| First played | 2011 |
|---|---|
| Editions | 14 |
| Region | Canada[a] |
| Most recent winners | Vancouver Whitecaps FC (2024, 4th win) |
| Most finals won | Toronto FC (6)[n 1] |
| Most appearances | Toronto FC (11) |
| Top scorer(s) | Jozy Altidore Sebastian Giovinco (4 goals each) |
| Television broadcasters | OneSoccer (since 2019) |
 2024 Canadian Championship final | |
The Canadian Championship final is the championship match or two match aggregate series to determine the winner of the Canadian Championship. It was first held in 2011 following Canada Soccer's decision to replace the round-robin format with a knockout competition to reduce fixture congestion for the participating teams.
From 2008 to 2010, the Canadian Championship was played as a round-robin tournament between Canada's three professional soccer clubs: the Montreal Impact, Toronto FC, and Vancouver Whitecaps FC.[1] In 2011, the addition of FC Edmonton to Canadian professional soccer meant that a league format would require each participant to play six matches instead of four, something that was unpopular with the participating clubs' players and staff.[2] The round-robin format was also responsible for the controversial end of the 2009 Canadian Championship, which brought about further demand for a change in format, where a team could not suffer due to the results of a match between two other teams.[citation needed] The addition of a fourth team also meant that they could instead run the competition as an even two round tournament with no team requiring byes. It was decided in 2011 that the competition would be reformatted to have a two-legged semifinal round, of which the winners would then face each other in a single match final hosted by the higher seeded team.[citation needed] Before the beginning of the competition, this format was slightly amended once more so that the final would also be played over two legs.[3]
As more Canadian teams were created and gained access into the Canadian Championship in the late 2010s, all rounds including the final would start to be played as a single match starting in 2021, with the host team being determined by draw at the beginning of the competition.[4]
In 2024, Canada Soccer brought back the usage of two-legged ties for the quarter-final and semi-final rounds, but the final remained as a single match.
Toronto FC are the most successful team in the finals, having won it six times.[n 1] Since its inception, a non-Major League Soccer club has only reached the final once, due to a revised competition format for the shortened 2020 season where the Canadian Premier League automatically gained a berth into the final.
Despite playing in five semi-finals, FC Edmonton were never able to reach the finals during their eleven seasons of professional soccer.
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- ^ "Canada to create new club championship". Canadian Soccer Association. January 31, 2008. Archived from the original on February 29, 2008. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
- ^ Rollins, Duane (December 12, 2010). "Format of Canadian Championship may change". Major League Soccer. Archived from the original on March 22, 2011. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
- ^ "Association confirms 2011 Nutrilite Canadian Championship schedule". Canada Soccer. February 18, 2011. Archived from the original on March 23, 2014. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
- ^ "Canada Soccer announces 2021 Canadian Championship format and schedule". Canada Soccer. Retrieved June 8, 2023.