Canadian Premier League reveals 2026 CPL-U SPORTS Draft class
The Canadian Premier League (CPL) today revealed the 2026 CPL-U SPORTS Draft class, as 16 student athletes from 14 Canadian universities took a step closer to professional soccer experience after they were selected by the CPL’s eight member clubs.
The annual draft, presented by Degree, was this year headlined by Calin Calaidjoglu, a forward from Montreal, Que., who was selected first overall by the newest CPL side, FC Supra du Québec. Calaidjoglu was drafted out of Université de Montréal and has previously represented League1 Québec club FC Laval.
As the CPL’s most recent addition, FC Supra received the first two selections in the 2026 CPL-U SPORTS Draft. This is the second time a new CPL side made the first two selections in the CPL-U SPORTS Draft, after expansion side Vancouver FC was awarded the first two picks in the 2023 iteration.
Vancouver FC was also the lone club to select three players over the course of the broadcast of the two-round draft on Friday afternoon, after acquiring an additional first-round pick from Inter Toronto FC (formerly York United FC) as part of the Gabriel Bitar transfer announced in January 2025.
This year’s proceedings were hosted by OneSoccer’s Adam Jenkins and Gareth Wheeler, and were available to viewers via OneSoccer and the CPL Soccer YouTube channel.
Now selected, players will be invited to preseason training with their prospective club, where they can compete for a roster spot for the 2026 CPL season. A player signed to a CPL-U SPORTS Contract can maintain his U SPORTS eligibility while earning professional experience in the CPL; each CPL club can sign a maximum of three U SPORTS players to its developmental roster during a single season.
The complete 2026 CPL-U SPORTS Draft results are as follows:
ROUND 1
|
PICK # |
CLUB |
PLAYER |
SCHOOL |
LEAGUE1 CLUB |
POSITION |
BIRTHPLACE |
|
1 |
FC Supra |
Calin Calaidjoglu |
Université de Montréal |
FC Laval |
Midfielder |
Montreal, Que. |
|
2 |
FC Supra |
Alexandre Marcoux |
Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières |
CS Saint-Laurent |
Forward |
Victoriaville, Que. |
|
3 |
Vancouver FC |
Joseph Green |
Mount Royal University |
N/A |
Defender |
Winnipeg, Man. |
|
4 |
Pacific FC |
Archie Tugwell |
University of Victoria |
N/A |
Defender |
Victoria, B.C. |
|
5 |
Vancouver FC |
Matheus De Souza |
University of Fraser Valley |
Langley United |
Goalkeeper |
Surrey, B.C. |
|
6 |
Halifax Wanderers FC |
Harvey Hughes |
Cape Breton University |
Calgary Foothills Soccer Club |
Fullback |
Southhampton, England |
|
7 |
Cavalry FC |
Emmanuel Dan-Adokiene |
Trinity Western University |
Calgary Foothills Soccer Club |
Forward |
Calgary, Alba. |
|
8 |
Forge FC |
Noah Bickford |
Toronto Metropolitan University |
Simcoe Country Rovers |
Defender |
Milton, Ont. |
|
9 |
Atlético Ottawa |
Gabriel Tardif |
Brock University |
Ottawa South United |
Midfielder |
Ottawa, Ont. |
ROUND 2
|
PICK # |
CLUB |
PLAYER |
SCHOOL |
LEAGUE1 CLUB |
POSITION |
BIRTHPLACE |
|
1 |
Vancouver FC |
Nicolas Nadeau |
University of British Columbia |
N/A |
Fullback |
Winnipeg, Man. |
|
2 |
Pacific FC |
Luke Norman |
University of British Columbia |
Burnaby FC |
Midfielder |
Vancouver, B.C. |
|
3 |
Inter Toronto FC |
Michael Williams |
York University |
Inter Toronto Pathway |
Goalkeeper |
Kingston, Ont. |
|
4 |
Halifax Wanderers FC |
Kautchy Andji-Yapi |
Université de Moncton |
N/A |
Forward |
Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire |
|
5 |
Cavalry FC |
Luc Ihama |
Toronto Metropolitan University |
Simcoe County Rovers |
Fullback |
Barrie, Ont. |
|
6 |
Forge FC |
Maxime Bourgeois |
Université de Sherbrooke |
Celtix Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu |
Midfielder |
Granby, Que. |
|
7 |
Atlético Ottawa |
Joseph Daher |
Carleton University |
N/A |
Midfielder |
Ottawa, Ont. |