Years from now, head coach Diego Mejía, Finals MVP David Rodríguez, and their Atlético Ottawa teammates will be able to sit around a fireplace on a night like Sunday, with hot beverage in hand, and recount their tales of the unforgettable winter wonderland that was the 2025 Canadian Premier League Final.
Like so many other times in the league’s seven-year history, the inclement weather laid the groundwork for an instant classic as Ottawa defeated Cavalry FC, 2-1 in extra time, to hoist the North Star Cup.
Even before a single ball was kicked, the stage was set; both figuratively and literally, as mother nature deposited a blizzard upon Ottawa, enough to trigger a snowfall warning from Environment Canada, in the first dusting of the season for the nation’s capital.
After postponements earlier in the day to AFC Toronto and Montréal Roses’ NSL semi-final in Toronto, and in the women’s U SPORTS National Championships in Hamilton, a 20-minute delay put the CPL Final in jeopardy as crews rushed to clear as much snow possible off the TD Place Stadium turf.
But, for as long as the ball could roll across the snow, it was always going to be green light and go. Even if Atlético Ottawa goalkeeper Nathan Ingham had to, himself, pick up a shovel.
“It makes my job so much easier when I have a guy like Nate behind me, and for all of us at the back. It’s so much easier for us to defend, and potentially make mistakes, and [Ingham] to clean it up. During a whole season, you need those leaders, and especially your goalkeeper, so I’m just super happy we have him in the team and I’m glad he could save us again today.”
- Loïc Cloutier
NATHAN INGHAM IS SHOVELLING! ❄️
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) November 9, 2025
🔴 Watch the #CanPL final LIVE on OneSoccer, TSN & FuboTV pic.twitter.com/AfS6WIaIcD
The weather clearly had its impacts from the off, as each side got to grips with both their footings and with whatever tactical ideas they could preserve from their all-but-dry training sessions earlier in the day — not even touching on the player safety and on-field quality conversations that sprouted leading up to kick-off.
Within just the first five minutes, Rodríguez was margins away from sending Ottawa’s famous Section W (or, ‘the Dub’) into raptures as Marco Carducci slipped on a clearance, but could only find the stanchion with his audacious chip attempt.
It was Cavalry who drew first blood, pulling out the script from last year’s final, as the slippery conditions led to Kévin Dos Santos fouling tricky winger Goteh Ntignee inside the barely visible 18-yard box, despite quarter-hourly stoppages to clear the lines.
All Fraser Aird, who had stepped up on Cavalry’s last conversion this season, had to do was send Nate Ingham diving the wrong way in front of a frosty reception from the Ottawa crowd.
GOAL ⚽️
— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) November 9, 2025
Fraser Aird puts @CPLCavalryFC ahead from the spot in the 2025 final 🔥
🔴 Watch the #CanPL final LIVE on OneSoccer, TSN & FuboTV pic.twitter.com/xh7NsqCA6Q
As with any inclement weather match in the CPL, the chaos was far from over.
In truth, it had barely begun, notwithstanding a shouting match between the two sidelines as Cavalry’s substitutes were nowhere to be found on their bench. Instead, taking in the match from the comfort of their dressing room, under the guise of the allowances made at last summer’s Club World Cup.
The tempo found another level in the 41st minute as Ottawa equalized through a Puskás Award-worthy goal from Rodríguez, at long last blowing the (non-existent) roof off the Dub.
In a league that has seen curlers, screamers, and even an olimpico in previous finals, Rodríguez rose from the turf and pulled off an overhead kick that crashed off the underside of Carducci’s crossbar to add just another footnote in the tale of the tape for this final.
GOAL 🦖
— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) November 9, 2025
DAVID RODRIGUEZ ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!!!
BICYCLE KICK GOAL IN THE 2025 CANADIAN PREMIER LEAGUE FINAL TO LEVEL THINGS UP FOR @atletiOttawa 🤯🤯🤯
🔴 Watch the #CanPL final LIVE on OneSoccer, TSN & FuboTV pic.twitter.com/4RhNsBI4zH
With tactics clearly out the window, the second half was no slouch either, especially for both goalkeepers.
