The 2026 Canadian Premier League Awards ceremony will take place on Thursday, Nov. 19 in Calgary, Alta., where some of the league's top individual performers will walk away with hardware.
For five years now, it's been a league tradition to hand out awards a few days before the CPL Final in the host city, honouring the top regular season achievements before all attention turns to the championship bout.
Eight honours will be handed out at the awards ceremony, with one more — the CPL Final MVP — to be determined on Saturday, Nov. 21. All award winners will go home with a unique Inuit soapstone sculpture, as they have since the CPL Awards were born in 2019.
One award has already been determined: FC Supra du Québec's Loïc Kwemi claimed the Golden Boot with 15 goals in the regular season, and he'll receive the Hunter sculpture. One other honour, the Builder Award, has no announced nominees, but will instead be presented to the selected individual at the ceremony.
For the other six awards, here's who is in the running.
Golden Glove
Nominees:
- Dimitry Bertaud, Forge FC
- Nathan Ingham, Cavalry FC
- Christopher Kalongo, Atlético Ottawa
The Golden Glove award, and the Canadian Inuit Dog statue, will be presented to the goalkeeper of the year, as voted by select media members and technical leadership from all eight clubs.
This year, CPL newcomer Dimitry Bertaud and Ottawa midseason addition Chris Kalongo have been nominated for the first time, while Cavalry's Nathan Ingham looks to take home the award for the first time with his fourth nomination.
For more info on the three keepers nominated, click here.
Previous Winners:
2019: Marco Carducci, Cavalry FC
2020: Triston Henry, Forge FC
2021: Jonathan Sirois, Valour FC
2022: Marco Carducci, Cavalry FC
2023: Triston Henry, Forge FC
2024: Emil Gazdov, Pacific FC
2025: Jassem Koleilat, Forge FC
U-21 Canadian Player of the Year
Nominees:
- Alessandro Biello, FC Supra du Québec
- Sergei Kozlovskiy, Atlético Ottawa
- Hoce Massunda, Forge FC
- Adam Pearlman, Cavalry FC
- Kian Proctor, Vancouver FC
The Polar Bear statue is awarded to the Canadian player aged 21 or younger voted best in the 2025 regular season by media members and technical leadership.
After expanding the field of nominees to five a year ago, this year features another stacked cast of talented young players, including FC Supra midfielder Alessandro Biello, Ottawa defender Sergei Kozlovskiy, Forge winger Hoce Massunda, Cavalry defender Adam Pearlman and Vancouver defender Kian Proctor.
For more info on the five nominees, click here.
Previous Winners:
2019: Tristan Borges, Forge FC
2020: Mo Farsi, Cavalry FC
2021: Alessandro Hojabrpour, Pacific FC
2022: Sean Rea, Valour FC
2023: Matteo de Brienne, Valour FC
2024: Kwasi Poku, Forge FC
2025: Tiago Coimbra, Halifax Wanderers FC
Defender of the Year
Nominees:
- Antoine Batisse, Forge FC
- Daan Klomp, Cavalry FC
- Daniel Nimick, Forge FC
This year's top defender in the CPL, as voted by media and technical leadership, will receive the Walrus statue as the honour is awarded for a fifth time.
Last year's winner Dan Nimick is hoping to claim the prize again, and become the second player to win it twice in a row — after fellow 2026 nominee Daan Klomp did so in 2023 and 2024. Nimick's Forge teammate Antoine Batisse has also earned a nomination after a stellar first season in the CPL.
For more info on the nominated defenders, click here.
Previous Winners:
2022: Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson, Forge FC
2023: Daan Klomp, Cavalry FC
2024: Daan Klomp, Cavalry FC
2025: Dan Nimick, Forge FC
Coach of the Year
Nominees:
- Gustavo Leal, Atlético Ottawa
- Bobby Smyrniotis, Forge FC
- Tommy Wheeldon Jr., Cavalry FC
The head coach whose leadership and contributions best shaped their club's performances in the 2026 regular season will be awarded the Owl statue.
CPL newcomer Gustavo Leal has been nominated for the first time after steering Atlético to the playoffs in his first year in Ottawa. Forge gaffer Bobby Smyrniotis has earned another nod as he looks to win the award for a third consecutive year. Meanwhile, Cavalry FC manager Tommy Wheeldon Jr. hopes to become the first to win this award three times, after leading the Cavs to the CPL Shield.
For more info on each of the nominated coaches, click here.
Previous Winners:
2019: Tommy Wheeldon Jr., Cavalry FC
2020: Stephen Hart, Halifax Wanderers FC
2021: Pa-Modou Kah, Pacific FC
2022: Carlos González, Atlético Ottawa
2023: Tommy Wheeldon Jr., Cavalry FC
2024: Bobby Smyrniotis, Forge FC
2025: Bobby Smyrniotis, Forge FC
Players' Player of the Year
Shortlist:
- Antoine Batisse, Forge FC
- Dimitry Bertaud, Forge FC
- Lorenzo Callegari, Halifax Wanderers FC
- Isaiah Johnston, Halifax Wanderers FC
- Daan Klomp, Cavalry FC
- Loïc Kwemi, FC Supra du Québec
- Ali Musse, Cavalry FC
- Sean Rea, FC Supra du Québec
- Ballou Tabla, Atlético Ottawa
- Tobias Warschewski, Cavalry FC
This award goes to the best player in the Canadian Premier League, as voted by his fellow players. The winner receives the Muskox statue.
Although players were able to vote for any player in the CPL other than their own teammates, the league has revealed the 10 who received the most votes. The winner will be announced as part of the awards ceremony on Nov. 19.
For more info on the award, click here.
Previous Winners:
2022: Ollie Bassett, Atlético Ottawa
2023: Ali Musse, Cavalry FC
2024: Brian Wright, York United FC
2025: Samuel Salter, Atlético Ottawa
Player of the Year
Nominees:
- Antoine Batisse, Forge FC
- Isaiah Johnston, Halifax Wanderers FC
- Loïc Kwemi, FC Supra du Québec
- Ballou Tabla, Atlético Ottawa
- Tobias Warschewski, Cavalry FC
Often considered the most prestigious CPL award, the Player of the Year title — and the Nikisuittuq statue — honours the best player in the league from the regular season.
As usual, five players have been nominated. Forge defender Antoine Batisse earned a nod after a strong debut season, and Isaiah Johnston was recognized for a career year in Halifax. FC Supra's Loïc Kwemi got a nomination for his Golden Boot campaign, while Ottawa's leading scorer Ballou Tabla was nominated for the second time in his career. Finally, Cavalry attacker Tobias Warschewski received a nod after leading his team in goals and assists.
For more info on the nominees, click here.
Previous Winners:
2019: Tristan Borges, Forge FC
2020: Kyle Bekker, Forge FC
2021: João Morelli, Halifax Wanderers FC
2022: Ollie Bassett, Atlético Ottawa
2023: Daan Klomp, Cavalry FC
2024: Tristan Borges, Forge FC
2025: Samuel Salter, Atlético Ottawa
