Adrian Cann (born September 19, 1980) is a Canadian

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player who plays as a defender for

Canadian Soccer League The Canadian Soccer League (CSL; ) is a semi-professional league for Canadian soccer clubs primarily located in the province of Ontario, and claims the history of the Canadian National Soccer League (CNSL). It is a non-FIFA league previously ...

club

Serbian White Eagles FC Serbian White Eagles Football Club (/''Fudbalski klub Srpski beli orlovi'') is a Canadian semi-professional Association football, soccer team. The team is a member of the Canadian Soccer League, a Non-FIFA international football, non-FIFA sanct ...

Club career

College

Cann had a

college soccer College soccer, called college football in some countries, is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. While it is most widespread in the United States, it is also prominent in Japan, South Kore ...

career at the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...

from 2000 to 2003. Cann immediately earned a place in the Cardinals' starting lineup as a freshman, starting 20 games for the team, and was named to first-team All-Conference USA. Cann would maintain this level of performance, being named first-team All-C USA as a sophomore, junior, and senior, and being named the conference's Co-Defensive Player of the Year as a junior and senior. In his final year he played 15 games for them. Cann is a member of the University of Louisville Athletics Hall of Fame.

Early career

In 2002, he played with the

York Region Shooters York Region Shooters is a Canadian association football, soccer team, that plays in the Canadian Soccer League. The Shooters played their home games at the St. Joan of Arc Turf Field in the City of Vaughan, Ontario. The team's colours were blue ...

in the Canadian Professional Soccer League during the college offseason. He would make his debut on May 23, 2002, against the Mississauga Olympians. Upon graduating, Cann was selected 16th overall in the

2004 MLS SuperDraft The 2004 MLS SuperDraft, held in Charlotte, North Carolina on January 16, 2004, was the fifth incarnation of the annual Major League Soccer MLS SuperDraft, SuperDraft. The draft was most notable at the time for the selection of one of the younge ...

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Founded in ...

. Cann played little for the team, however, and was released midseason because of roster restrictions limiting a team's international players. Cann then signed late in the season with Montreal Impact, but saw little playing time for the team, playing only 256 minutes over 7 games. He stayed with the Impact for the 2005 season and made 15 more appearances for them. Throughout his tenure with Montreal, he helped the club win the league championship in 2004 and the regular-season title in 2005. In 2006, Cann signed with league rivals

Vancouver Whitecaps Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Vancouver. The Whitecaps compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on March 18, ...

. In his debut season, he assisted the club in winning their first

USL First Division The USL First Division (USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the second tier of the United States league system. It was organized by the United Soccer League as its premier league for men from 1996 to 2010, above the USL Second ...

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

by beating the

Rochester Raging Rhinos Rochester Rhinos, formerly known as the Rochester Raging Rhinos, was an American association football, soccer team based in Rochester, New York, United States. The club won the 1999 U.S. Open Cup, marking the only time a non-Major League Soccer ...

3–0. Vancouver would re-sign Cann the following season. After the conclusion of the season, he was named the club's Most Outstanding Defender. He would return to Vancouver for his third and final season in 2008. In his final tenure with Vancouver he was appointed the team captain. Midway through the season, he was transferred to

Esbjerg fB Esbjerg forenede Boldklubber (; commonly known as Esbjerg fB or EfB in short) is a Danish professional Association football, football club based in Esbjerg, West Jutland, Jylland, that plays in the Danish 1st Division, 1st division, the sec ...

in Denmark's

premier league The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

Europe

On June 29, 2008, he signed a four-year deal with Danish football side

. He was released from his contract in early 2010. Cann underwent a trial with League Two Burton Albion in England before agreeing to a trial with

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club is a Canadian professional Association football, soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matc ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

in March 2010.

MLS

Cann signed with

on April 12, 2010, after ongoing trials with the team. He made his debut for the club against

Philadelphia Union The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the Union began ...

on April 15, 2010. Since joining fellow international Nana Attakora in the centre of defence the Canadian partnership has become one of the strongest in the league. On September 21, 2010, Cann had a stand-out performance which saw him win Man of the Match against highly rated Mexican side

Cruz Azul Club de Futbol Cruz Azul S.A. de C.V., commonly referred to as Cruz Azul, is a professional association football, football club based in Mexico City, Mexico. It competes in Liga MX, the top tier of Mexican football league system, Mexican footba ...

in the 2010

CONCACAF Champions League 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, ...

Group Stage, the game finished as a 0–0 away draw. This game was also the first time in which Adrian had the honour of wearing the captain's armband for Toronto since

Dwayne De Rosario Dwayne Anthony De Rosario OOnt (born May 15, 1978) is a Canadian former professional soccer player, who played as a forward or as an attacking midfielder. A versatile attacker, he played for the Toronto Lynx, FSV Zwickau and Richmond Kic ...

was on the bench. On November 18, Adrian was awarded the team's most valuable player of the 2010 season, taking the honour from captain Dwayne De Rosario who won the award in the 2009 season. Following pre-season camp in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

and

Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...

