Pacific FC's 2026 Canadian Premier League season kicks off Sunday, April 5 vs. Cavalry FC. Secure your tickets today.
Out on Vancouver Island, Pacific FC enter their eighth season aiming for a resurgence.
It's a clean slate for James Merriman and co., who will hope that some off-season reinforcements and a healthier squad can carry them back to their former glory.
Story of 2025
2025 CPL regular season record (W-D-L): 5-8-15 (23 pts, 7th place)
Goals scored: 30
Goals against: 59
Goal difference: -29
Top scorer: Alejandro Díaz (6)
Canadian Championship: Lost in preliminary round to Vancouver FC
Last season was surely the most frustrating in Pacific's history.
They won in their home opener, but then only four more times the rest of the year. Pacific ended the season on a 10-game winless run, and wound up finishing seventh — their lowest ever placement, and just the second time in club history outside of the playoffs.
The biggest problem for Pacific? They didn't score enough goals. With just 30 in 28 games, their attack was the least effective in the CPL.
The Tridents were hammered by injuries in 2025: Ronan Kratt and Juan Quintana both suffered season-ending injuries in the same game in early May. Lukas Browning-Lagerfeldt missed 10 matches. Almost nobody was available for every game.
That misfortune, combined with disappointing years for a number of star players, cumulated in a season that head coach James Merriman would like to put firmly in the past.
Arrivals and Departures
Pacific have refreshed their squad and reinforced areas of need, rather than making wholesale changes to their core.
A few major contributors have moved on; Aly Ndom will be missed in the backline, as will homegrown talent Sean Young, who departed as the club's all-time appearances leader.
However, Pacific have added added some muscle to the backline with Diego Konincks and Josh Belluz, and added a former Australian A-League champion in defensive midfield with Taras Gomulka.
Bul Juach, meanwhile, has a solid scoring record from his time in Australia's second tier, so he could add some depth to the attack.
3 Players to Watch
FW - Alejandro Díaz
El Wero is expected to lead the line for Pacific again this year, after returning to the club from Vancouver FC last July. He has plenty of scoring experience; he won the Golden Boot in 2022, and he's second on the CPL's all-time scoring leaderboard.
Díaz managed to lead Pacific in scoring last year with six goals, despite only playing the final 13 matches. He's one of the most intelligent goalscorers in the league; he has a knack for popping up in the right area in the box. If he's at his best in 2026, the Tridents' attack will instantly be more dangerous.
FW - Yann Toualy
One of the most positive outcomes of 2025 for Pacific was Toualy's breakout. In his first pro season, he showed flashes of brilliance with the ball; he scored a hat-trick in July against Halifax.
Toualy slowed down considerably in the second half of the season, but with more experience under his belt, he could take another step and become a day-to-day starter for the Tridents.
FW - Ronan Kratt
Kratt's outlook is something of a mystery this year, as he returns from an ACL tear suffered last May. His absence was a huge blow to Pacific; he'd been one of their most exciting players in the first six games of the year. Kratt scored a goal of the year candidate in Pacific's home opener — a long-range volley from a ridiculous angle — and then scored again in his hometown Ottawa a few weeks later, before getting hurt.
The 22-year-old may need some time to return to full match fitness, but if Merriman can get him back to the top of his game, Kratt should be a star in the CPL.
2026 Outlook
Without sounding too cliché, Pacific need to score more this season and keep the ball out of their own net at the same time.
As mentioned, they couldn't find enough goals in 2025, but on the occasions they did manage to score a few, they often conceded too many. They had a 4-4 draw with Vancouver, a 3-3 with Cavalry, and several 2-2 results. Pacific dropped 12 points from winning positions, a frustrating number for a side that didn't take the lead as much as they wanted.
However, that's all in the past. This year's Pacific are full of new optimism.
They need much more this year from some veteran players — Marco Bustos chief among them. The dynamic winger has the talent to be an MVP-level player, but he'd admit that last season was a huge disappointment. Bustos didn't score his first goal until the second-last game, and although he did bank four assists, he wasn't as effective as the team needed him to be.
If Pacific can stay healthier, and players like Bustos can contribute much more, then the Tridents could push up toward the playoff positions this year.
One thing to note about Pacific's 2026 schedule is the expansion of their series in downtown Victoria; they've got four matches scheduled for the Royal Athletic Park, with the remaining 10 home matches set for their more familiar home of Starlight Stadium in Langford.
U-21 Spotlight
There's plenty of young talent on this Pacific team, including several likely starters. Christian Greco-Taylor has made himself a fixture at left-back, and homegrown midfielder Sami Keshavarz will be in the mix for a lot of minutes. Meanwhile, Mattias Vales looks to become an everyday player after making his debut last season.
Projected XI
(4-3-3): Himaras; Chung, Quintana, Konincks, Greco-Taylor; Keshavarz, Gomulka, Browning-Lagerfeldt; Bustos, Díaz, Kratt