After having to travel to Halifax and Hamilton to play the quarter-final and semi-final matches, CF Montreal will host the Canadian Championship grand final against Toronto FC on Sunday, November 21 at 1 p.m. .
Canada Soccer confirmed the news in a statement early Tuesday evening.
This will be the third time in the past five years that the two clubs have crossed swords in the final. The last meeting between these two great rivals in such circumstances dates back to September 2019, when the Montreal Impact had earned the 10e Travelers’ Cup in its history, after winning 3-1 in the shootout.
At the time, the two clubs had played a series of two home and away matches. The Impact won the first leg 1-0 at Saputo Stadium on September 18. Exactly a week later, Toronto FC won the second leg by the same score at BMO Field, forcing a shootout.
In 2020, the final was to pit Toronto FC against Forge FC, a Hamilton team playing in the Canadian Premier League. This meeting was suspended due to COVID-19.
The 2021 final will serve as a bit of a consolation prize, too, for the two Canadian teams, who were unable to carve out a berth for the MLS playoffs.
Badly injured during the season, Toronto FC were ruled out following a 2-0 loss to Atlanta United on October 16. For its part, after a season clearly beyond expectations, CF Montreal suffered elimination last Sunday at Saputo Stadium, on the last day of the calendar, after a 2-0 loss against Orlando City SC.
In the regular season in MLS, the two clubs played three games. CF Montreal won the first two 4-2, on April 17 in Fort Lauderdale, and 3-1 on August 27 at Saputo Stadium. On October 23 at BMO Field, Toronto FC snatched a 1-1 draw with a goal from Jozy Altidore in the 95e minute of play.
“The Canadian Championship is the flagship tournament for professional clubs in Canada, giving direct access to the 2022 edition of the CONCACAF Champions League. This year we had a bigger format than in the past with 13 participating clubs from four leagues, ”Nick Bontis, president of Canada Soccer, recalled in the statement.