8 CPL Thoughts: CSB / MediaPro strike a deal, the Winter of Fernando and the future of Triston Henry
Champions Cup. The Triston Henry dispute. An avalanche of signings.
The news, it seems, is now moving at a breakneck pace for CPL fans, meaning training camps — and therefore kickoff to the regular season — is just around the corner.
I've mentioned it before but this is what one of my favourite journalists (shoutout to Elliotte Friedman) likes to call silly season: anything can happen.
And this week, there were major reports regarding the broadcasting rights for the CPL and a dozen or so other topics ranging from investigations into the Triston Henry dispute to Vancouver FC parting ways with defender Ibrahim Bakare; it's been wild.
So, without further ado, here’s what I’m hearing across the league as we transition from off-season speculation to a more regular news cycle.
8 CPL Thoughts
1. CSB and MediaPro will stay married
The biggest news item this week was that CSB and MediaPro — who only recently had a very public falling out in front of all their friends — are getting back together. Martin Ross, a Scottish journalist writing for SportBusiness, broke the story on Friday. Ross reports that the upcoming CPL season will be broadcast on OneSoccer but the assets will be transferred to CSB. MediaPro, the company who owns OneSoccer, is still expected to wind down its operations in Canada after this season. However, Ross was unable to ascertain if Canada's national programs would be broadcast on OneSoccer or if this meant litigation had been postponed.
I made some calls and was able to corroborate Ross' reporting with sources close to the situation. In addition, I was able to confirm OneSoccer again holds the broadcast rights for the CPL, Canadian Championship and Canada's men's and women's national teams. The situation was described to me as Mom and Dad were fighting, it went public but they decided to make it work for 2024 given how much money it would cost to get divorced.
Overall, I think this is the best case scenario given the two sides are providing stability to the Canadian football landscape while they extricate themselves behind the scenes.
But for now, CSB and MediaPro will stay married for the kids.
2. Triston Henry, Forge are in the midst of a contract dispute
It's been just over a week since John Jacques of the Northern Tribune broke the story explaining Triston Henry's absence from Forge's CONCACAF Champions Cup matches. Shortly after he published, Henry put out two statements throwing cold water on the situation, urging people "not provide validity to any fictitious or fabricated claims." People then proceeded to drag Jacques reporting through the mud.
I had been doing my own investigating prior to the Northern Tribune story and was working to confirm the details. I didn't have the full story when I put out a Tweet on Feb. 10 but I had the bones of what Jacques had reported. When Henry put out his statements, I doubled my efforts.
I published my piece on Thursday and was able to confirm many details of Northern Tribune's story to be accurate with the wrinkle that Henry had informed Forge before the 2023 CPL season he wanted to leave because of an expiring green card. Everything else — besides the discussion reported concerning Forge clubrunner Bob Young and head coach Bobby Smyrniotis — is true to the best of my knowledge. Forge was contacted to comment for the story but declined.
At the end of the day, this is a contract dispute but speaks to how different clubs operate. Ben Fisk had an option with Cavalry this year but when he shared his wish to go to Vancouver, they decided not to exercise it. The same happened with the Wanderers and Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé the year previous. Forge was very much within their rights to exercise Henry's option but their lack of communication around the dispute — dubbing it a personal matter — is a bad look. Sources note Forge still hopes to receive a transfer fee for Henry despite the situation going public. Any permanent move is made much more difficult by the fact that training camps have already begun for MLS and USL clubs, meaning they have already tended to their needs.
A loan to a U.S. club, said one source, may be the best outcome at this time.
3. The Winter of Fernando
To delve into hockey for a moment, the summer of Pierre Dorion — the now defunct general manager of the Ottawa Senators — was a time for hope for the nation's capital. Every move Dorion made turned to gold and he was celebrated from Kanata to the Byward Market for his managerial prowess. It didn't end well for him but the Summer of Pierre lives on in memory.
We are currently witnessing the Winter of Fernando (I must give credit to CCSG's own Alex Brazier Rymek for this line).
Fernando López, Atlético Ottawa's CEO, is having himself perhaps the most impressive CPL off-season to date. I'd argue he needed to right the ship following last year's disappointing collapse and he's ponied up with the recruitments of local boys Matteo de Brienne and Kris Twardek, fan favourite Ballou Tabla, Golden Glove nominee Rayane Yesli and more. Atlético Ottawa kicked off this year's arms race in style.
Without getting into the salary cap discussion (I have work to do on that), the Winter of Fernando is impressive for a number of reasons. For one thing, the club's clearly done a good job engaging with their fans and listening to their feedback. What's perhaps more impressive is that López and company have been able to deliver their vision for 2024 in a way that gets pen to paper. Recruitment is a skill, and a valuable one at that, and López has the knack.
I was on the call which introduced 30-year old CPL veteran Jonathan Grant as Atléti's latest signing and was struck by how early López got to work pitching his vision.
“They were very adamant they wanted me here, part of the team,” said Grant, adding negotiations started almost immediately after the end of the regular season.
