FC, losing on away goals after tying 2–2 on aggregate.^[5]

Forge qualified for the 2025 CONCACAF Champions Cup as 2024 CPL regular season winners.^[1][6] This was Forge's third appearance in the competition and second appearance in a row. In the 2024 edition, Forge faced Mexican side C.D. Guadalajara in round one, losing 5–2 on aggregate.^[7]

Head coach and sporting director Bobby Smyrniotis returned for his seventh season with the club after signing a four-year contract extension in 2023.^[8][9]

On November 21, 2024, CF Montréal declined its 2025 contract option on Forge loanee Matteo Schiavoni, ending his time with the Hammers;^[10] Forge later confirmed this in a December roster update.^[11] On December 16, Dominic Samuel and Forge together announced that the defender was leaving the club following the expiry of his contract at the end of the year.^[12]

On December 12, 2024, Forge announced that Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson, Nana Ampomah, David Choinière, Elimane Cissé, Noah Jensen, and Khadim Kane all had guaranteed contracts through the 2025 season. The club later announced that it had triggered contract options for the 2025 season for Béni Badibanga,^[13] Christopher Kalongo,^[14] Jassem Koleilat,^[15] Malik Owolabi-Belewu,^[16] and Orlendis Benítez.^[17] Forge also triggered its 2025 loan option for Daniel Parra from C.F. Monterrey.^[18] Malcolm Duncan, Jordan Hamilton, Victor Klonaridis, Terran Campbell, Garven Metusala, and Sebastian Castello all departed the club.^[19]

Forge opened its preseason in Hamilton in early January before traveling to Cancun for two weeks of training.^[20] While there, the Hammers played friendlies against Liga Premier club Inter Playa del Carmen and MLS club Orlando City SC.^[21][22] Béni Badibanga was absent from the team during this period as he navigated a contract dispute.^[23][24]

Forge drew Liga MX side C.F. Monterrey in round one of the CONCACAF Champions Cup.^[25][26] The match was noteworthy due to Monterrey's connection with York United FC, Forge's rival in the 905 Derby.^[27] It was set to pit Forge loanee Daniel Parra against his parent club, Monterrey;^[27] however, Parra transferred to Atlético Morelia just days before the tie's first leg.^[28]

Forge hosted Monterrey in the tie's first leg on February 5, looking to secure the club's first ever win in Champions Cup play.^[29] In freezing conditions producing slippery turf, Monterrey scored two second half goals while Forge failed to capitalize on their chances, resulting in a 2–0 win for Rayados.^[30][31] The Hammers were without Malik Owolabi-Belewu (personal reasons), Béni Badibanga (contract dispute), and Elimane Cissé (injury).^[32]

In the return leg a week later in Guadalupe, Nuevo León, Monterrey scored three unanswered goals to take a 3–0 win, eliminating Forge 5–0 on aggregate. Forge's best chance in the match came in the first half when Tristan Borges hit the crossbar, but the Hammers were ultimately unable to score. This was the third time Forge were eliminated in their opening Champions Cup tie.^[33][34]

Koleilat

Nimick

Achinioti-Jönsson

Bruno

Jevremović

Hojabrpour

Bekker (C)

Jensen

Choinière

Babouli

Wright

Starting XI for CPL home opener against Cavalry FC on April 5.^[35]

Forge opened its CPL Shield defence at home against reigning champions Cavalry FC on April 5 in a repeat of the 2024 CPL final. Babouli opened the scoring for Forge in the 58th minute and the Hammers survived a late onslaught from Cavalry following a sending off to Zayne Bruno to win 1–0.^[36][37]

For the second year in a row, Forge hosted a mid-week school day game. In the May 13 contest against Atlético Ottawa, Forge broke the CPL attendance record that had held since hosting the CPL inaugural match by welcoming a crowd of 17,971 in the stands. The match ended in a 2–2 draw.^[38]

Forge set a new record for the longest unbeaten run to start a CPL season at 10 matches on June 15 when they defeated Vancouver FC 2–0 at Willoughby Community Park.^[39] On July 18, Forge defeated Pacific FC 2–0 at home to go 15 matches undefeated to begin the CPL season, breaking the CPL record for the longest unbeaten run set by Forge in 2019. This also made Forge 18 matches undefeated in all competitions.^[40] By the time the streak ended on August 30, Forge had amassed an unbeaten run of 20 CPL matches and 24 matches across all competitions.^[41]

On the final day of the season, Forge defeated York United 3–0 to clinch first place in the regular season standings and repeat as CPL Shield winners.^[42] The team set a club record with 58 points, losing only two matches and going undefeated at home during the season.^[43]

