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Calgary Foothills FC

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Calgary Foothills WFC.

Calgary Foothills Football Club is a Canadian soccer club based in Calgary, Alberta, that competes in League1 Alberta (L1AB). The club was founded as a youth club in 1972 and joined as a USL2 franchise in 2015. The team plays its home games at the Foothills Composite High School in Okotoks.[1][2][3] The team colours are green and white.[4]

Calgary Foothills
Full nameCalgary Foothills Football Club
Short nameCFFC
Founded1972; 52 years ago (1972)
StadiumFoothills Composite High School
Head coachJay Wheeldon
LeagueLeague1 Alberta
2024L1AB, 2nd
Playoffs, Finalists
Websitehttps://gofoothills.ca/
Current season

History

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Calgary had previously hosted the Calgary Storm of USL2 (then known as Premier Development League) during the 2001 season.[5] Calgary Foothills FC launched in 2014 as they played a series of exhibition games against Vancouver Whitecaps U 23's,[6] FC Edmonton Reserves,[7] and local university clubs.

The club's inaugural game was played on May 17, 2015 against Puget Sound Gunners FC, winning 2–1.[8][9] The club finished 4th in the Northwest Division in 2015 with a 3–2–7 record, ultimately missing the playoffs.

In the 2016 season, Calgary Foothills won the Northwest Division with an 8–3–3 record, despite only 4% of supporters predicting the club would win the division.[citation needed] In the playoffs, Calgary Foothills would defeat Seattle Sounders U-23, FC Golden State Force, and FC Tucson to win the Western Conference.[10][11] Calgary Foothills would later defeat Ocean City Nor'easters in the semifinals to advance to the 2016 final against Michigan Bucks.[12][13] Calgary would lose the final 3–2 on a controversial penalty decision in the 86th minute.[14]

In the 2017 season, despite losing key players Elijah Adekugbe and Dominic Russo to injury, Calgary Foothills would improve on their point total from the season before, finishing second in the Northwest Division on goal differential to Portland Timbers U-23. The club would lose to Portland in the Northwest Division play-in game.[15] Off the pitch, the club would open an $11 million indoor training facility, the first of its kind in Western Canada.[16]

After playing in three stadiums in three years, and struggling to find a venue that met league standards in Calgary, the club would move 20 km south to the town of Okotoks for the 2018 season to play at Foothills Composite High School stadium.[17][18] Prior to the start of the season, the club made headlines when Canadian national women's team goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé would try out for the USL2 squad.[19][20] The club would have their best season to date during 2018, only losing once in 14 games, and would become Western Conference champions after defeating Colorado Rapids U-23 and FC Tucson.[21] Foothills would advance to the league final for the second time in three seasons after defeating Chicago FC United,[22] and would win the 2018 Championship 4–2 after extra time, over Reading United AC.[23]

The Foothills played in Saskatoon for the first ever SK Summer Soccer Series which is hosted by the Saskatchewan Selects. The Foothills defeated the Selects 2–1 in front of 3,067 people.

In April 2020, Calgary Foothills announced their withdrawal from the 2020 USL League Two season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[24] That same month, the league announced the 2020 season would be cancelled.[25]

In 2023, they joined League1 Alberta, playing in the league's exhibition series, ahead of the official launch the following season. In 2023, they won the league's exhibition series championship.[26]

Youth system

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The Foothills have a full youth academy system from ages U4-U18 for boys and girls. Teams play in the Calgary Minor Soccer Association (CMSA) Tiers 1–6. The Generation program consists of the top players in U15 and U17 boys and girls. These teams are prepared to qualify and compete for the Canada Soccer Toyota National Championship.