Obviously, there's a reason we watch the matches — there's a lot that can go wrong — but I expect the Winter of Fernando is going to be a lot more fondly remembered than the Summer of Pierre.
4. What's next for Aparicio?
OneSoccer's Josh Deming reported on Friday that Manny Aparicio, easily the most coveted CPL free agent this off-season, was close to making a decision on his future.
Both myself and TrueNorthFoot had previously covered the wide array of interest in the 28-year old Canadian-Argentine. From South America to MLS, USL and CPL clubs, Aparicio had a dizzying amount of interest early in the window. Toronto FC and the Vancouver Whitecaps, it was reported, were watching with interest.
But it is Feb. 18 and training camps are well underway across North America; the time to make a decision is now or risk being sidelined to start the year. I know Aparicio's priority was to try and join an MLS club but I don't know if it's going to happen this late in the window. Going back to my report in December, Aparicio — should he decide to come back — had his pick of the crop in the CPL. I can't emphasis enough that a deal hasn't been struck yet between Aparicio and Atlético Ottawa but if he comes back to the league, they're the frontrunners to land him. I checked with multiple sources following Deming's reporting and all fingers pointed towards López. It only takes one phone call for Aparicio to land somewhere else, even if just on a trial, so we'll see how this story develops moving forward but this could be the cherry on top for Atléti fans.
5. The departure of Ibrahim Bakare
Vancouver FC have quietly had a great off-season. They rebuilt their defence with a trio of quality local boys (Ben Fisk, Paris Gee, David Norman Jr.), had multiple youngsters training overseas and brought in some new attacking options, the latest being Mexican international José Navarro.
Amidst all of this positivity, the club announced the departure of defender Ibrahim Bakare.
Bakare, for better or worse, was one of the highlights of VFC's first year in the league, winning over fans with his bombastic personality. The club's media team took a shining to him and latched on to a good news story in an otherwise rough start.
But Bakare, like many of VFC's early recruitments, was flawed. He was asked to do too much, stretched too thin, and with the club's recent recruitment, made expendable. In many ways, announcing the departure of Bakare was the last bit of housekeeping for what can only be described politely described as a poor recruitment last year.
I am personally very interested to see how VFC fair with youngsters TJ Tahid and James Cameron being buoyed by their recent additions.
P.S. My podcast partner, Mitchell Bailey, and I had a chance to chat with Ben Fisk the other day and he is a delight. You can have a listen here.
6. Woobens Pacius is (finally) announced with Nashville FC
This one will be short and sweet: it took what felt like an eternity but 22-year old Canadian attacker Woobens Pacius was finally announced by Nashville. Canadian footy icon Patrice Bernier reported in December (!) that Pacius had secured an MLS deal but, for whatever reason, they sat on the news for months. Pacius was an elite player during his time with Forge. Over three seasons, he tallied an impressive 32 goals across 93 appearances.
"Woobens is a center forward who has already demonstrated the ability to finish scoring chances," general manager Mike Jacobs said in a press release. "He fits the profile we look for in an attacking player, and we are excited to see him take his next steps in his career here in Nashville."
Pacius is signed through the 2025 MLS season with options for 2026 and 2027.
7. Wanderers bag an experienced striker in Christian Volesky
The Halifax Wanderers have stuck to their guns and continued the tradition of Wanderers Wednesday this off-season. Some signings have been leaked but I think most fans were pleasantly surprised by the signing of 31-year American Christian Volesky.
Volesky, a natural striker, comes with goal scoring experience (76) but also has a knack for setting up his teammates, recording 23 assists across his decade as a professional. I had the chance to interview Volesky on Wednesday and was chuffed to discover he was on day two of a road trip that will eventually lead him to Nova Scotia. Aside from enjoying our conversation, I was impressed by Volesky’s profile and what he adds to the Wanderers on the pitch. He is also a veteran player and knows he will be leaned on to help 20-year old Tiago Coimbra reach his potential. But above everything else, he wants to win.
Volesky also represents the level of talent being attracted to the league as more and more players opt for the CPL above USL and MLS Next Pro contracts. The Wanderers beat out several USL clubs for Volesky's signature.
8. CONCACAF Champions Cup
Lost in everything else this week was the second leg of the Champions Cup matches. Forge had a tall task in trying to climb back about Chivas but put up a good fight, losing 5-2 on aggregate. The highlight for me was easily Kevaughn Tavernier's late match goal. With his tally, Tavernier became the third youngest Canadian ever to score in the Champions Cup and marked his first for the Hamilton club.
To me, Tavernier's goal highlighted all of the best things about the CPL. Here we had a young Canadian, trying to carve out a professional career, playing and delivering on the international stage against one of Mexico's biggest clubs. It's enough to bring a smile to anyone's face.
With Cavalry set to kickoff against Orlando City this week, I'm eager to get a glimpse of head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr.'s new squad.
You can follow the Wanderers Notebook on Facebook and Twitter @wanderersnotes. The Healey & Bailey Podcast is available where you get your podcasts.
Cover Photo Credit: The Canadian Press
