Northern Super League to Kick Off with Nationwide Broadcast Partnership

Canadian soccer fans and CBC Sports viewers will soon have the opportunity to get acquainted with the players and teams of the Northern Super League (NSL) during its inaugural season, starting in April next year.

CBC/Radio-Canada has entered into a multi-year partnership with the women's professional soccer league, along with TSN/RDS.

Matches will be broadcast to CBC viewers nationwide and across its digital platforms, including CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports App, and CBC Gem, with Radio-Canada providing French-language coverage.

"The broadcasters are so important. We're a new product, a new league," NSL chief executive officer and co-founder Diana Matheson told Heather Hiscox of CBC News Network on Tuesday morning.

"We're not coming in with a built-in fanbase, but we know upwards of 20 million Canadians are fans of women's sport in some capacity, and we have to get in front of eyeballs."

Matheson added, "Ensuring our matches are available to Canadians is key to the long-term growth and viability of professional women's soccer."

"Our players have been behind the scenes for too long. [This coverage] is a huge win for fans and creates a lasting impact on women's sport in this country."

CBC/Radio-Canada will also produce and promote NSL news and content, with the much-anticipated first-season and broadcast schedules to be announced later.

Franchises in Ottawa, Montreal, Vancouver, Toronto, Halifax, and Calgary will start with a 25-game schedule followed by playoffs and a national championship in the fall of 2025.

Teams are expected to operate with an initial salary cap of $1.5 million for 20 to 25 players on a roster, with a $50,000 minimum salary.

Each club will be allowed up to seven foreign players and one marquee player whose salary will only account for $75,000 against the cap.

"After years without a professional women's domestic soccer league, the Northern Super League and its six founding clubs will fill a significant void in Canada and bring about meaningful change coast to coast," Matheson said last month.

"We are proud to launch with a name that will instill pride in all those who play and love the game."

By intentionally omitting 'women,' the league stated in a May 28 news release, "it firmly declares its ambitions to be equal to other leagues in professional sports, inviting all who love the beautiful game and who want to be a part of the growth in professional women's sports to feel included."

The Canadian-focused league will also feature international talent.

CBC/Radio-Canada, Canada's national public broadcaster and Olympic and Paralympic network, has a rich history of showcasing sports events and is "proud" to provide a national stage for the NSL, according to its president and CEO, Catherine Tait.

"Soccer keeps winning

more and more fans across the country, and we are delighted to bring them all the excitement and drama of the Northern Super League matches," Tait added.

In May, Canada forward Cloé Lacasse noted the NSL provides "a second opportunity" for many women's soccer players.

"I wish when I was younger that this existed because my journey wasn't easy," the native of Sudbury, Ont., told The Canadian Press. "There was no visibility. There weren't many coaches, so I didn't have those eyes on me, and I think this league will provide that for kids that maybe aren't drafted into a [National Women's Super League] or WSL [Women's Super League]."