2025 Northern Super League season
Women's professional soccer league season
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The 2025 Northern Super League season was the inaugural season of the Northern Super League, the top level of women's Canadian soccer. The season started on April 16 and concluded with the final on November 15.[1]
November 1–15 (playoffs)
(1st title)
| Season | 2025 |
|---|---|
| Dates | April 16 – October 19 (regular season) November 1–15 (playoffs) |
| Champions | Vancouver Rise FC (1st title) |
| Supporters' Shield | AFC Toronto |
| Matches | 75 |
| Goals | 194 (2.59 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | DB Pridham (18 goals) |
| Biggest home win | AFC Toronto 7–0 Vancouver Rise (September 13) |
| Biggest away win | Halifax Tides 0–6 Vancouver Rise (July 19) |
| Highest scoring | AFC Toronto 7–0 Vancouver Rise (September 13) |
| Longest winning run | 5 matches AFC Toronto (June 11 – July 15) |
| Longest unbeaten run | 8 matches Vancouver Rise (July 19 – September 6) |
| Longest winless run | 15 matches Halifax Tides (July 15 – October 15) |
| Longest losing run | 5 matches Calgary Wild (August 23 – September 17) |
| Highest attendance | 14,518 AFC Toronto 0–1 Montreal Roses (April 19) |
| Lowest attendance | 953 Ottawa Rapid 5–0 Halifax Tides (August 28) |
| Total attendance | 272,496 |
| Average attendance | 3,633 |
2026 →
All statistics correct as of October 19, 2025. | |
Vancouver Rise defeated Toronto in the final 2–1 to win the inaugural title.
Teams
Six clubs participated in the inaugural season.
Stadiums and locations
| Team | Results | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calgary Wild FC | details | Calgary, Alberta | McMahon Stadium | 35,400 |
| Halifax Tides FC | details | Halifax, Nova Scotia | Wanderers Grounds | 7,500 |
| Montreal Roses FC | details | Laval, Quebec | Centre Sportif Bois-de-Boulogne | 5,581 |
| Ottawa Rapid FC | details | Ottawa, Ontario | TD Place Stadium | 24,000 |
| AFC Toronto | details | Toronto, Ontario | York Lions Stadium[note 1] | 4,000 |
| Vancouver Rise FC | details | Burnaby, British Columbia | Swangard Stadium[note 2] | 4,500 |
Personnel and sponsorship
| Team | Head coach | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calgary Wild | Hummel[2] | None | ||
| Halifax Tides | IWK Foundation[3] | |||
| Montreal Roses | None | |||
| Ottawa Rapid | None | |||
| AFC Toronto | Desjardins[4] | |||
| Vancouver Rise | None |
Coaching changes
| Team | Outgoing coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming coach | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Halifax Tides | Reassigned | June 29, 2025[5] | 6th | June 30, 2025[5] |
Regular season
Format
Each club played 25 matches during the season, playing each other club five times.[6] The top four clubs advanced to the two-legged semifinals, with the winners advancing to a single championship match on November 15.[1][6]
Standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AFC Toronto (S) | 25 | 16 | 3 | 6 | 42 | 24 | +18 | 51 | Advance to playoffs |
| 2 | Ottawa Rapid | 25 | 11 | 6 | 8 | 41 | 26 | +15 | 39[a] | |
| 3 | Vancouver Rise (C) | 25 | 11 | 6 | 8 | 38 | 36 | +2 | 39[a] | |
| 4 | Montreal Roses | 25 | 10 | 6 | 9 | 30 | 23 | +7 | 36 | |
| 5 | Calgary Wild | 25 | 9 | 2 | 14 | 26 | 42 | −16 | 29 | |
| 6 | Halifax Tides | 25 | 3 | 7 | 15 | 17 | 43 | −26 | 16 |
Rules for classification: 1) Head-to-head points; 2) Head-to-head goal difference; 3) Overall goal difference; 4) Most wins; 5) Most goals scored; 6) Least goals conceded; 7) Least red cards; 8) Least yellow cards; 9) Drawing of lots.[7]
(C) Champion; (S) Supporters' Shield winner
Notes:
- Head-to-head points tied 7–7; head-to-head goal difference: Ottawa Rapid +3, Vancouver Rise –3
Results
Positions by matchweek
Playoffs
In July 2025, it was announced that BMO Field in Toronto would host the final.[8]
Bracket
| Semi-finals | Final | |||||||||
| 1 | AFC Toronto | 2 | 4 | 6 | ||||||