70 minutes on and with no end in sight for a match that was quickly looking like a snow globe, Golden Glove nominee Carducci was called upon as Ballou Tabla struck a low shot under the leg of Daan Klomp at full extension.
Marco Carducci denies Ballou Tabla 🧤
— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) November 10, 2025
🔴 Watch the #CanPL final LIVE on OneSoccer, TSN & FuboTV pic.twitter.com/7IGKGAvvSt
Not to be outdone at the other end, quick reactions from Ingham and substitute Aboubacar Sissoko allowed the home side to maintain their stature in the tie in full do-or-die fashion, first denying Klomp, then Eryk Kobza, both up the pitch for a wide Warschewski free kick.
How have @CPLCavalryFC not scored?! 🤯🤯
— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) November 10, 2025
🔴 Watch the #CanPL final LIVE on OneSoccer, TSN & FuboTV pic.twitter.com/6L331Di1vW
So, off to extra time it was — with another lengthy delay, if fans weren’t already nervous on behalf of their teams — as the league took an extended 45-minute pause to fully clear both halves of the pitch.
A marathon season in the books, it would only be fitting for the title and a CONCACAF Champions Cup berth to come down to a final half-hour where both teams’ quality might be able to shine over luck and fortuitous bounces off the snow.
“I think [the fans] got everything you could’ve asked for in a Final. Two really good teams that got put through a big, big test, weather wise, condition wise, for ninety minutes, but then allowed ourselves to clear the field and then show what the product we can put on the field actually is. I hope those last thirty minutes were pretty exciting for neutral fans, and both Cavalry and Ottawa fans. You guys got everything today.”
- Sergio Camargo
Rodríguez would be that ounce of quality amidst the still-icy pitch for Ottawa in the 107th minute, when Manny Aparicio, the engine of Ottawa’s midfield, lofted a ball over the top of the Cavalry back line for the loanee to run onto.
Carducci hesitating on whether or not to come off his line was all eventual Finals MVP Rodríguez needed to loft the ball over the Cavalry keeper and cement his name in CPL Finals history.
“We had the extra game last week, it was always going to come down to one moment. We fought tooth and nail with it. Even though the snow was cleared, it was slick, it was like an ice rink, I think it felt more like a zamboni. The lads said it was skipping up right and that’s probably what caused the ball over the top for [Aird and Carducci] to deal with, because you don’t know how it’s going to pick up. It wasn’t one that was going to be pretty football, but then again, I guess Finals aren’t. It’s just the nature of the beast, they got the extra goal, we didn’t, but it wasn’t for the lack of trying.”
- Tommy Wheeldon Jr
GOAL 🦖🦖
— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) November 10, 2025
DAVID RODRIGUEZ SCORES AND @atletiOttawa HAVE THE LEAD IN EXTRA TIME!! 🔥🔥
🔴 Watch the #CanPL final LIVE on OneSoccer, TSN & FuboTV pic.twitter.com/IXD0NGe6sc
After the heartbreak against Forge FC three seasons ago, the win was redemption for Ottawa, securing their first-ever title in club history. All with the youngest — and "best team" — as first-year CPL coach Mejía reminded fans and media alike all season long.
“You know what is the most impressive thing for me? There doesn’t exist a plan to plan in the snow. We need to play with pride, with our hearts, with our heads, and then at the beginning of the match, those guys started to play even in the snow, in the same way we played all season.
I think that it’s fair to say now: this is the best season ever for a team in the CPL. We are champions, only losing two matches in the league, and two matches all year. No one did that before. It’s incredible the feeling that I have right now, I’m really happy for the team.”
- Diego Mejía
It’s hard to argue that now with Atlético Ottawa sitting on the top step of the Canadian Premier League, and a North Star Cup in their cabinet.
