As the regular seasons wind down in both the Canadian Premier League and Major League Soccer, some clubs can already turn their attention to potential qualification for next year’s Concacaf Champions Cup.
As in the past two seasons, Canada will have at least three representatives in next year’s competition, with the possibility of a fourth if results break the right way.
- Canadian Championship winner
- Canadian Premier League first-placed team (CPL Shield)
- Canadian Premier League playoff winner (North Star Cup)
The Whitecaps have been enjoying a great season, reaching the Champions Cup final and staying in the top five across MLS.
Still alive in the Canadian Championship, they have multiple pathways to next year’s continental tournament. Winning the Voyageurs Cup would secure their berth, but their strong league form also keeps things interesting.
MLS sends five teams to the competition—four through the regular season: the first-placed team in each conference, plus the next two highest teams in the Supporters’ Shield standings that haven’t already qualified. With Vancouver near the top, this could provide another route if they don’t lift the cup.
If the ’Caps qualify via league play—either by winning MLS Cup or finishing in one of those four regular-season spots—while also winning the Voyageurs Cup, it would guarantee a fourth Canadian representative in next year’s Champions Cup, with Vancouver FC, the finalists, securing the berth.
With the Canadian Premier League also having two spots in the Champions Cup, it'd mean three CPL clubs in the continental stage.
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The Canadian Premier League
Forge and Ottawa are in pole position to finish in the top two this Canadian Premier League season, with the first-placed team being awarded a Champions Cup spot.
With one of them almost certain to claim the league’s first-place berth, that would leave one Canadian spot available: the CPL playoff champion.
While only Vancouver FC has been eliminated from playoff contention at the moment, it’s highly likely that the five postseason participants will be Forge, Ottawa, Cavalry, Halifax, and York United.
Distribution
The three spots Canada is given are distributed like this:
- Canadian Championship winner
- Canadian Premier League first-placed team (CPL Shield)
- Canadian Premier League playoff winner (North Star Cup)
Additionally, the three Canadian MLS clubs can qualify via league play with one of the following spots:
- MLS Cup winner (playoff winner)
- 1st place in the Eastern Conference
- 1st place in the Western Conference
- Next-most points in the Supporters' Shield
- Next-most points in the Supporters' Shield
The Vancouver Whitecaps could realistically grab four of the available MLS spots (not five, since they don’t compete in the Eastern Conference).
They currently sit third in the Western Conference, four points off leaders San Diego with two games in hand. In the Supporters’ Shield race, they’re sixth overall, trailing first-placed Philadelphia by five points, also with two games less.
Toronto FC and CF Montréal have both been eliminated from MLS playoff contention, officially ruling them out of the 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup.
What happens when a team has multiple slots? 🤔
In this case, the spots are distributed in the following order of priority:
Canadian Premier League:
- First-placed team & playoff winner (two teams)
- Best-placed CPL team in the regular season not yet qualified
In the CPL, if a team wins both the regular season and the playoffs, the 2nd-best team in the regular season takes one of the spots.
Canadian Championship 🇨🇦🏆:
- Winner
- Runner-up
- Semi-finalist with the best results in the quarter-finals and semi-finals
- The last remaining semi-finalist
It’s important to note that league positions take precedence over cup berths. If a team qualifies through both, they will be assigned the league spot, and the cup spot will be passed on to another team, which is what would allow Vancouver FC to qualify.
