The Winnipeg Fury were a professional soccer team in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

, Canada. The team was part of the

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 ...

from 1987 to 1992. They were one of four teams to participate in every season of the CSL. In 1993, they played in the

Canadian National Soccer League The National Soccer League was a soccer league in Canada that existed from 1926 to 1997. Teams were primarily based in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The league was renamed to Canadian National Soccer League in 1993 following the folding ...

History

The Fury were founded by Ralph Cantafio, who served as team president and chairman of the board. The club served as the first iteration of professional soccer in the province of Manitoba. Debuting in the inaugural 1987 CSL season, the Fury struggled winning only five of their twenty games, finishing last in their division. They improved in their second season, qualifying for the playoffs, defeating

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

in the first round, before falling to eventual champions

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

. After some up and down years, the Fury won the CSL Championship in 1992, defeating the four-time defending champion

Vancouver 86ers Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The Met ...

over the two-game series, by a 3–1 aggregate score (2–0 in the first leg in Vancouver, followed by a 1–1 draw at home, Prior to the win in the first leg, the club had lost every match they had played in Vancouver. They won the title despite having started the 1992 season poorly, where they were sitting in last place with a record of 3–1–10 with only three weeks remaining in the regular season, before winning 5 of their final 6 league matches to qualify for the playoffs. The league folded following the season, resulting in the team being the league's final champions of the Mita Cup. The 1992 Fury team was inducted into the Manitoba Hall of Fame in 2008, donating the Mita Cup trophy to the Hall. Following the folding of the CSL after the 1992 season, the Fury joined the

for the

1993 season The General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its calendar advanced 24 hours to th ...

, although much of their roster from the previous season had departed the club. The club disbanded following the season, marking the end of professional soccer in Winnipeg for 26 years. The Fury were one of only four teams to participate in every season of the CSL. Soccer returned to Winnipeg in 2011, with

WSA Winnipeg FC Manitoba is a Canadian association football, soccer team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The club was founded in 2010 as WSA Winnipeg. In 2020, the club was acquired by a new ownership group and re-organized and branded as FC Manitoba. The team p ...

joining the pre-professional

Professional Development League The Professional Development League is a system of Football in England, English youth association football, football leagues that are managed, organised and controlled by the Premier League or by the Football League. It was introduced by the Th ...

(PDL). Professional soccer returned to the city in 2019, with

Valour FC Valour FC is a Canadian professional soccer club in Winnipeg, Manitoba, which competes in the Canadian Premier League and plays their home matches at Princess Auto Stadium. The team is coached by Phillip Dos Santos and community owned throu ...

joining the new

Canadian Premier League The Canadian Premier League (CPL or CanPL; ) is a professional Association football, soccer league in Canada and the highest level of the Canadian soccer league system. The league comprises eight teams, from five of provinces and territories of ...

. In 2024, Valour paid homage to the Fury, unveiling their primary kit (''The Fury Kit'') which featured the two maroon stripes from the Fury jersey.

Seasons

Notable players

References

{{Canada Soccer League Champions Canadian National Soccer League teams Canadian Soccer League (1987–1992) teams Defunct soccer clubs in Canada 1987 establishments in Manitoba 1993 disestablishments in Manitoba Association football clubs established in 1987 Association football clubs disestablished in 1993