, it was announced by the club on March 2, 2011, that Cann had not traveled with the team to Charleston,

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

for the Carolina Challenge Cup. This following Cann's rejection of a new contract offer in which he wanted to continue to negotiate, all deals were removed from the table leading Cann to retire or wait for Toronto to cancel the remaining years on his current contract. However, eight days later the club announced that Cann had rejoined the team in Charleston just over a week before the first regular season game. After a strong early 2011 season from Cann, on May 31 he tore his ACL during a practice on a turf field with the team. Coach

Aron Winter Aron Mohammed Winter (born 1 March 1967) is a Dutch football manager and former player who most recently managed Suriname. A midfielder, he played for Ajax and Sparta Rotterdam in the Netherlands, and for Italian sides Lazio and Inter Milan. Born ...

confirmed that he would miss the remainder of the 2011 league season. Cann made his return from injury on April 14, 2012, against

Chivas USA Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The club competed in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conf ...

, the game ended in a 1–0 home loss for Toronto. Cann was released by Toronto on November 15, 2012. He subsequently entered the

2012 MLS Re-Entry Draft The two-stage 2012 MLS Re-Entry Draft took place on December 7, 2012 (Stage 1), and December 14, 2012 (Stage 2). All 19 Major League Soccer clubs were eligible to participate. The Stage 1 and Stage 2 Drafts were conducted in the same order as th ...

and became a free agent after going undrafted in both rounds of the draft.

NASL

On January 22, 2014, it was announced that Cann had signed with

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...

club

San Antonio Scorpions The San Antonio Scorpions were an American professional soccer team based in San Antonio, Texas. Founded in 2010, the team made its debut in the North American Soccer League in 2012. The Scorpions played at Toyota Field, a soccer specific stadi ...

. He was named the league's player of the week on November 3, 2014, after he recorded a goal that secured the fall season title for the club. San Antonio would claim the Soccer Bowl 2014 by defeating the

Fort Lauderdale Strikers Fort Lauderdale Strikers may refer to: *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983), member of North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983 *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994) The Fort Lauderdale Strikers were an American soccer team establishe ...

. Cann was re-signed for the 2015 season and served as the team captain.

Canada

In the summer of 2016, he returned to the CSL circuit to sign with

Scarborough SC Scarborough SC is a Canadian soccer team founded in 2014. The team is currently a member of the Canadian Soccer League. The team plays home games out of Birchmount Stadium in the district of Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario. The team's colours are ...

. He made his debut on August 8, 2016, against Ukraine United. He recorded his first goal on October 9, 2016, in a 2–1 defeat to the

Serbian White Eagles Serbian White Eagles Football Club (/''Fudbalski klub Srpski beli orlovi'') is a Canadian semi-professional Association football, soccer team. The team is a member of the Canadian Soccer League, a Non-FIFA international football, non-FIFA sanct ...

. Cann would help the eastern Toronto side secure a playoff berth by finishing third in the league's first division. In the postseason, the club was eliminated in the opening round by Hamilton City. In the 2017 season, Scarborough qualified for the playoffs once again where they initially defeated

Brantford Galaxy Brantford Galaxy Soccer Club was a semi-professional Canadian soccer club based in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, with their home venue located in Hamilton, Ontario at the Heritage Field Turf. The club competes in the Canadian Soccer League, a league ...

and later

Vorkuta Vorkuta (; ; Nenets languages, Nenets for "the abundance of bears", "bear corner") is a coal-mining types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in the Komi Republic, Russia, situated just north of the Arctic Circle in the Pechora coal basin a ...

to reach the championship final. Scarborough would be defeated in the finals in a penalty shootout by the

Cann was named the team captain for the 2018 season. The eastern Toronto side managed to reach the championship final for the second consecutive year but was defeated by Vorkuta. After a two-year absence, he returned to CSL for the 2021 season to play with the

. He re-signed with Serbia for the 2022 season. Throughout the 2022 campaign, he helped the Serbs in securing the regular-season title including a playoff berth. In the second round of the postseason, the Serbs were eliminated from the competition after a defeat to FC Continentals. Cann returned for the 2023 season. He would win more silverware with the Serbs in 2024 as they defeated his former team Scarborough for the Royal CSL Cup.

Indoor career

In the winter of 2018–19, he transitioned into the

indoor soccer Indoor soccer or arena soccer is a form of five-a-side football, five-a-side or six-a-side version of minifootball. It is derived from association football and adapted to be played in walled hardcourt indoor arenas. It differs from the FIFA, FIFA ...

format signing with the Mississauga MetroStars an expansion franchise that competed in the American-based

Major Arena Soccer League The Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) is a professional indoor soccer league in North America. The MASL features teams playing coast-to-coast in the United States and Mexico. The league is the highest level of arena soccer in North America. The le ...