On August 24, Forge became the first club to clinch a spot in the CPL Playoffs.^[44] They later secured the top playoff seed on October 18, the last day of the regular season.^[42]

Looking to win the first double in CPL history, Forge began the playoffs at home on October 26 against Atlético Ottawa in the Page playoff first semifinal with a chance to advance directly to the CPL final.^[43] After taking the lead in the 23rd minute with a goal by David Choinière, Forge gave up two unanswered goals to lose the match 2–1.^[45][46] Forge next hosted Cavalry in the Page playoff second semifinal on November 2 with another chance to qualify for the final.^[47] Cavalry won the match 1–0, eliminating Forge from the playoffs.^[48] The result made the 2025 CPL final the first in league history not to feature Forge.^[49]

Forge began its Canadian Championship campaign on May 7 with an all-CPL match at home in the preliminary round against HFX Wanderers FC.^[50] The match came only four days after the two teams played to a scoreless draw in Halifax in league play.^[50] Molham Babouli scored a brace and Forge benefitted from a Halifax own goal to defeat the Wanderers 3–1.^[51] The win advanced Forge to the quarterfinals and a matchup against CF Montréal.^[51]

On May 20, Forge hosted MLS side CF Montréal in Hamilton for the first leg of the quarterfinal tie.^[52] This was the fifth consecutive year these two teams faced each other in the Canadian Championship, with Forge having eliminated Montreal in the previous year's tournament.^[52] After Forge dominated the game's first half but were unable to take a lead, Brian Wright scored in the 78th-minute off of a long pass from Nana Ampomah to lift Forge to a 1–0 win.^[53][54] In the second leg on July 9, Borges and Forge captain Kyle Bekker scored three minutes apart in the second half to help Forge secure a 2–2 draw, advancing the Hammers to the tournament semifinals 3–2 on aggregate and eliminating The Impact in the Canadian Championship quarterfinals for the second consecutive year.^[55][56]

Forge faced Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the first leg of the semifinals in Hamilton on August 13. Nana Ampomah opened the scoring in the ninth minute and later assisted on a Brian Wright goal in the 34th minute as Forge took advantage of a pair of defensive mistakes by the Whitecaps in a 2–2 draw.^[57] The tie unraveled for Forge in the return leg in Vancouver on September 16 as the Whitecaps blanked the Hammers 4–0 to secure a 6–2 aggregate win, eliminating Forge from the Canadian Championship.^[58]

As of November 2, 2025^[update][59]

No.	Name	Nationality	Position(s)	Date of birth (age)	Previous club	Notes
Goalkeepers
1	Jassem Koleilat		GK	(1999-07-30)July 30, 1999 (aged 26)	Los Angeles FC 2
29	Christopher Kalongo		GK	(2002-01-07)January 7, 2002 (aged 23)	Sigma FC
36	Dino Bontis		GK	(2004-08-03)August 3, 2004 (aged 21)	Western Mustangs	U21
42	Emmanuel Marmolejo		GK	(2007-06-14)June 14, 2007 (aged 18)	Sigma FC	U21, DEV
Defenders
3	Marko Jevremović		DF	(1996-02-23)February 23, 1996 (aged 29)	Athens Kallithea F.C.	INT
5	Daniel Nimick		DF	(2000-09-22)September 22, 2000 (aged 25)	HFX Wanderers FC
24	Rezart Rama		DF	(2000-12-04)December 4, 2000 (aged 24)	KF Egnatia	INT
33	Oliver Clow		DF	(2007-05-05)May 5, 2007 (aged 18)	Sigma FC	U21, DEV
81	Malik Owolabi-Belewu		DF	(2002-07-03)July 3, 2002 (aged 23)	S.P.A.L.
Midfielders
6	Ben Paton		MF	(2000-05-05)May 5, 2000 (aged 25)	Ross County
8	Elimane Cissé		MF	(1995-03-12)March 12, 1995 (aged 30)	Diambars FC
10	Kyle Bekker		MF	(1990-09-02)September 2, 1990 (aged 35)	North Carolina FC
13	Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson		MF	(1996-04-17)April 17, 1996 (aged 29)	IFK Värnamo
21	Alessandro Hojabrpour		MF	(2000-01-10)January 10, 2000 (aged 25)	Pacific FC
22	Noah Jensen		MF	(1999-07-20)July 20, 1999 (aged 26)	Oakland University
23	Harry Paton		MF	(1998-05-23)May 23, 1998 (aged 27)	Motherwell F.C.
28	Keito Lipovschek		MF	(2005-04-03)April 3, 2005 (aged 20)	Fleetwood United	U21
32	Zayne Bruno		MF	(2007-01-23)January 23, 2007 (aged 18)	Sigma FC	U21, EYT
99	Christos Liatifis		MF	(2005-06-18)June 18, 2005 (aged 20)	Panathinaikos F.C.	INT
Forwards
7	David Choinière		FW	(1997-02-07)February 7, 1997 (aged 28)	Montreal Impact
9	Brian Wright		FW	(1995-03-24)March 24, 1995 (aged 30)	York United FC
11	Nana Opoku Ampomah		FW	(1996-01-02)January 2, 1996 (aged 29)	Fortuna Düsseldorf	INT
17	Hoce Massunda		FW	(2005-06-19)June 19, 2005 (aged 20)	Sigma FC	U21
18	Molham Babouli		FW	(1993-01-02)January 2, 1993 (aged 32)	York United FC
19	Tristan Borges		FW	(1998-08-26)August 26, 1998 (aged 27)	OH Leuven
27	Victor Klonaridis		FW	(1992-07-28)July 28, 1992 (aged 33)	PAS Lamia 1964	INT
39	Béni Badibanga		FW	(1996-02-19)February 19, 1996 (aged 29)	RAAL La Louvière	INT
41	Amadou Koné		FW	(2005-01-28)January 28, 2005 (aged 20)	Carleton Ravens	U21, U Sports

