First Woman To Play In The QMJHL in 22+ Years
Canadian Championship Amplifying Soccer. Mike Tyson's Latest Bite. Eve Gascon Is Set To Make History.
Our thoughts are with the country and people of Ukraine, hoping a peaceful end is near.
On Today’s Agenda:
Canadian Championship Amplifying Soccer
Mike Tyson's Latest Bite
Eve Gascon Is Set To Make History
Canadian Championship Results in New Opportunities
Players, Clubs, and Fans all have a Chance to Benefit from the Competition
For most amateurs or semi-professional English football players, playing in an FA Cup match against a top division club might be the pinnacle of their career. The magic of the FA Cup, with all of its historic upsets, last-minute winners, and tightly contested finals has made it a truly iconic competition across world football. Since its creation in 1871, almost every other nation in the world has copied the tournament in their home country, including Canada.
Ever since 2008, Canada Soccer has organized the Canadian Championship, an annual tournament to decide the best Canadian football team of that year, similar to the likes of the FA Cup in England. The winner is awarded the Voyageurs Cup and a place in the CONCACAF Champions League, an international tournament in North and Central America that is equivalent to the UEFA Champions League in Europe. It’s safe to say that for Canadian clubs, there is quite a lot to play for.
From 2018 to 2019, the competition underwent a drastic change following the foundation of the Canadian Premier League, the newest top-tier football league in Canada. Canada Soccer decided that CPL clubs automatically qualified for the tournament and also included the League1 Ontario and Première Ligue de soccer du Québec champions. Within a year, the tournament expanded from 5 clubs to 13 clubs, greatly increasing the competitiveness of the Canadian Championship.
With every professional club in Canada and the champions of both Canadian semi-pro leagues participating, the changes give lots of new opportunities to clubs and players. New clubs in the CPL, L1O, and PLSQ now have the chance to become well-known and gain a fanbase by competing against some of the biggest clubs in Canada. For example, Guelph United FC, which was founded in 2021 and remarkably won the League1 Ontario playoffs in the same year, will become the first L1O club to host a CPL team. Even more exciting, a victory against HFX Wanderers would mean that Toronto FC would visit Alumni Stadium in Guelph for the quarter-finals, a match that would undoubtedly be the highlight of the club’s short history.
Similar to clubs, players can also make a name for themselves by putting in impressive performances against the best teams. This is similar to how the FA Cup often gives top English clubs a chance to scout young talent in the bottom leagues. Notable players such as Joe Hart and Jamie Vardy have been noticed while playing for non-league clubs in England and have gone on to have extremely successful careers in European football.
Although the competition is designed for clubs and players to showcase their abilities, it also serves as a perfect marketing tool for the sport of football in Canada. With 13 clubs in 6 provinces competing every year, chances are that there is a club near you who are vying to become Canada’s best football team. This was not always the case for the tournament, which had only 3 clubs in the competition as recently as 2011.
The growth of Canadian football cannot be denied and it can be credited to competitions such as the Canadian Championship expanding to new cities and provinces, and giving fans more opportunities to support their local clubs. It’s fantastic to see the sport growing so much within a short period and without the support of millions of football fans in Canada, none of this would be possible.
The 2022 Canadian Championship kicks off May 10 with preliminary matchups involving clubs from every professional and semi-professional league in Canada.
Mike’s “Latest” Bites
A Brand that Packs a Punch
Byline: Mike Tyson’s latest cannabis product pays homage to one of his most famous moments
Former Heavyweight Champion Mike Tyson has made headlines after his boxing career for many reasons - mostly for his outspoken behaviour, or the usual challenge to a fight. Recently, Tyson’s advocacy for cannabis has propelled his venture into the cannabis industry, forming his own company - Tyson 2.0. On Tuesday, the company released their newest cannabis product, and it might be the greatest brand in sports history.