. Cann along with teammate

were named the team co-captains. He made his debut for the club on December 1, 2018, against the

Baltimore Blast The Baltimore Blast are an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, that competes in the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL). Including one championship victory as the original Baltimore Blast, the team has won 10 c ...

. In their debut season, the club failed to secure a playoff berth by finishing fourth in their division. In total, he appeared in 13 matches. The club would fold the following season.

International

He made his debut for

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

in a January 2008 friendly match against

Martinique Martinique ( ; or ; Kalinago language, Kalinago: or ) is an island in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It was previously known as Iguanacaera which translates to iguana island in Carib language, Kariʼn ...

. Cann was also chosen in the 23-man roster for the

2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the tenth edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup competition, and the twentieth soccer championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF). It was played from July 3 to 26, 2009 in the United Stat ...

where Canada won Group A with seven points before being knocked out by

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Fonseca, ...

in the quarter-finals. His last cap came in 2011, earning him a total of nine caps, two of which were

FIFA World Cup qualification The FIFA World Cup qualification is a set of competitive matches that a national association football team plays in order to qualify for one of the available berths at the final tournament of the men's FIFA World Cup. Qualifying tournaments ar ...

matches. Cann represented

at the 2017 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship. In 2022, he represented Canada Beach Soccer in the World Winners Cup, a non-FIFA beach soccer tournament.

Post-playing career

After retiring he became a real estate agent. In 2020, he became involved with a group looking to found a professional soccer team in

Peterborough, Ontario Peterborough ( ) is a city on the Otonabee River in Ontario, Canada, about 125 kilometres (78 miles) northeast of Toronto. According to the 2021 Census, the population of the City of Peterborough was 83,651. The population of the Peterborough ...

to play in

League1 Ontario League1 Ontario (L1ON) is a semi-professional men's soccer league in Ontario, Canada. The league is sanctioned by the Canadian Soccer Association and the Ontario Soccer Association. League1 Ontario consists of three tiers – League1 Premier ...

. The team became known as Electric City FC, with Cann hoping to serve as the team's head coach after retiring.

Career statistics

Honours

Montreal Impact *

A-League A-League Men, also known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional soccer league in Australia and New Zealand and the highest level of the Australian soccer league system. Established in 2004 as the A-League by the ...

Championship:

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

Eastern Conference Championship:

Commissioner's Cup:

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

Vancouver Whitecaps *

Championship:

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

Toronto FC *

Canadian Championship The Canadian Championship () is an annual soccer tournament contested by Canadian professional teams. The winner is awarded the Voyageurs Cup and a berth in the CONCACAF Champions Cup. It is contested by Major League Soccer sides Toronto FC, Va ...

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

Scarborough SC *

CSL Championship The Canadian Soccer League championship final, or CSL Championship, is the post-season match of the Canadian Soccer League (CSL) and is the successor to the CNSL Championship. The winner is crowned champion as in other North American sports le ...

runner-up:

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

Serbian White Eagles *

Regular Season:

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

Royal CSL Cup:

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

Individual * Toronto FC Player of the Year:

* 2002 Conference USA Co-Defensive Player of the Year * 2002 First Team All-Conference USA * 2002 Team Most Valuable Player * 2002 Team Most Valuable Defensive Player * 2002 NSCAA second team All-Great Lakes * 2001 Conference USA Co-Defensive Player of the Year * 2001 First Team All-Conference USA * 2001 Team Most Valuable Player * 2001 Team Most Valuable Defensive Player * 2001 NSCAA second team All-Great Lakes * 2000 First Team All-Conference USA * 2000 Conference USA All-Freshman Team * 2000 NSCAA second team All-Great Lakes

References

External links

* * *
Profile at Model Resource
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cann, Adrian 1980 births Living people Sportspeople from Thornhill, Ontario Men's association football defenders Soccer people from Ontario Canadian men's soccer players Canadian beach soccer players Canada men's international soccer players 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup players Canadian expatriate men's soccer players Canadian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Denmark Canadian sportspeople of Jamaican descent Canadian people of Slovak descent Louisville Cardinals men's soccer players York Region Shooters players Colorado Rapids players Montreal Impact (1992–2011) players Vancouver Whitecaps (1986–2010) players Esbjerg fB players Toronto FC players San Antonio Scorpions players Scarborough SC players Serbian White Eagles FC players USL First Division players Danish Superliga players Major League Soccer players Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark A-League (1995–2004) players Colorado Rapids draft picks North American Soccer League (2011–2017) players Canadian Soccer League (1998–present) players Major Arena Soccer League players Mississauga MetroStars players 21st-century Canadian sportsmen