Supporters' groups

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The Foot Soldiers were founded in February 2015 with the intention of bringing a passionate atmosphere to Calgary Foothills FC games.[27]

Coaching staff

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Roster

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As of 28 March 2024

[29]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK   USA Anthony Martinez
— GK   CAN Liam Collens
— DF   ENG Cameron Kilbride
— DF   CAN Joey Plenzik
— DF   CAN Hyunsoo Ryu
— DF   CAN Noah Hrdlicka
— DF   PHI Miguel Mendoza
— MF   CAN Miguel Da Rocha
— MF   CAN Owen Antoniuk
— MF   CAN Max Piepgrass
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF   CAN Gianmarco Plenzik
— MF   CAN Skyler Rogers
— FW   CAN Soliman Aria
— FW   NGA Emmanuel Dan-Adokiene
— FW   CAN Josh Flaksman
— FW   CAN Charles Nana
— FW   CAN Garry Onyejelem
— FW   CAN Owen Sheppard

Notable former players

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USL2/L1AB Squad

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  • Canadian women's national team goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé had a tryout with the team in preparation for the 2018 season, posting a shutout against the Lethbridge Pronghorns men's soccer team.[30]

    • Foothills Academy

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  • Source: Calgary Foothills FC

    • Club records

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    Most appearances

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    League and playoffs

    # Pos. Name Nation Career League Playoffs Total
    1 Forward Tofa Fakunle   Canada 2015–2019 51 9 60
    2 Defender Dean Northover   Canada 2015–2018 49 9 58
    3 Midfielder Nico Pasquotti   Canada 2016–2018 38 10 48
    4 Midfielder Elijah Adekugbe   Canada 2015–2018 38 8 46
    5 Defender Dominick Zator   Canada 2015–2018 36 9 45
    6 Forward Ajeej Sarkaria   Canada 2016–2018 33 9 42
    7 Midfielder Kyle Jones   Canada 2016–2018 35 5 40
    8 Forward Dominic Russo   Canada 2015–2017 31 6 37
    9 Forward William Akio   Canada 2017–2019 29 6 35
    10 Defender Jonathan Wheeldon   England 2015–2018 28 6 34

    Bolded players are currently on the Calgary Foothills roster.

    As of July 22, 2019

    Top goalscorers

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    League and playoffs

    # Pos. Name Nation Career League Playoffs Total
    1 Forward Dominic Russo   Canada 2015–2017 11 4 15
    2 Forward William Akio   Canada 2017–2019 13 1 14
    3 Forward Ali Musse   Canada 2017–2018 7 5 12
    4 Forward Moses Danto   Canada 2018–2019 11 0 11
    5 Forward Tofa Fakunle   Canada 2016–2019 8 2 10
    6 Midfielder Kyle Jones   Canada 2016–2018 7 1 8
    7 Midfielder Nico Pasquotti   Canada 2016–2018 4 3 7
    8 Midfielder Elijah Adekugbe   Canada 2015–2018 6 0 6
    Forward Ajeej Sarkaria   Canada 2016–2018 4 2 6
    10 Midfielder Aribim Pepple   Canada 2019 3 1 4

    Bolded players are currently on the Calgary Foothills roster.

    As of July 22, 2019

    Record

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    Year-by-year

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    Season League Division Teams Record Rank Playoffs Ref
    2015 Premier Development League Northwest Division 7 3–7–2 4th did not qualify
    2016 7 8–3–3 1st Championship Final
    2017 6 8–4–2 2nd Divisional Qualification
    2018 6 11–2–1 1st Champions
    2019 USL League Two Northwest Division 6 9–2–3 1st Conference Semifinals
    2020 Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
    2021 Did not play due to COVID-19 pandemic travel restrictions
    2022 Did not play
    2023 League1 Alberta Exhibition Series 5 6–2–0 1st Champions
    2024 League1 Alberta 7 7–2–3 2nd Finalists

    Honours

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    • USL League Two
      • National Champions: 2018
      • Western Conference Champions: 2016, 2018
      • Northwest Division Champions: 2016, 2018

    Player honours

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    Year Pos Player Country Honour
    2016 F Dominic Russo   CAN All-League Team
    All-Western Conference Team
    2018 GK Marco Carducci   CAN Goalkeeper of the Year
    All-League Team
    All-Western Conference Team
    2018 F Moses Danto   CAN All-League Team
    All-Western Conference Team
    2018 M Elijah Adekugbe   CAN All-Western Conference Team
    2018 M Nico Pasquotti   CAN All-Western Conference Team
    2018 D Dominick Zator   CAN All-Western Conference Team

