CALGARY, ALTA - Two first year members of the Cougars men's soccer team were selected by Calgary's Cavalry FC in the 2021 Canadian Premier League (CPL) draft. Victor Loturi was selected in the first round at the sixth spot, followed by teammate Ethan Keen in the second round as the eleventh pick overall.
The CPL announced the 16 draft picks from the 2021 CPL-U SPORTS draft during a live presentation held today. Sixteen players will be invited to CPL Clubs' preseason camp this year.Since 2018, at the conclusion of the U SPORTS Men's Soccer Championship, the CPL holds a draft for eligible U SPORTS men's soccer players who have registered and declared themselves 'available' to be selected through the League's annual draft. This draft is open to any eligible U SPORTS underclassman that register for the draft. The CPL-U SPORTS Draft consisted of two rounds, eight picks in each round.
The player draft picks were announced in succession on January 29, 2021 at 3:00pm ET on CanPL.ca, @cplsoccer Twitter, OneSoccer and CBC digital.
1st Round
| PICK |
CPL CLUB |
FIRST NAME |
LAST NAME |
SCHOOL |
POS. |
HOMETOWN |
ELIG. |
PROGRAM |
| 1 |
FC Edmonton |
Thomas |
Gardner |
UBC |
M |
North Vancouver, B.C. |
3 |
Arts |
| 2 |
Atlético Ottawa |
Cristopher |
Malekos |
Carleton |
D |
Saint-Hyppolyte, Que. |
4 |
Commerce |
| 3 |
Valour FC |
Yuba-Rayane |
Yesli |
Montreal |
GK |
Tizi-Ouzou, Algeria |
1 |
Kinesiology |
| 4 |
York United FC |
Christopher |
Campoli |
Ontario Tech |
M |
Woodbridge, Ont. |
2 |
Finance |
| 5 |
Pacfic FC |
Chris |
Lee |
UBC |
D |
West Vancouver, B.C. |
1 |
Kinesiology |
| 6 |
Cavalry FC |
Victor |
Loturi |
Mount Royal |
M |
Calgary, Alta. |
1 |
Open Studies |
| 7 |
HFX Wanderers FC |
Stefan |
Karajovanovic |
Carleton |
F |
Gatineau, Que. |
4 |
Criminology &
Criminal Justice |
| 8 |
Forge FC |
Garven |
Metusala |
Concordia |
D |
Terrbonne, Que. |
1 |
Economics |
2nd Round
| PICK |
CPL CLUB |
FIRST NAME |
LAST NAME |
SCHOOL |
POS. |
HOMETOWN |
ELIG. |
PROGRAM |
| 9 |
Forge FC |
Jose |
da Cunha |
Cape Breton |
D |
Cascais, Portugal |
1 |
Arts & Community Studies |
| 10 |
HFX Wanderers FC |
Kareem |
Sow |
Montreal |
D |
Sherbrooke, Que. |
3 |
Mechanical Engineering |
| 11 |
Cavalry FC |
Ethan |
Keen |
Mount Royal |
D |
Calgary, Alta. |
1 |
Business |
| 12 |
Pacfic FC |
Victory |
Shumbusho |
UBC |
F |
Chilliwack, B.C. |
4 |
Arts |
| 13 |
York United FC |
Danial |
Rafisamii |
Ontario Tech |
M |
Toronto, Ont. |
2 |
Liberal Studies |
| 14 |
Valour FC |
Tony |
Mikhael |
Carleton |
D |
Ottawa, Ont. |
3 |
Commerce |
| 15 |
Atlético Ottawa |
Reggie |
Laryea |
York |
D |
Toronto, Ont. |
4 |
Health Studies |
| 16 |
FC Edmonton |
Jackson |
Farmer |
UBC |
D |
Edmonton, Alta. |
4 |
Arts |
* The order of the draft was based off of the Club's regular season record over the course of the CPL's 2020 season (Island Games) and was formatted in a "snake draft" order with FC Edmonton receiving the first-round selection.
This truly unique partnership between the Canadian Premier League and U SPORTS provides student-athletes with an opportunity to be signed to a CPL-U SPORTS Developmental Contract that allows a student-athlete with one to five years of U SPORTS eligibility remaining to sign with a CPL Club, while preserving their eligibility before returning to U SPORTS competition.
Read more to learn more about the 2021 CPL-U SPORTS Draft here.
