Forge FC is the first Canadian Premier League club to win the Voyageurs Cup, ending Major League Soccer’s run in the competition.

Forge defeated CF Montréal 4-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw at Stade Saputo on October 21, 2026. The Hamilton club won its first TELUS Canadian Championship.

  • The match was tied 1-1 after 120 minutes.
  • Goalkeeper Dimitry Bertaud saved two penalties in the shootout.
  • Manjrekar James scored the winning attempt in the fifth round.
  • Forge earned a place in the 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup.

A first for the Canadian Premier League

Forge had reached the final once before. The 2026 victory delivered the club’s first Canadian Championship title and made it the first CPL winner in the competition’s history.

Canada Soccer’s result also ended Major League Soccer’s hold on the Voyageurs Cup. Forge, one of the Canadian Premier League’s original clubs, has now put Hamilton at the centre of a major shift in Canadian soccer.

Bertaud changes the course of the final

Forge goalkeeper Dimitry Bertaud was the decisive figure. He stopped a first-half penalty from CF Montréal’s Prince Owusu, then saved two more attempts in the shootout.

Canada Soccer named Bertaud the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. James converted the winning attempt in the fifth round to complete Forge’s breakthrough.

A tense night in Montréal

Forge took the lead through Antoine Batisse in first-half stoppage time. CF Montréal equalized four minutes after the break when Daniel Ríos headed in.

CF Montréal was reduced to 10 men in the 54th minute after Brayan Vera received a second yellow card. Forge could not settle the match during open play, but held its nerve when the final went to penalties.

MLS Soccer reported on the defeat, while Canada Soccer’s competition results confirm the final score and Forge’s place in the 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup.

What Forge faces next

The Voyageurs Cup sends Forge into the 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup. The Hamilton club will take its domestic breakthrough into a regional competition featuring clubs from across Concacaf.

The achievement changes the conversation around Canada’s domestic game. An established Major League Soccer opponent was beaten by a Canadian Premier League club in the country’s top domestic cup competition. Forge now has the trophy to make that argument impossible to ignore.