Montreal Impact 1–6 Toronto FC, often referred to as the Miracle in Montreal, was a soccer match played on June 18, 2009 at

Saputo Stadium Saputo Stadium (Canadian French, French: ''Stade Saputo'') is a soccer-specific stadium at Olympic Park, Montreal, Olympic Park in the borough of Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The stadium opened on May 21, 2008, a ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

between Montreal Impact of the

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 ...

and

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 ...

Background

The match was the final fixture of the

2009 Canadian Championship The 2009 Canadian Championship (officially the Nutrilite Canadian Championship for sponsorship reasons) was a soccer tournament hosted and organized by the Canadian Soccer Association that took place in the cities of Montreal, Toronto and Vancou ...

. With Montreal already eliminated and the

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, ...

leading the table,

needed to win by 4 or more goals to capture its first

Voyageurs Cup The Voyageurs Cup () is the domestic trophy for professional soccer in Canada, awarded to the best men's and women's clubs in the country. The Cup was conceived and commissioned by fans of the Canada men's national team, the Voyageurs, in 20 ...

and a berth in the 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League.

Match

Tony Donatelli gave Montreal a 1–0 lead early in the first half on a penalty kick which meant Toronto needed 5 or more goals to beat Vancouver on goal differential. Toronto went on to score 6 unanswered goals, including 3 straight from captain

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 ...

on route to capturing the

and a place in the

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, ...

. The 6–1 defeat was the worst in Montreal's franchise history at the time.

Details

Aftermath

Final results

Montreal and Toronto perspective

Toronto FC would go on to lose to

Puerto Rico Islanders The Puerto Rico Islanders were a professional association football team based in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. They played in several different leagues from 2004 to 2012, when they suspended operations. In their last two seasons they played in the Nort ...

in the preliminary round of 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League. The match was a significant moment in shaping the rivalry between Montreal Impact and

. In

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 ...

, Montreal Impact officially joined Major League Soccer becoming the third Canadian team to do so after Toronto FC and

Vancouver Whitecaps FC Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional Association football, soccer club based in Vancouver. The Whitecaps compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The MLS ite ...

. This only furthered the rivalry which became known as the 401 derby and later the

Canadian Classique The Canadian Classique, also known as the 401 Derby and the Two Solitudes Derby, is a soccer rivalry between Canadian clubs, Toronto FC and CF Montréal (formerly the Montreal Impact). The rivalry gets the "401" nickname from Ontario Highwa ...

. Montreal would get retribution against Toronto, beating them 6–0 in the same venue during the

2013 Canadian Championship The 2013 Canadian Championship (officially the Amway Canadian Championship for sponsorship reasons) was a soccer tournament hosted and organized by the Canadian Soccer Association that took place in the cities of Edmonton, Montreal, Toronto and Va ...

. This remains the largest margin of victory in

history.

Vancouver perspective

The Montreal Impact were accused of fielding a weaker squad against Toronto FC to rest key players for the league, since they were no longer in contention for the championship. This was seen as unfair by Vancouver Whitecaps' supporters, as Montreal's alleged uneven efforts against their opponents was the reason behind Toronto FC scoring as many goals as they did. This became additionally controversial when Montreal's rested players returned in a regular season match against Vancouver, which was not only won by Montreal, but also lead to Montreal gaining a home advantage over Vancouver in the playoffs due to the regular season seeding.

References

Notes

External links

Match highlights
{{Toronto FC matches Canadian Championship matches 2009 in Canadian soccer CF Montréal matches Toronto FC matches Canadian Classique matches Soccer competitions in Montreal 2009 in Montreal 2009 in sports in Quebec