| 15 November – Toronto | ||||||||||
| 4 | Montreal Roses | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||
| 1 | AFC Toronto | 1 | ||||||||
| 3 | Vancouver Rise | 2 | ||||||||
| 2 | Ottawa Rapid | 1 | 2 | 3 (4) | ||||||
| 3 | Vancouver Rise (p) | 2 | 1 | 3 (5) | ||||||
Semi-finals
Summary
The first legs were played on November 1 and 4, and the second legs were played on November 8 and 10, 2025.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montreal Roses | 1–6 | AFC Toronto | 0–2 | 1–4 |
| Vancouver Rise | 3–3 (5–4 p) | Ottawa Rapid | 2–1 | 1–2 (a.e.t.) |
| Vancouver Rise | 2–1 | Ottawa Rapid |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
Final
| AFC Toronto | 1–2 | Vancouver Rise |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
Statistical leaders
All stats are for the regular season only, and do not include playoffs
- As of October 19, 2025[11]
Top scorers
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ottawa Rapid | AFC Toronto | 4–0 (A) | June 7 | [12] | |
Top assists
Clean sheets
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vancouver Rise | 9 | |
| 2 | Ottawa Rapid | 7 | |
| 3 | AFC Toronto | 6 | |
| Montreal Roses | |||
| 5 | Calgary Wild | 5 | |
Attendance
- As of October 27, 2025
| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Median | Average | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vancouver Rise | 50,936 | 14,018 | 1,900 | 3,877.5 | 4,245 | n/a |
| 2 | AFC Toronto | 48,699 | 14,518 | 1,319 | 2,849 | 4,058 | n/a |
| 3 | Halifax Tides | 50,900 | 5,508 | 2,891 | 3,872 | 3,915 | n/a |
| 4 | Calgary Wild | 43,761 | 8,552 | 1,803 | 2,942 | 3,366 | n/a |
| 5 | Montreal Roses | 38,649 | 5,049 | 2,100 | 2,987.5 | 3,221 | n/a |
| 6 | Ottawa Rapid | 39,551 | 6,980 | 953 | 2,887 | 3,042 | n/a |
| League total | 272,496 | 14,518 | 953 | 3,053 | 3,633 | n/a |
Source: NSL
Awards
Northern Super League Awards
| Award | Recipient | Ref |
|---|---|---|
| Golden Boot | [13] | |
| Golden Glove | [14] | |
| Assist Leader | [15] | |
| Rookie of the Year | [16] | |
| Goalkeeper of the Year | [17] | |
| Defender of the Year | [18] | |
| Midfielder of the Year | [19] | |
| Forward of the Year | [20] | |
| Player of the Year | [21] | |
| Coach of the Year | [22] | |
| Goal of the Season | [23] | |
| NSL Final MVP | [24] |
Team of the Season
The Team of the Season was voted by the players.
| Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
[25] |
Monthly Awards
| Player of the Month | ||
|---|---|---|
| Month | Player | Ref |
| July | [26] | |
| August | [27] | |
| September | [28] | |
| October | [29] | |
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weekly Awards
Foreign players
Rosters consisted of 20–25 players, of which a maximum of eight could be international players.[158]
The following international players were signed for the 2025 season. Note that players may be considered domestic for NSL purposes (Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or refugees) while still representing other countries in international competitions.
| Club | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Player 4 | Player 5 | Player 6 | Player 7 | Player 8 | Injured | Former |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AFC Toronto | ||||||||||
| Calgary Wild FC | ||||||||||
| Halifax Tides FC | ||||||||||
| Montreal Roses FC | ||||||||||
| Ottawa Rapid FC | ||||||||||
| Vancouver Rise FC | ||||||||||
Broadcasting
All 75 Northern Super League regular season matches were available nationally across multiple platforms. TSN aired 20 regular season games, while CBC broadcast 8.
French-language coverage was available for all Montreal Roses matches. RDS broadcast 21 matches, while 4 matches aired live on ICI Radio-Canada Télé and ICI TOU.TV.
In addition to linear broadcasts, a "Game of the Week" streamed on CBC Gem and NSL.ca, while 24 additional matches streamed on TSN+ and NSL.ca.[159][160]
In the United States, ESPN+ streamed 40+ matches including select playoff games and the final.[161]