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FC London

{{Short description|Canadian soccer team}}

{{About|the Canadian soccer club|soccer clubs based in London, England|Football in London}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2017}}

{{Infobox football club

| clubname = FC London

| image = FCLondonlogo2016.png

| fullname = Football Club London

| nickname =

| founded = 2008 (as Forest City London)

| stadium = Tricar Field

| capacity = 900

| chrtitle = Owner

| chairman = Dave DeBenedictis

| mgrtitle = Head Coach

| manager = Yiannis Tsalatsidis (men)
Diogo Marinho (women)

| league = League1 Ontario

| season = 2024

| position = L1O-C, 2nd - promoted (men)
L1O-P, 2nd (women)

| current = 2024 League1 Ontario season

| website = {{URL|http://www.fclondon.ca}}

}}

{{Toronto FC sections}}

FC London is a Canadian semi-professional soccer club based in London, Ontario that plays in the men's and women's divisions of League1 Ontario Premier in the Canadian third tier.{{cite web|access-date=22 March 2023|url=https://www.gamedaylondon.com/stories/fc-men-hungry-to-compete-develop-on-the-pitch|first=Michael|last=Elioff|title=FC Men hungry to compete, develop on the pitch|website=gamedaylondon.com|date=7 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220510155841/https://www.gamedaylondon.com/stories/fc-men-hungry-to-compete-develop-on-the-pitch|archive-date=10 May 2022}}

The team was founded in 2008 as Forest City London Soccer Club, and were a member of the Premier Development League from 2009 to 2015; they won the 2012 PDL title, their first championship during this time. They re-branded to FC London following their move to League1 Ontario in 2016, being officially named Football Club London.

In 2017, the club partnered with Toronto FC. FC London's youth teams were renamed London TFC, while the senior team retained the name FC London, but changed its colours to red to match those of Toronto FC.

History

File:forestcitylondonlogo.gif

Founded in 2008, Forest City London joined the Premier Development League in 2009.{{cite web|url=http://pdl.uslsoccer.com/home/292820.html|title=PDL adds London, Ontario for 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120229144503/http://pdl.uslsoccer.com/home/292820.html|archive-date=February 29, 2012|url-status=dead|date=December 3, 2008|work=United Soccer League}} In their first season, they had to split home matches between four stadiums.{{Cite web|url=https://www.eightysixforever.com/2009/4/22/1615811/canada-in-the-usl-pdl-the-ontario|title=Canada in the USL PDL: The Ontario Teams|first=Benjamin|last=Massey|date=April 22, 2009|work=Eighty Six Forever|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=September 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210926191716/https://www.eightysixforever.com/2009/4/22/1615811/canada-in-the-usl-pdl-the-ontario|url-status=live}} and played their first ever game on May 29, 2009, against Cleveland Internationals.{{cite web |url=http://www.thelondoner.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1337596 |title=FC London kicks off with high hopes |publisher=The Londoner |access-date=January 20, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100114141544/http://www.thelondoner.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1337596 |archive-date=January 14, 2010 |url-status=dead }} London won the game 2–1, with the first goal in franchise history being scored by Kevin Zimmermann.{{cite web|url=http://www.uslsoccer.com/stats/2009/1026977.html |title=United Soccer Leagues (USL) |publisher=United Soccer League |date=May 29, 2009 |access-date=January 20, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110610175335/http://www.uslsoccer.com/stats/2009/1026977.html |archive-date=June 10, 2011 }}

London's debut season was a generally positive one; they remained unbeaten over the course of their first ten games, winning seven games. London's first loss was a 3–1 drop to the Indiana Invaders at the beginning of July, and it initiated a complete reversal of fortune for the team. They did not win another game all season and dropped down the divisional standings. The team finished third in the Great Lakes Division, seven points behind divisional champions Kalamazoo, and faced off against Chicago Fire Premier in the first round of the playoffs. London lost their playoff match 1–0 to the Illinoisans on a goal by Andre Akpan. Kevin Zimmermann and Alan McGreal were London's top scorers in their debut season, with nine and seven goals respectively, while Anthony Di Biase contributed four assists.

