The 2003

Open Canada Cup The Open Canada Cup was an annual knock-out cup competition in Canadian Soccer. The competition was first held during the 1998 season as the CPSL League Cup. It was organized by the Canadian Soccer League (formerly the Canadian Professional ...

was the 6th edition of the Canadian Professional Soccer League's open league cup tournament, running from mid-May through early September. London City defeated

Metro Lions Metro may refer to: Geography * Metro City (Indonesia), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban area with high ...

4-2 in a penalty shootout in the final played at the

Cove Road Stadium German Canadian Club of London Field is a multi-purpose stadium in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. It is currently used mostly for football (soccer), football matches and is the home ground of German Canadian FC and FC London (League 1 ...

London, Ontario London is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River (Ontario), Thames River and N ...

. The victory gave London its first piece of silverware and brought an end to the

Ottawa Wizards Ottawa Wizards was a Canadian soccer club that played in the Canadian Professional Soccer League (CPSL) from 2001 to 2003. The team's home stadium was the OZ Optics Stadium. Though the team had a relatively short tenure with the CPSL, the club do ...

' Canada Cup dynasty. The 2003 edition of the Canada Cup was a historical milestone achieved by the CPSL by opening the tournament to all Canadian professional and amateur clubs to provide a potential candidate for the

CONCACAF Champions' Cup The CONCACAF Champions Cup, formerly known as CONCACAF Champions League (2008–2023), is an international association football competition organized by CONCACAF as its top continental tournament for clubs from North America, Central America, a ...

and a $10,000 reward for the champion. The last time a Canadian club competed in the Champions' Cup was in the

1976 CONCACAF Champions' Cup The 1976 CONCACAF Champions' Cup was the 12th edition of the annual international club football competition held in the CONCACAF region (North America, Central America and the Caribbean), the CONCACAF Champions' Cup. It determined that year's clu ...

, represented by Toronto Italia of the

National Soccer League The National Soccer League (NSL) was the top-level soccer league in Australia, run by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL, the A-League's predecessor, spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977 until its ...

, the predecessor league of the CPSL. The tournament featured several clubs from the Ontario League, Ottawa Carleton Soccer League, Western Ontario League, and the

Ligue de Soccer Elite Quebec The Catholic League of France (), sometimes referred to by contemporary (and modern) Catholics as the Holy League (), was a major participant in the French Wars of Religion. The League, founded and led by Henry I, Duke of Guise, intended the eradi ...

. The Ontario amateur clubs began the tournament in the preliminary rounds, and the CPSL & LSEQ clubs were given a bye to the second round. While defending champions Ottawa Wizards received an automatic bye to the quarterfinals. For the second straight year, London City were awarded the hosting rights to the finals, which granted them a wild card match if they were defeated in the earlier rounds. Despite the CPSL's successful attempt in organizing a national tournament, the competition was without controversy. The controversy stemmed from a dispute involving the Ottawa Wizards with the CPSL's board of directors over the hosting rights for the finals. After failing to confirm their participation in the later rounds of the tournament, the league removed Ottawa from the competition, and in return, Ottawa threatened to obtain an injunction. The dispute eventually reached the Superior Court of Justice, which ruled in favor of the CPSL decision and allowed the tournament to proceed without the participation of Ottawa.

Qualification

First round

Second round

Quarter-final

Wild Card Game

Semi-final

Final

Top scorers

References