Cavalry FC

Cavalry Football Club, is a Canadian professional soccer club based in the Calgary metropolitan region of Alberta. The club competes at the top of the Canadian soccer league system in the Canadian Premier League, and plays their home matches at ATCO Field on the grounds of Spruce Meadows in Foothills County.

Not to be confused with Virginia Cavalry FC.

Cavalry FC
Full nameCavalry Football Club[1]
Short nameCavs[2][3][4]
FoundedMay 5, 2018 (2018-05-05)
Ground
Capacity6,000
OwnerSpruce Meadows Sports & Entertainment
PresidentIan Allison
CoachTommy Wheeldon Jr.
LeagueCanadian Premier League
2022Canadian Premier League, 3rd
Playoffs: semifinals
WebsiteClub website
Active teams of Cavalry FC

The team is managed by Tommy Wheeldon Jr. and owned by Spruce Meadows Sports & Entertainment.[5]

History

On May 5, 2018, Calgary was one of four cities accepted by the Canadian Soccer Association for professional club membership.[6]

Cavalry FC was announced on May 17, 2018, as the second team to officially join the Canadian Premier League.[7] Spruce Meadows Sports & Entertainment Group CEO Linda Southern-Heathcott and COO Ian Allison were joined by league commissioner David Clanachan and league president Paul Beirne to unveil the team.[8]

The club's name, crest and colours were all revealed at the event at Spruce Meadows, while Tommy Wheeldon Jr. was announced as head coach and general manager.[9][10] Plans to renovate existing facilities at Spruce Meadows, resulting in a soccer-specific stadium with a capacity of at least 5,000 seats, were also revealed.[11][12]

On June 26, 2019, Cavalry FC qualified for the 2019 Canadian Premier League Championship by winning the inaugural CPL Spring season.[13] The following month the Cavs became the first CPL club to defeat a Major League Soccer club in the Canadian Championship by upsetting Vancouver Whitecaps FC in 2019 over two-legs.[14]

A game between Cavalry FC and HFX Wanderers FC during the CPL's inaugural season in 2019.

Goalkeeper Marco Carducci became the first CPL player called up to the Canada men's national soccer team when, on August 28, 2019, he was requested for a pair of Nations League A matches against Cuba.[15]

Colours and crest

The team's crest was designed by Jon Rogers. The crest features a chevron in homage to the Lord Strathcona's Horse armoured regiment, Alberta Foothills and Rocky Mountains, and a football to represent the past and future of Calgary as a sporting city.[12]

The club's colours are green, red and black (branded by the club as "army green," "Calgary red," and "black on black"). These colours symbolize the green of Calgary's nature and Spruce Meadows, and the red and black of other Calgary sports teams and the flag of Lord Strathcona's Horse.[16]

Stadium
View of ATCO Field from section 203. The field is used by Cavalry FC for home games.

Cavalry FC play at ATCO Field, a 6,000-seat stadium[17] located at Spruce Meadows, at the 'Meadows on the Green' equestrian ring.[18][19] The stadium is modular to allow for future growth and uses natural grass. In September 2019, Spruce Meadows presented a new area plan to Foothills County, that includes a 12,000 seat soccer-specific stadium on the grounds that would replace ATCO Field over the next 30 years.[20][21]

Club culture

Supporters

Cavalry FC is supported by several groups. The Foot Soldiers, seated in 200, are a group originally formed in 2015 to support USL League Two club Calgary Foothills and the Calgary Foothills UWS team. In the lead-up to the first match their numbers swelled. They are also joined by the Mighty 109 / 108 who sit on the other side of the entrance arch and the Front Line Ultras. [22]

Rivalries

Al Classico

A game between Cavalry and Forge FC

The Al Classico existed with FC Edmonton as a geographical rivalry between the two Alberta-based clubs in the Canadian Premier League. The rivalry is part of a larger sporting rivalry between teams based in Calgary and Edmonton; the two largest cities in the province.[23] The Wildrose Cup was awarded annually to the team that wins the most points from the series in league play (excluding 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic), which Cavalry won each year until FC Edmonton ceased operations in 2022.[24]