On September 11, Forge announced it had placed Khadim Kane on the season-ending injury list, removed him from the club's primary roster, and added him to the inactive list for the remainder of the season.^[60][61]

No.	Name	Nationality	Position(s)	Date of birth (age)	Previous club	Notes
16	Khadim Kane		MF	(2005-05-17) May 17, 2005 (age 20)	CF Montréal U23	U21

No.	Pos.	Player	Contract details	Date	Source
10	MF	Kyle Bekker	Multi-year contract (length undisclosed)	January 9, 2025	[62]
19	FW	Tristan Borges	Multi-year contract (length undisclosed)	January 15, 2025	[63]
21	MF	Alessandro Hojabrpour	Multi-year contract (length undisclosed)	February 4, 2025	[64]
32	MF	Zayne Bruno	Development contract (length undisclosed)	February 4, 2025	[65]
41	FW	Amadou Koné	Short-term contract (length undisclosed)	February 4, 2025	[65]
12	FW	Maxime Filion	U Sports contract	April 3, 2025	[66]
41	FW	Amadou Koné	U Sports contract	April 3, 2025	[66]
32	MF	Zayne Bruno	Exceptional Young Talent contract (length undisclosed)	April 4, 2025	[67]
17	FW	Hoce Massunda	Standard player contract (length undisclosed)	April 4, 2025	[67]
36	GK	Dino Bontis	Multi-year contract (length undisclosed)	September 11, 2025	[60][61]

No.	Pos.	Player	From club	Fee/notes	Date	Source
9	FW	Brian Wright	York United FC	Free	January 8, 2025	[68]
5	DF	Daniel Nimick	HFX Wanderers FC	Free	January 21, 2025	[69]
18	FW	Molham Babouli	York United FC	Free	January 23, 2025	[70]
24	DF	Rezart Rama	KF Egnatia	Free	January 28, 2025	[71]
3	DF	Marko Jevremović	Athens Kallithea F.C.	Free	January 31, 2025	[72]
23	MF	Keito Lipovschek	Fleetwood United	Free	February 4, 2025	[65]
6	MF	Ben Paton	Ross County	Free	February 4, 2025	[65]
42	GK	Emmanuel Marmolejo	Sigma FC	Development contract	February 4, 2025	[65]
17	FW	Hoce Massunda	Sigma FC	Short-term contract (length undisclosed)	February 4, 2025	[65]
12	FW	Maxime Filion	Montreal Carabins	Short-term contract (length undisclosed)	February 4, 2025	[65]
36	GK	Dino Bontis	Western Mustangs	U Sports contract	April 3, 2025	[66]
33	DF	Oliver Clow	Sigma FC	Development contract	July 21, 2025	[73]
99	MF	Christos Liatifis	Panathinaikos F.C.	Free	August 14, 2025	[74]
27	FW	Victor Klonaridis	PAS Lamia 1964	Free	September 5, 2025	[75]
23	MF	Harry Paton	Motherwell F.C.	Free	September 19, 2025[i]	[76]

No.	Pos.	Player	From club	Fee/notes	Date	Source
17	DF	Daniel Parra	Monterrey	Season-long loan[ii]	January 1, 2025	[18][77]

Forge FC made two selections in the 2025 CPL–U Sports Draft on December 5, 2024.^[78][79] Draft picks are not automatically signed to the team roster; only those who are signed to a contract will be listed as transfers in.