They won the 2012 PDL Championship defeating Carolina Dynamo in the finals.{{Cite web|url=https://canadasoccer.com/news/fc-london-wins-usl-pdl-championship/|title=FC London wins USL PDL Championship|work=Canadian Soccer Association|date=August 6, 2012|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=September 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919124559/https://www.canadasoccer.com/news/fc-london-wins-usl-pdl-championship/|url-status=live}} The won their first Great Lakes division title the following season.{{Cite web|url=https://www.wakingthered.com/2013/7/29/4567584/premier-development-league-victoria-thunder-bay-ottawa-london-easton-report|title=Canadian clubs turning heads with PDL success|first=Dave|last=Rowaan|date=July 29, 2013|work=Waking The Red|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=March 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308014423/https://www.wakingthered.com/2013/7/29/4567584/premier-development-league-victoria-thunder-bay-ottawa-london-easton-report|url-status=live}}

File:FC_London_2016_logo.png

The club moved to League1 Ontario in 2016, adding teams in both the male and female divisions.{{cite web|title=Everything new at FC London|url=https://lfpress.com/2016/01/27/everything-new-at-fc-london|first=Morris|last=Dalla Costa|publisher=The London Free Press|access-date=October 9, 2017|archive-date=September 21, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170921045822/http://www.lfpress.com/2016/01/27/everything-new-at-fc-london|url-status=live}} The club went under new ownership and were renamed Football Club London following the move to L1O.{{cite web|url=https://lfpress.com/2015/12/17/fc-london-rebrands-for-league1|title=FC London rebrands for League1|first=Ryan|last=Pyette|date=December 17, 2015|work=The London Free Press|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=August 9, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160809051625/http://www.lfpress.com/2015/12/17/fc-london-rebrands-for-league1|url-status=live}}

The women's team won the league title in the 2016 and 2017 seasons by winning the league division, while also winning the League Cup in 2017.{{cite web|url=https://www.ontariosoccer.net/news_article/show/840230|title=FC London Women Win 2017 League1 Ontario Title|date=October 3, 2017|work=Ontario Soccer Association|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=September 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919085704/https://www.ontariosoccer.net/news_article/show/840230|url-status=live}} They won the league division again in 2018, but fell in the semi-finals in the new playoff format.{{cite web|url=http://www.radiowestern.ca/program/news/sports/2018-08-29/fc-london-growing-soccer-young-women|title=FC London: Growing Soccer For Young Women|first=Greg|last=Bowman|date=August 29, 2018|work=Radio Western|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=March 31, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220331012308/https://radiowestern.ca/program/news/sports/2018-08-29/fc-london-growing-soccer-young-women|url-status=live}} In 2019, they finished third in the regular season, but won the league championship, defeating Oakville Blue Devils in the playoff final.{{Cite web|url=https://canpl.ca/article/fc-london-wins-2019-league1-ontario-womens-championship|title=FC London wins 2019 League1 Ontario women's championship|date=September 1, 2019|work=Canadian Premier League|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=May 13, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513210718/https://canpl.ca/article/fc-london-wins-2019-league1-ontario-womens-championship|url-status=live}}

The men's team won the Western Conference in their debut season in L1O in 2016, but fell to Vaughan Azzurri in the championship final.{{cite web|url=https://www.yorkregion.com/community-story/6920926-vaughan-azzurri-kicks-up-a-storm-to-win-ontario-soccer-championship/|title=Vaughan Azzurri kicks up a storm to win Ontario soccer championship|date=October 21, 2016|first=Michael|last=Hayakawa|work=Vaughan Citizen|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=July 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200717143326/https://www.yorkregion.com/community-story/6920926-vaughan-azzurri-kicks-up-a-storm-to-win-ontario-soccer-championship/|url-status=live}} In 2018, they finished as regular season champions, but ultimately fell in the playoffs.{{cite web|url=https://www.owensoundsuntimes.com/sports/local-sports/fc-london-begins-playoffs-as-favourites/wcm/b239cb05-ce7a-495d-8e0b-6293cab365ad|title=FC London begins playoffs as favourites|first=Paul|last=Vanderhoeven|date=September 28, 2018|work=The Sun Times}} During the 2019 season, they defeated Alliance United in the two legged playoff semi-finals by a 15–0 aggregate score, after victories of 5–0 and 10–0 across the two legs, respectively,{{cite web|url=https://lfpress.com/sports/local-sports/fc-london-men-looking-to-follow-womens-lead|title=FC London men looking to follow women's lead|first=Paul|last=Vanderhoeven|date=September 24, 2019|work=The London Free Press|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=July 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200711212819/https://lfpress.com/sports/local-sports/fc-london-men-looking-to-follow-womens-lead|url-status=live}} before ultimately falling to Master's FA in the championship final.{{cite web|url=https://lfpress.com/sports/local-sports/fc-london-battles-to-the-finish-in-league1-championship-loss-to-scarborough-masters|title=FC London battles to the finish in League1 championship loss to Scarborough Masters|first=Paul|last=Vanderhoeven|date=September 28, 2019|work=The London Free Press|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=October 21, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021100332/https://lfpress.com/sports/local-sports/fc-london-battles-to-the-finish-in-league1-championship-loss-to-scarborough-masters|url-status=live}}