Cavalry FC–Forge FC rivalry

The Cavalry FC–Forge FC rivalry developed during the 2019 spring season as the two top clubs in the league.[25] The rivalry bled into the 2019 Canadian Championship in which Cavalry defeated Forge 3–2 over two legs on aggregate. The first leg, which resulted in a 1–1 draw, ended with heated altercations between both sides on the pitch, leading to a disciplinary review by the Canadian Soccer Association.[26]

Honours

Players and staff

Roster
As of September 3, 2023[27]
No. Position Player Nation
1 GK Marco Carducci  Canada
2 DF Roberto Alarcón  Spain
3 DF Callum Montgomery  Canada
4 DF Daan Klomp  Netherlands
5 DF Bradley Kamdem  France
6 MF Charlie Trafford  Canada
7 FW Ali Musse  Somalia
8 MF Jesse Daley  Australia
9 FW Myer Bevan  New Zealand
10 MF Sergio Camargo  Canada
12 MF Tom Field  Republic of Ireland
14 FW Ethan Beckford  England
15 DF Udoka Chima  Nigeria
17 MF Ben Fisk  Canada
18 MF Maël Henry  Canada
19 MF William Akio  South Sudan
20 FW Joe Mason  Republic of Ireland
21 GK Sterling Kerr  Canada
23 MF Gareth Smith-Doyle  Canada
24 MF Eryk Kobza  Canada
26 MF Shamit Shome  Canada
28 MF Niko Myroniuk  Canada
29 DF Michael Harms  Canada
31 GK Joseph Holliday  Canada
33 MF Fraser Aird  Canada

Out on loan
No. Position Player Nation
11 MF José Escalante (on loan to Motagua)  Honduras
30 FW Goteh Ntignee (on loan to Annecy)  Benin

Staff
As of February 8, 2023[28]
Executive
Owner, chairman, and CEO Canada Linda Southern-Heathcott
President and COO Canada Ian Alisson
General manager England Tommy Wheeldon Jr.
Assistant general manager Canada Tofa Fakunle
Coaching staff
Head coach England Tommy Wheeldon Jr.
Technical director and assistant coach England Leon Hapgood
Assistant coach Canada Nik Ledgerwood
Goalkeeper coach Canada Jordan Santiago

Head coaches
As of October 23, 2022
Coach Nation Tenure Record
GWDLWin %
Tommy Wheeldon Jr.  England May 17, 2018 – present 111 58 22 31 052.25

Club captains
Years Name Nation
2019–2021[29] Nikolas Ledgerwood  Canada
2022[30] Mason Trafford  Canada

Record

Year-by-year
Season League Playoffs CC Continental Average
attendance		 Top goalscorer(s)
DivLeaguePldWDLGFGAGDPtsPPGPos.NameGoals
2019 1 CPL 2819545119+32622.21 1stRU SF Ineligible 3,292 Republic of the Congo Dominique Malonga13
2020 CPL 105141411+3161.60 –DNQ DNQ DNQ N/A England Jordan Brown
England Nathan Mavila		 3
2021 CPL 2814863430+4501.79 2ndSF QF 2,544 Republic of Ireland Joe Mason8
2022 CPL 2814593933+6471.68 3rdSF QF 3,492 Republic of Ireland Joe Mason8

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.

