Valour FC

Valour Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The club competes in the Canadian Premier League and plays its home matches at IG Field.

Valour FC
Full nameValour Football Club[1]
FoundedMay 6, 2017 (2017-05-06)
StadiumIG Field, Winnipeg
Capacity33,234
OwnerWinnipeg Football Club
(community ownership)
PresidentWade Miller
CoachRob Gale
LeagueCanadian Premier League
2020Canadian Premier League, 6th
WebsiteClub website

The team is coached by Rob Gale and community owned through the Winnipeg Football Club.

History

On May 6, 2017, Winnipeg was one of two cities accepted by the Canadian Soccer Association for professional club membership when the Canadian Premier League was unanimously approved.[2] It was confirmed that Canadian Football League clubs the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats were behind the ownership groups.[3] Wade Miller, CEO of the Winnipeg Football Club, was named as the club's president.[4]

In May 2018, it was reported that the club would be called Valour FC.[5] On June 6, 2018 the club was officially unveiled as the fourth team to join the Canadian Premier League.[6] As well as confirming its place in the league for the 2019 launch season, the club also revealed its crest, colours and branding.[7] On June 26, the club named Rob Gale as the first head coach and general manager.[8]

Stadium

The club plays its home games at IG Field, a 33,234-seat Canadian football stadium.[9] The stadium opened in 2013 on the University of Manitoba campus next to University Stadium.[10] The stadium is also used by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, the University of Manitoba Bisons football team, and the Winnipeg Rifles.[11]

Crest and colours

The club's identity is heavily linked to the story of Winnipeg's Valour Road, and named to recognize Corporal Leo Clarke, Sergeant-Major Frederick William Hall, and Lieutenant Robert Shankland, who all lived on the same street and received the Victoria Cross for acts of bravery during the First World War.[12]

The letter "V" in the centre of the crest emulates a folded medal ribbon and also represents the meeting of the Red River and Assiniboine River in Winnipeg.[13] The right side of the "V" creates a "W" for Winnipeg, and the circle under the "V" is in the shape of the Victoria Cross medal. The wheat at the top of the crest represents Manitoba's agricultural industry.[14]

The official club colours are maroon, gold and black (branded by the club as "Valour maroon," "wheat gold," and "earth black"). These colours symbolize the ribbon of the Victoria Cross and the wheat fields and soil of the Canadian Prairies.[13]

Youth

On August 8, 2018, Valour FC Elite Girls (formerly the Manitoba Blizzard) was founded to give girls in Winnipeg an opportunity to travel to college showcases in the U.S and Canada, while getting educated on the recruiting process. The team will be led by Head Coach Jim Zinko and Manager Trevor Kidd. Training begins in the fall, while the Valour FC Elite Girls competition season runs from late November into April.[15]

Club culture

The club's mascot leans heavily on imagery of the Victoria Cross, being a lion named 'Vic'. He wears the club's colours on a t-shirt, shorts, and wristbands.[16]

Red River Rising Supporters group first met at Nicolino's Restaurant in January 2017, before a Winnipeg team was announced. The group met regularly in anticipation of an eventual Winnipeg team and now occupy section 144 at IG Field.[17] The section is known as The Trench.[18]

Players and staff

Roster

As of February 4, 2021[19][20]
No. Position Player Nation
0 Goalkeeper Matt Silva  Canada
2 Defender Raphaël Garcia  Canada
6 Midfielder Moses Dyer  New Zealand
7 Forward Masta Kacher  Algeria
8 Midfielder Diego Gutiérrez  Canada
9 Forward Austin Ricci  Canada
14 Midfielder Stefan Cebara  Canada
16 Forward Daryl Fordyce  Northern Ireland
17 Midfielder Brett Levis  Canada
27 Midfielder Raphael Ohin  Ghana
29 Defender Arnold Bouka Moutou  Congo
35 Defender Andrew Jean-Baptiste  Haiti
77 Forward Federico Peña  Trinidad and Tobago
Forward Ronny Maza  Venezuela
Midfielder Néstor Monge  Costa Rica
Defender Amir Soto  Panama
Forward Jared Ulloa (on loan from Sporting Cristal)  Peru

Out on loan

No. Position Player Nation
Midfielder Keven Alemán (on loan to Guadalupe)  Canada

