Logo of the CPL–U Sports Draft

The CPL–U Sports Draft (French: Repêchage de la PLC–U Sports) is an annual event in which Canadian Premier League clubs select players from U Sports, Canada's governing body for university sports. The draft allows student-athletes to play professional soccer that year without affecting their university eligibility.[1]

Rules and procedure

Players are eligible to be drafted if they have one or more years of U Sports eligibility remaining and have declared for the draft.[2] Players who signed development contracts the previous year can be retained by their CPL clubs as long as they have U Sports eligibility remaining. Previously drafted players who do not sign and remain draft-eligible can re-enter the draft in subsequent years.[3]

The previous season's league standings, including playoffs and final standings, determine the draft order. The draft previously employed a "snake draft" format with the selection order reversing after each round, however this was discontinued after the 2021 draft.[4] Clubs have a window of time in which they must submit their pick, and failure to do so results in a pass. There is a break between each round, as well as one timeout per club.[5]

U Sports contract

Drafted players will get an invitation to the team's preseason camp, with the opportunity to earn a U Sports contract. The U Sports contract allows players to be paid to play in the CPL in the spring and summer, before returning to their university team before August 15 for the U Sports men's soccer season.[6] Players can also sign fully professional CPL standard contracts and forego their remaining university eligibility.[7]

Signed players can remain with their CPL club until the end of the season in early November by extending their U Sports contract. These players would be ineligible to participate in U Sports the same season as their contract but would regain eligibility the following year.[8]

List of drafts

Draft Season Date Rds Picks City First selection School Team Ref
2018 2019 November 12, 2018 3 21 Vancouver, British Columbia Gabriel Bitar Carleton Cavalry FC [9]
2019 2020 November 11, 2019 2 14 Montreal, Quebec Cory Bent Cape Breton HFX Wanderers [10]
2021 2021 January 29, 2021 2 16 Held virtually Thomas Gardner British Columbia FC Edmonton [11]
2022 2022 January 20, 2022 2 16 Held virtually José Cunha Cape Breton Atlético Ottawa [12]
2023 2023 December 15, 2022 2 16 Held virtually Anthony White Toronto Vancouver FC [13]
2024 2024 December 14, 2023 2 16 Held virtually Canada Owen Sheppard Cape Breton Valour FC [14]

References

  1. ↑ Dheenshaw, Cleve (October 17, 2018). "New Canadian Premier League to hold draft for university soccer players". Times Colonist. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
  2. ↑ "2021 CPL-U SPORTS Draft: The full prospect list". Canadian Premier League. January 26, 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
  3. ↑ "2021 CPL-U Sports Draft to take place on January 29". Canadian Premier League. 22 January 2021. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
  4. ↑ "Canadian Premier League announces date for 2022 CPL-U SPORTS Draft". canpl.ca. January 12, 2022. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  5. ↑ "CPL-U SPORTS Draft 101: Detailing the process of the CPL's inaugural university draft". canpl.ca. November 2, 2018. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
  6. ↑ "CPL to partner with U Sports on sharing talent". Sportsnet. The Canadian Press. October 17, 2018. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
  7. ↑ Tierney, Mitchell (March 22, 2023). "'There was no doubt': Vancouver FC sign CPL-U SPORTS Draft first overall pick Anthony White". Canadian Premier League.
  8. ↑ "2019 CPL-U Sports Draft announced, rules released". Canadian Premier League. October 30, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  9. ↑ Bedakian, Armen (November 12, 2018). "Draft order revealed: Cavalry FC gets 1st pick in inaugural CPL-U SPORTS Draft". canpl.ca. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
  10. ↑ "HFX selects Cape Breton's Cory Bent 1st overall in CPL-U SPORTS Draft". Canadian Premier League. November 11, 2019. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
  11. ↑ "FC Edmonton take UBC's Thomas Gardner 1st overall in CPL-U SPORTS Draft". Canadian Premier League. January 29, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  12. ↑ "2022 CPL-U SPORTS Draft: View all 16 picks here". Canadian Premier League. January 20, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  13. ↑ "Canadian Premier League teams add young talent to rosters via U Sports draft". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. December 15, 2022. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  14. ↑ "2024 CPL-U SPORTS Draft: Team-by-team breakdown of all 16 picks". Canadian Premier League. December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
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