Round	Selection	Pos.	Player	Nationality	University
1	7	MF	Paul Ekwueme	Canada	McMaster
2	15	FW	Maxime Filion	Canada	Montréal

No.	Pos.	Player	To club	Fee/notes	Date	Source
14	FW	Terran Campbell	Vancouver FC	Contract expired	December 31, 2024	[80][81]
12	FW	Sebastian Castello	Sigma FC	Contract expired	December 31, 2024	[80]
2	DF	Malcolm Duncan		Contract expired	December 31, 2024	[18][82]
9	FW	Jordan Hamilton	Shan United F.C.	Contract expired	December 31, 2024	[80]
27	FW	Victor Klonaridis	PAS Lamia 1964	Contract expired	December 31, 2024	[83][84]
23	DF	Garven Metusala	Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC	Contract expired	December 31, 2024	[82][18][85]
4	DF	Dominic Samuel		Contract expired	December 31, 2024	[12]
88	MF	Matteo Schiavoni	Pacific FC	Loan ended	December 31, 2024	[80]
17	DF	Daniel Parra	Atlético Morelia	Loan ended	February 2, 2025	[28]
26	FW	Orlendis Benítez	Scrosoppi FC	Undisclosed	Undisclosed[iii]	[86]
36	GK	Dino Bontis	Western Mustangs	Contract expired	August 15, 2025	[87]
12	FW	Maxime Filion	Montreal Carabins	Contract expired	August 15, 2025	[87]

On January 30, Forge announced WeatherTech Canada as the club's new "front-of-jersey" sponsor.^[88]

Forge unveiled its 2025 primary and alternate kits at a supporters event on March 19. The kits continue to be produced by Macron for a seventh consecutive season and are sponsored by WeatherTech for the first time.^[89][90]

Supplier: Macron / Sponsor: WeatherTech Canada

Primary

Alternate

As of November 2, 2025^[update]

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		CPL		CPL Playoffs		Canadian Championship		Champions Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	CZE	Jassem Koleilat	36	0	27+0	0	2+0	0	5+0	0	2+0	0
3	DF	SRB	Marko Jevremović	33	0	21+4	0	2+0	0	4+0	0	2+0	0
5	DF	CAN	Daniel Nimick	37	2	28+0	2	2+0	0	5+0	0	2+0	0
6	MF	CAN	Ben Paton	30	1	10+15	1	0+0	0	1+2	0	0+2	0
7	FW	CAN	David Choinière	30	3	12+10	2	1+1	1	3+1	0	2+0	0
8	MF	SEN	Elimane Cissé	12	1	2+9	1	0+0	0	0+1	0	0+0	0
9	FW	CAN	Brian Wright	35	14	23+3	12	2+0	0	5+0	2	2+0	0
10	MF	CAN	Kyle Bekker	35	4	24+2	3	2+0	0	5+0	1	2+0	0
11	FW	GHA	Nana Opoku Ampomah	27	7	16+3	6	1+1	0	4+1	1	0+1	0
13	MF	SWE	Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson	37	1	27+1	1	2+0	0	5+0	0	2+0	0
16	MF	CAN	Khadim Kane	19	1	5+9	1	0+0	0	0+3	0	0+2	0
17	FW	CAN	Hoce Massunda	31	4	16+9	4	2+0	0	0+4	0	0+0	0
18	FW	SYR	Molham Babouli	33	6	19+5	4	0+2	0	4+1	2	2+0	0
19	FW	CAN	Tristan Borges	29	5	15+6	4	1+1	0	3+1	1	2+0	0
21	MF	CAN	Alessandro Hojabrpour	25	1	17+1	1	2+0	0	3+0	0	2+0	0
22	MF	CAN	Noah Jensen	30	2	11+13	2	0+1	0	1+2	0	0+2	0
23	MF	CAN	Harry Paton	6	0	0+4	0	0+2	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
24	DF	ALB	Rezart Rama	34	1	23+2	1	2+0	0	5+0	0	2+0	0
27	FW	BEL	Victor Klonaridis	3	0	1+1	0	0+0	0	0+1	0	0+0	0
28	MF	CAN	Keito Lipovschek	4	0	1+3	0	0+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
29	GK	CAN	Christopher Kalongo	1	0	0+1	0	0+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
32	MF	CAN	Zayne Bruno	4	0	1+3	0	0+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
36	GK	CAN	Dino Bontis	1	0	1+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
41	FW	CAN	Amadou Koné	13	1	0+11	1	0+0	0	0+1	0	0+1	0
81	DF	ENG	Malik Owolabi-Belewu	15	0	7+4	0	1+1	0	2+0	0	0+0	0
Player(s) transferred out during this season
12	FW	CAN	Maxime Filion	20	3	1+14	3	0+0	0	0+3	0	0+2	0