HAMILTON, Ontario – CF Montréal will head to Hamilton Stadium to take on Forge FC in the first leg of the 2025 TELUS Canadian Championship quarterfinals this Tuesday at 7pm EDT (OneSoccer, BPM Sports, TSN 690).
CF Montréal and Forge FC will face each other in a fifth consecutive Canadian Championship. The Montrealers eliminated Forge in the first three series between both clubs (2021: semifinals, 2022: quarterfinals, 2023: semifinals) while the Hamilton club eliminated Montreal in 2024 (quarterfinals).
The Bleu-blanc-noir holds a 3-1-1 overall record (7 goals for, 3 goals against) against Forge FC and a 1-0-1 record (1 goal for, 1 goal against) when playing in Hamilton.
CF Montréal made its way to the quarterfinals by eliminating Toronto FC in penalty kicks following a 2-2 draw in the preliminary round back on April 30. Defender Joel Waterman scored Montreal's first goal and forward Giacomo Vrioni forced a penalty shootout by scoring his very first goal in a Bleu-blanc-noir uniform. Goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois made two saves during the penalty shootout to help the Montrealers advance to the next round.
Forge FC booked its ticket to the quarterfinals with a 3-1 victory over Halifax Wanderers at Hamilton Stadium on May 7. Forward Mo Babouli, currently the tournament’s leading scorer netted two goals while Halifax defender Kareem Sow added an own-goal.
Forge is participating in the TELUS Canadian Championship for the seventh time in its history. The club’s best result was as runner-up in the 2020 final, which was played on June 4, 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Forge lost to Toronto FC in a penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw.
The return leg of the quarterfinals will be played at Stade Saputo on Wednesday, July 9 at 7pm EDT. The winner of the home and away series will continue on to the semifinals. The four semi finalists will know their opponents following a draw.
The tournament’s semifinals will also be a home and away series, while the final will be a single-elimination match. The TELUS Canadian Championship champions will lift the Voyageurs Cup and will earn qualification for the 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup.