    References

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    1. ^ Calgary Foothills FC [@FoothillsFCU23] (April 23, 2016). "Looking forward to our new home ground for the 2016 Season #Glenmore #Calgary #Soccer #Path2Pro" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
    2. ^ MacKinnon, Jeff (December 4, 2014). "Foothills join upper level soccer league; USL development loop welcomes Calgary squad beginning in 2015. The teams jersey sponsor is Celtic Power Canada". Calgary Herald. p. B14.
    3. ^ "Foothills FC joins Under-23 soccer league". Calgary Sun. December 3, 2014. Archived from the original on June 28, 2015. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
    4. ^ "PDL Expands to Calgary Alberta". Premier Development League (PDL). December 3, 2014. Archived from the original on April 15, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
    5. ^ Weismiller, Bryan (March 17, 2014). "Canadian Soccer Association OKs pro-calibre Calgary team". Metro Calgary. Archived from the original on May 5, 2015. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
    6. ^ MacKinnon, Jeff (June 9, 2014). "Foothills edge Whitecaps in U23 match". Calgary Herald. p. C2.
    7. ^ MacKinnon, Jeff (April 18, 2014). "New U23 franchise to kick off exhibition season". Calgary Herald. p. D2.
    8. ^ MacKinnon, Jeff (April 26, 2015). "Foothills FC cites fitness concerns in exhibition loss to Edmonton". Calgary Herald. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
    9. ^ MacKinnon, Jeff (May 17, 2015). "Foothills FC clinch home opener 2-1 over Gunners". Calgary Herald. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
    10. ^ David Bell (July 28, 2016). "Calgary soccer underdogs defy odds, score their way to semifinals". CBC.
    11. ^ Rita Mingo (July 24, 2016). "Foothills FC crowned PDL Western champions". Calgary Herald.
    12. ^ Daniel Austin (July 30, 2016). "Foothills FC beats Ocean City Nor'easters, advances to PDL championship". Calgary Herald.
    13. ^ Aaron Cranford (August 1, 2016). "Foothills FC Relishes Huge Victory". USL PDL official website. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
    14. ^ Danny Austin. "Foothills FC falls just short in PDL final". Calgary Herald.
    15. ^ Daniel Austin (July 22, 2017). "Calgary's Foothills FC developing into premier soccer franchise". Calgary Herald.
    16. ^ Bill Kaufmann (June 16, 2017). "Foothills set to open massive indoor soccer field house in southeast Calgary". Calgary Herald.
    17. ^ "Foothills FC visits its new home". Western Wheel. March 21, 2018. Archived from the original on March 31, 2018. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
    18. ^ Tanis Gillis (March 29, 2018). "New Game in Town for Okotoks Sports Fans". Okotoks Online.
    19. ^ Danny Austin (March 13, 2018). "Canadian women's national team keeper Stephanie Labbé joins Foothills FC". Calgary Sun.
    20. ^ Kevin Smith (March 19, 2018). "Team Canada women's soccer goalkeeper looks to make Calgary FC men's squad". Global News.
    21. ^ Daniel Austin (July 28, 2018). "Foothills FC aims to keep the fairytale alive". Calgary Sun.
    22. ^ Paul Kennedy (July 29, 2018). "PDL: Roberts and Musse lead Reading United and Calgary Foothills FC into final". Soccer America Daily.
    23. ^ "Calgary Foothills FC win 2018 PDL championship". Total Soccer Project. August 4, 2018.
    24. ^ "Northern Exposure: TSN ranks the 10 best Canadian men's national team players". Waking the Red. April 9, 2020.
    25. ^ "United Soccer League Provides Update on 2020 Seasons". United Soccer League. April 30, 2020.
    26. ^ "Inaugural League1 Alberta soccer crown awarded to Foothills FC men". Calgary Sun. July 30, 2023.
    27. ^ "Foot Soldiers - Who Are We". Retrieved April 14, 2015.
    28. ^ "Foothills FC Staff". Calgary Foothills Soccer Club. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
    29. ^ "2022-23 Men's Soccer Roster". Calgary Foothills FC.
    30. ^ "Canada's top female keeper Labbe eyes job with men's soccer squad". CBC. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
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