Current staff

As of July 27, 2018
Executive
President Wade Miller
General manager Rob Gale
Coaching staff
Head coach Rob Gale
Assistant coach Damian Rocke[21]
Goalkeeping coach Patrick Di Stefani[21]

Head coaches

As of September 6, 2020
Coach Nation Tenure Record
GWDLWin %
Rob Gale  England June 26, 2018 – present 37 10 6 21 027.03

Club captains

Years Name Nation
2019 Jordan Murrell[22][23] Canada
2019–present Skylar Thomas[22] Canada

Records

Year-by-year

Season League Playoffs CC Continental / Other Average
attendance
Top goalscorer(s)
Div League Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts PPG Pos. Name Goals
2019[24] 1 CPL 28 8 4 16 30 52 –22 28 1.00 6th DNQ R2 DNQ 5,335 Marco Bustos 7
2020 CPL 7 2 2 3 8 9 –1 8 1.14 6th DNQ N/A Eight players 1

1. Average attendance include statistics from league matches only.
2. Top goalscorer(s) includes all goals scored in league season, league playoffs, Canadian Championship, CONCACAF League, and other competitive continental matches.

All-time most appearances

As of September 6, 2020
# Name Nation Career at club Games Played
CPL Cup Int'l Total
1 Diego Gutiérrez  Canada 2019–present 30 1 0 31
Dylan Carreiro  Canada 2019–present 30 1 0 31
3 Raphael Ohin  Ghana 2019–present 27 2 0 29
4 Marco Bustos  Canada 2019 25 2 0 27
5 Skylar Thomas  Canada 2019 22 1 0 23
Louis Béland-Goyette  Canada 2019 21 2 0 23
7 Jordan Murrell  Canada 2019 20 2 0 22
Tyler Attardo  Canada 2019 20 2 0 22
9 Adam Mitter  England 2019 20 1 0 21
10 Martín Arguiñarena  Uruguay 2019 18 2 0 20

Note: Bold indicates active player

References

  1. "Valour Football Club". Valour FC. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  2. O'Connor-Clarke, Charlie (May 6, 2017). "Canadian Premier League unanimously ratified by CSA". Waking the Red. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  3. Friesen, Paul (May 12, 2017). "New soccer league could work here". Winnipeg Sun. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  4. Golby, Travis (May 7, 2017). "Winnipeg scores spot in Canadian pro soccer league". CBC News. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  5. "The CanPL Hub on Twitter". Twitter. May 18, 2018. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  6. McIsaac, Greg (June 6, 2018). "Valour FC Joins Canadian Premier League". Canadian Premier League. Retrieved June 10, 2018.
  7. "Winnipeg entry in the Canadian Premier League to be called Valour FC". National Post. June 6, 2018. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  8. "Rob Gale named inaugural Head Coach & GM". Valour FC. June 26, 2018. Retrieved June 26, 2018.
  9. "Stadium Profile". valourfc.canpl.ca. Valour FC. June 6, 2018. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  10. "Investors Group Field costs balloon to $203.5M". CBC News. September 23, 2013. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  11. "Stadium History". Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  12. "Winnipeg entry in the Canadian Premier League to be called Valour FC". Vancouver Courier. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
  13. "Emblem Inspiration". valourfc.canpl.ca. Valour FC. June 6, 2018. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  14. "Valour FC announced as fourth CanPL team". The CanPL Hub. June 6, 2018. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  15. "Valour FC Elite Girls". valourfc.canpl.ca. Valour FC. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  16. "Meet Valour FC's mascot". Valour FC. canpl.ca. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
  17. Sawatzky, Mike (April 30, 2019). "Eager soccer fans will ensure Red River Rising all season long". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
  18. Sawatzky, Mike (May 4, 2019). "Soccer fans revved about Valour FC debut". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
  19. "Roster – Valour FC". Retrieved April 30, 2019.
  20. Ed Tait (January 15, 2021). "2021 Season Roster Update". Valour FC. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
  21. Sports; Soccer (March 2, 2019). "Valour FC fills coaching staff - National Post". Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  22. "Valour FC names Jordan Murrell, Skylar Thomas as inaugural captains". canpl.com. Canadian Premier League. April 24, 2019. Retrieved August 11, 2019.
  23. "Valour's Murrell apologizes for red card incident, steps down as captain". canpl.com. Canadian Premier League. August 7, 2019. Retrieved August 11, 2019.
  24. "Canadian Premier League". Canadian Premier League 2019 Standings. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
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