International competition
Scores and results list Cavalry FC's goal tally first.
Year Competition Round Opponent Home Away Aggregate
2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup Round One

Reserve team

Cavalry operates a reserve team, Cavalry FC U21, in League1 Alberta.[31]

References
  1. "Cavalry Football Club Joins Canadian Premier League". Canadian Premier League. May 17, 2018. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
  2. Saelhof, Todd (August 28, 2019). "Cavs 'keeper Carducci gets call up to Canadian national team". Montreal Gazette.
  3. "CPL, Canadian soccer reacts to Cavs' historic win". Canadian Premier League. Retrieved August 29, 2019.
  4. Adams, J.J. (July 24, 2019). "Whitecaps Game Day: Everything on the line in Canadian Championship showdown with Cavalry". The Province.
  5. "Cavalry FC, Calgary's new professional soccer team, to debut in 2019". Yahoo. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
  6. "Four clubs get pro membership from Soccer Canada; expected to join CPL". TSN. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  7. "Spruce Meadows unveils name of Calgary's pro soccer team". Sportsnet. May 17, 2018. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  8. "Canadian Premier League reveals Calgary team "Cavalry FC"". Waking The Red. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  9. Rieger, Sarah. "Cavalry FC, Calgary's new professional soccer team, to debut in 2019". CBC. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
  10. "Cavalry FC announced as second Canadian Premier League club". Sporting News. May 17, 2018. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  11. "Calgary welcomes Canadian Premier League team - 660 NEWS". 660 NEWS. May 17, 2018. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  12. Austin, Daniel. "'Cavalry FC' the Canadian Premier League team in Calgary". The Calgary Sun. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
  13. Saelhof, Todd. "Cavalry FC scores first-ever CPL honour by winning spring season title". Calgary Sun. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  14. Adams, J.J. "Cavalry FC 2, Whitecaps 1: Vancouver's Canadian Championship is over; the MLS season, too". The Province. Retrieved August 5, 2019.
  15. Jaques, John (August 28, 2019). "Marco Carducci Becomes First CPL Player To Get Canada Call-Up". Northern Tribune. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  16. "Emblem Inspiration". canpl.ca. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  17. Kanygin, Jordan (September 18, 2018). "New 12,000-seat soccer stadium part of Spruce Meadows future plan". CTV News Calgary. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
  18. White, Ryan (December 27, 2018). "Construction underway on new soccer stadium at Spruce Meadows ahead of CPL launch". CTV News. Retrieved December 28, 2018.
  19. Austin, Daniel (May 18, 2018). "'Cavalry FC' the Canadian Premier League team in Calgary". Calgary Herald. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  20. "New 12,000-seat soccer stadium part of Spruce Meadows future plan". Calgary. September 18, 2019. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  21. McGarvey, Dan (September 19, 2019). "12,000-seat Cavalry FC soccer stadium and field house part of future vision of Spruce Meadows". CBC News. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  22. Armen Bedakian (July 11, 2018). "Supporter's Voice | Sean Clarke, Foot Soldiers SG". Cavalry FC. Archived from the original on April 27, 2019. Retrieved July 18, 2018.
  23. Van Diest, Derek (June 7, 2018). "Edmonton the next stop for Canadian Premier League". Edmonton Sun. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
  24. John Jacques (September 12, 2019). "Cavalry FC Wins First Silverware With Wildrose Cup". Northern Tribune. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
  25. "Cavalry FC vs. Forge FC developing into CPL's best rivalry". Sportsnet. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  26. Spencer, Donna (June 12, 2019). "Cavalry FC advance to face Whitecaps in 3rd round of Canadian Championship". CBC News.
  27. "Roster". cavalryfc.canpl.ca. Cavalry FC. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  28. "Coaching Staff". Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  29. "Cavalry FC Announces the Retirement of Team Captain Nik Ledgerwood". Cavalry FC. January 31, 2022. Retrieved June 20, 2022.
  30. Vickers, Aaron (April 8, 2022). "Mason Trafford named Cavalry FC captain for 2022 CPL season | Offside". dailyhive.com. Retrieved June 20, 2022.
  31. Saelhof, Todd (May 12, 2023). "Cavalry, soccer scene boosted by arrival of under-21 squad". Calgary Sun.
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