2025 Canadian Premier League final
The 2025 Canadian Premier League final was the seventh edition of the CPL Finals, the post-season championship of the Canadian Premier League, the top level of Canadian soccer, which determined the winner of the 2025 Canadian Premier League season. It was played on November9, 2025 at TD Place Stadium in Ottawa, Ontario between Atlético Ottawa and Cavalry FC. The hosts, Atlético Ottawa, clinched their first league championship.
Amid snowy conditions that caused the national women's league playoffs to be postponed, the decision was made to proceed with the final. The weather resulted in the match being stopped five times during regulation time to clear away snow, and the start of extra time was delayed by an hour to allow snowplows to clear more of the pitch. Ottawa won 2–1 with two goals from David Rodríguez. The match attracted significant international media coverage both for the wintery weather and for Rodríguez's first goal, a bicycle kick that was widely dubbed the "icicle kick".
Path to the final
The 2025 CPL season was contested by eight teams. Each team played four games against each of the seven opponents for a total of 28 matches. The top-five teams from the regular season qualified for the playoffs, which begin on October22. The playoffs featured a Page playoff format where teams entered in different rounds depending on their finishing position. All matches in the playoffs were played as single legs. The final was contested by the winners of the first and second semifinals.Background
Atlético Ottawa
Atlético Ottawa reached the CPL final for the second time in its six seasons of play. Ottawa lost its previous final in 2022.Cavalry FC
Cavalry FC was the defending champion, having won the league for the first time in 2024. It reached the CPL final for the third year in a row and the fourth time in its seven seasons of play.Head-to-head
In the 2025 regular season, Ottawa defeated Cavalry three times and the teams drew once. This was the first time that the teams met in a postseason.Venue
TD Place Stadium in Ottawa, Ontario, home of Atlético Ottawa, was the host stadium for the final. This was determined by the outcome of the playoffs' first semifinal on October26 between regular season winner Forge FC and second seed Atlético Ottawa; Atlético Ottawa won the match 2–1.The match took place in heavy snowfall and subzero temperatures. Play was paused several times to clear snow from the field, resulting in the match taking over three hours to complete including extra time. During regular time only the lines and penalty areas were able to be kept clear, but the snowfall lessened as the match went on and the field was made nearly snow-free for extra time.