Mike’s Bites - the newest Tyson 2.0 product, brings cannabis edibles to the California, Massachusetts, and Nevada markets. These gummies are not making headlines for being a revolutionary new method of consuming cannabis, but in the shape they come in:
The gummies are in the shape of an ear Evander Holyfield’s ear, after Mike Tyson bit off a chunk of it in their 1997 fight. Almost 25 years later, the moment is reflected in Mike’s Bites, the name of the product. Tyson actually teased the product in a 2019 interview, although it is unconfirmed if the idea was put into action after the interview.
The creation of this product could not be more perfect. The Tyson 2.0 brand was formed because of Mike’s passion for cannabis advocacy, as it helped his mental and physical health throughout his life. He brings that energy into creating a company.
Mike’s Bites is clever, fresh, and authentic. The name, the product, and the brand behind it (Tyson) are all in-sync, and is a prime example of how athletes can maximize their time under the spotlight. It’s easy to put a sports moment on physical merchandise (or digital with NFTs) - it captures the moment during a time when it is at its peak virality.
When an athlete can go back to a time in their professional career beyond their playing days, it demonstrates that they laid out the groundwork for a personal brand that truly reflects who they are. Even Mike Tyson’s tweets about the product are simple and authentic. No big explanation about the product, no hashtags, no announcement, no problem.
Mike Tyson is unapologetic, vocal, and unfiltered - inside and outside the ring. His venture with Tyson 2.0 is a reflection of his identity, and it’s no mistake that Mike’s Bites have gone viral (just missing a larger scale distribution).
First Woman To Play In The QMJHL in 22+ Years
Eve Gascon Is Set To Make History
Time is an interesting concept, especially as a sports fan. Our ability to grasp this concept varies immensely depending on what’s taking place. If our favourite team is struggling, we’ll lose all sense of reality and say we can’t remember the last time they won, when it was actually only last tuesday. Then there are the other times - years can go by and we’ll be able to remember exact sporting moments to a tee. Examples range from where you were when Crosby scored the ‘Golden Goal’ to how I felt seeing Alfredsson return to Ottawa in a Red Wings sweater, with Drake blasting during warmup.
Times I will never forget.
Well pack your bags and cross the river. A moment in time like this is set to take place on Saturday, in Gatineau.18 year old female goalie, Eve Gascon, is starting for the Gatineau Olympiques - the first time a woman has played a regular season game within the QMJHL in 22+ years.
This has been a moment we’ve all been waiting for. Not only because a woman hasn’t played in the QMJHL in all of Eve’s lifetime but the writing has been on the wall for Eve to get her start for some time now. This past summer Eve was invited to training camp with the Olympiques, an opportunity to make the team. With a hard fought battle till the end, and an impressive showing in an exhibition game, Eve impressed the organization enough to be one of the final cuts. She was named as the team’s 3rd string goalie and when needed she’d get the nod for a potential call up.
That call did come, this past fall. Eve was brought in to backup and the excitement of a woman potentially being featured in a regular season QMJHL game was back. Unfortunately, she didn’t get the opportunity to take the ice but there was hope. Fast forward to last week. The Olympiques starting goalie goes down due to injury and Eve is called up again. Rumblings begin that she may start vs Val D’Or but unfortunately we’d have to wait again. However, we were getting closer… the goalie that night let in 3 goals on the first 7 shorts, yikes. Was Eve going to be brought in on clean-up duty? Again, no. As the hard fighting Olympiques were able to provide some run support and keep themselves in it.
Which brings us to now. Eve has been with the team for a week and they are set for a back to back matchup - she got the nod to start on Saturday and the world erupted. Her social media has been blowing up and the hockey world is ready, for another moment in time we’ll never forget.
If you haven’t heard of Eve yet, you will soon. Trailblazing in 2022 and becoming a fantastic role model for all future generations. We’re not only excited to see Eve perform and grow throughout her career, but we’re looking forward to begin working with her as well. OLP Sports and white whale mktg have teamed up so we can help her flourish off the ice. Stay tuned for more…
