The Ontario Cup, the Provincial Soccer Championship, is the largest competition of its kind in Canada, and is Ontario Soccer’s flagship property.
The Ontario Cup is one of the oldest sporting events in Canada, first staged in 1901 and operated continuously since that date (with the exception of World War 2).
The Ontario Cup involves close to 12,000 athletes, from Windsor’s Roselands to Thunder Bay’s Sleeping Giant, from the Nation’s Capital to Niagara Falls.
The competition commences in May, with over 500 teams being drawn into either a Knock-Out round or a Round-Robin style tournament, leading to a pre-determined set of venues throughout the Province for the Semi-Finals held in August.
It culminates with the Final Round at The Soccer Centre in Vaughan, with the added prize of a National Club Championship in the Under 15's, Under 17's, Men’s and Women’s divisions.
The Ontario Cup, the provincial soccer championships, has recently involved over 500 teams. The competition begins in May, and finishes with the Cup Finals in September to determine a championship team in each of the twenty divisions:
Male
Under 13 Boys, Under 14 Boys, Under 15 Boys Tier 1, Under 15 Boys Tier 2, Under 16 Boys Tier 1, Under 16 Boys District, Under 17 Boys, Under 18 Boys, Under 21 Men, Men, Special Olympics
Female
Under 13 Girls, Under 14 Girls, Under 15 Girls, Under 16 Girls, Under 16 Girls District, Under 17 Girls, Under 18 Girls, Under 21 Women, Women, Special Olympics
The Ontario Cup is open to any competitively registered team in Ontario. Entry Forms are available online in early March and the deadline for entering is the end of March.
In the Ontario Cup:
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Youth age divisions(Under 13 to Under 18), play in Tournament Rounds which lead to Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals and the Cup Finals.
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Under 21 Men's and Under 21 Women's play a Single-Game Knock-out Format leading to the Semi-Finals and Cup Finals on one weekend in late July.
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Men's, Women's and Special Olympics' divisions play a Single-Game Knock-out Format leading to the Cup Finals in September.
National Championships take place in three age levels, Under 15, Under 17 and Senior Open. The Ontario Cup winners in those age divisions advance to the National Championships which are usually played on Thanksgiving weekend in various provinces across Canada.
Masters Provincial Championships:
This provincial championship is for Over-35 Men's teams and Over-30 Women's teams. The competition is played in the Single-Game Knock-out Format leading to the Provincial Championships in late August. The winning Masters Men's team advances to Canada Soccer's Eastern Regional Championships, and the winning Masters Women's team advances to Canada Soccer's Western Regional Championships held in late September.
