Joel Waterman
Canadian soccer player (born 1996)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joel Robert Waterman (born January 24, 1996) is a Canadian soccer player who plays as a centre-back, right-back or defensive midfielder for Portland Timbers of Major League Soccer and the Canada national team.
|
Waterman with Canada in 2026 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Joel Robert Waterman[1] | ||
| Date of birth | January 24, 1996 | ||
| Place of birth | Surrey, British Columbia, Canada | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[2] | ||
| Positions | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Chicago Fire | ||
| Number | 16 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Aldergrove Youth SC | |||
| Langley United | |||
| Surrey United SC | |||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2014–2019 | Trinity Western Spartans | 56 | (9) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016 | Kitsap Pumas | 11 | (0) |
| 2017 | TSS FC Rovers | 11 | (0) |
| 2018 | Calgary Foothills | 14 | (0) |
| 2019 | Cavalry FC | 21 | (1) |
| 2020–2025 | CF Montréal[a] | 130 | (4) |
| 2025–2026 | Chicago Fire | 21 | (2) |
| 2026– | Portland Timbers | 1 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2022– | Canada | 17 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of September 5, 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of March 31, 2026 | |||
Early life
Waterman began playing soccer at age five with Aldergrove Youth SC.[3][4][5] At age 12, he joined Langley United.[6] Afterwards, he played with Surrey United SC.[7]
When he was 13, he made the British Columbia provincial team.[6] In 2013, he represented British Columbia at the 2013 Canada Summer Games[6] and also had a brief trial with the Vancouver Whitecaps Academy, but did not make the squad.[8]
University career
In 2014, he began attending Trinity Western University, where he played for the men's soccer team,[9][10] committing to them when he was in Grade 11.[11] Ahead of his fifth season, he was named the team captain,[12] and helped them win a Canada West silver medal and finished fourth at the National Championship.[13][14] He was also named a Canada West First Team All Star that season.[15][16]
Club career
Early career
In 2016, Waterman played in the US-based Premier Development League side Kitsap Pumas and made eleven league appearances,[17] while also appearing in two US Open Cup matches.[18] In 2017, Waterman played with Vancouver-based TSS FC Rovers in the PDL, where he made eleven appearances.[19] In 2018, Waterman played for Calgary Foothills in the PDL, making fourteen league appearances and another three in the playoffs as Foothills won the PDL Championship.[20][21]
Cavalry FC
At the 2018 CPL–U Sports Draft, Waterman was drafted in the second round by Cavalry FC on November 13, 2018.[22] Initially, he had not planned on declaring for the draft, instead looking at potentially going to Europe or the United States, however, two days before the registration deadline, he decided to register.[23] He officially signed with Cavalry on February 6, 2019.[24][25]
Waterman made his professional debut for Cavalry in their inaugural game against York9 FC on May 4.[26] He scored his first goal for Cavalry on October 5 against HFX Wanderers FC.[27] He helped Cavalry win the Spring and Fall championships[28] and helped them reach the CPL finals, where they finished second,[29] where he was unable to play in the second leg after being sent off in the first leg for a hand ball.[30] In December 2019, Cavalry announced Waterman would return to the club for the 2020 season.[31]
CF Montréal
On January 14, 2020, Waterman transferred to Major League Soccer club Montreal Impact.[32][33] With this transfer, Waterman made history as the first ever player from the Canadian Premier League to be sold to an MLS club.[34][35] He made his debut for the Impact on February 19 against Saprissa in a CONCACAF Champions League match.[36] He made his MLS debut for the Impact in their season opener against the New England Revolution on February 29.[37] Upon completion of the 2021 MLS season, CF Montréal announced that they would be exercising the option on Waterman's contract for 2022.[38]
In 2022, he became a regular starter for the club.[39] During the 2022 season, he scored his first goal for Montreal against Orlando City on May 7, netting the opener in an eventual 4-1 victory.[40] On August 4, he scored in the fourth minute of stoppage time to secure a 2-1 win over the Columbus Crew.[41] In March 2023 Waterman signed a new contract with Montreal through 2024, with an option for 2025.[42][43] In November 2024, Waterman would sign a contract extension through the 2027 season, with an option for 2028.[44]
Chicago Fire
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In August 2025, Waterman was traded to Chicago Fire FC in exchange for $500,000 in General Allocation Money and $100,000 in performance-based money.[45] He made his debut for his new club on September 13 against New York City FC in a 3-1 defeat.[46] Waterman scored his first goal for the Fire on September 20 against Minnesota United, netting the opening goal in an eventual 3-0 victory.[47]
International career
He was called up to the Canadian senior national team for the first time for a national team camp in January 2021.[48] He earned several more call-ups to the squad during 2021 and 2022.[49][50][51] On November 11, 2022, he made his debut for Canada in a friendly against Bahrain.[52] On November 13, Waterman was named to Canada's squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[53]
In June 2024, Waterman was named to Canada's squad for the 2024 Copa América, as an injury replacement for Junior Hoilett.[54] In July 2025, he was called up to Canada's team for the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[55] In May 2026, Waterman was named to Canada's 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[56]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played September 5, 2026[57]
| Club | Season | League | Playoffs | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Kitsap Pumas | 2016[17] | PDL | 11 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 0 | |||
| TSS FC Rovers | 2017[19] | PDL | 11 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 11 | 0 | ||||
| Calgary Foothills FC | 2018[20] | PDL | 14 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 17 | 0 | |||
| Cavalry FC | 2019 | Canadian Premier League | 21 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 25 | 1 | ||
| CF Montréal | 2020 | Major League Soccer | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | ||
| 2021 | 22 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | — | — | 25 | 0 | |||||
| 2022 | 30 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 36 | 3 | |||
| 2023 | 28 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 33 | 1 | |||
| 2024 | 25 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 30 | 0 | |||
| 2025 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 3 | 0 | 24 | 1 | |||
| Total | 130 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 158 | 5 | ||
| Chicago Fire | 2025 | Major League Soccer | 6 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 9 | 1 | |||
| 2026 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 18 | 1 | |||
| Total | 21 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 28 | 2 | ||
| Portland Timbers | 2026 | Major League Soccer | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Career total | 207 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 18 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 250 | 8 | ||
International
- As of match played March 31, 2026[58]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | 2022 | 2 | 0 |
| 2023 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2025 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2026 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 17 | 0 | |
Honours
Club
Calgary Foothills
Cavalry FC
- Canadian Premier League Finals
- Runners-up: 2019
- Canadian Premier League (Regular season):
- Champions: Spring 2019, Fall 2019
CF Montreal
Notes
- Montreal Impact changed its name to CF Montréal in 2021