File:London_TFC_logo.jpg

In the latter part of 2017, the club became a partner of Major League Soccer club Toronto FC, with the club being renamed London TFC, although the senior side retained the name FC London, under which it still competes in L1O.{{cite web|url=https://lfpress.com/2017/11/29/soccer-fc-londons-academy-changes-look-adds-programs-with-toronto-fc-link|title=Soccer: FC London's academy changes look, adds programs with Toronto FC link|first=Morris|last=Dalla Costa|date=November 29, 2017|work=The London Free Press|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=May 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518020632/https://lfpress.com/2017/11/29/soccer-fc-londons-academy-changes-look-adds-programs-with-toronto-fc-link|url-status=live}} As part of the rebrand, FC London changed their club colours and logo to red to match those of Toronto FC.{{Cite web|url=https://lfpress.com/sports/soccer/fc-london-changes-colours-continues-to-grow|title=FC London changes colours, continues to grow|first=Morris|last=Dalla Costa|date=April 27, 2018|work=The London Free Press|access-date=September 19, 2020|archive-date=October 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029232955/https://lfpress.com/sports/soccer/fc-london-changes-colours-continues-to-grow|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.league1ontario.com/news_article/show/1234072|title=A Bluffer's Guide to FC London|date=July 29, 2022|work=League1 Ontario|access-date=August 1, 2022|archive-date=August 1, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801015933/https://www.league1ontario.com/news_article/show/1234072|url-status=live}} In 2022, the club changed ownership from Ian Campbell to a group led by Dave DeBenedictis, the director of the London TFC Academy.{{Cite web|url=https://www.gamedaylondon.com/stories/fc-women-eyeing-another-chance-at-fourth-title|work=Gameday London|title=FC Women eyeing another chance at fourth title|date=April 28, 2022|first=Todd|last=Devlin|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=April 28, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220428182954/https://www.gamedaylondon.com/stories/fc-women-eyeing-another-chance-at-fourth-title|url-status=live}}

In 2024, the women's team won the league cup, in the first edition of the competition since 2018.{{cite web|url=https://northerntribune.ca/fc-london-lift-2024-l1-cup-over-nitros/|title=London Lifts L1 Cup Over Nitros|date=August 1, 2024|first=Nelson|last=Mahmoudi|work=Northern Tribune}}

Squad

{{updated|13 April 2025}}

{{Fs start}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Luka Palajsa|pos=GK}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Daniel Gonzalez|pos=GK}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Bradley Heath|pos=DF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Ryan Baker|pos=DF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Joshua Crete|pos=DF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=David Bulos|pos=DF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Sokol Qamili|pos=DF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Jonathan Lopez|pos=MF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Tomas Alvarez|pos=MF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Dante D'Oria|pos=MF}}

{{Fs mid}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Daniel Oshana|pos=MF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Tomas Ribeiro|pos=MF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Aman Khanna|pos=MF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Santiago Fonseca|pos=MF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Nick Ferreira|pos=MF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Obada Abdallah|pos=MF}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Owen-Dillon Holmes|pos=FW}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Andrew Paolucci|pos=FW}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Bai-Essa Coker|pos=FW}}

{{Fs player|no=-|nat=CAN|name=Gershom Dupuy|pos=FW}}

{{Fs end}}

Former players

The following players have either moved on to the professional ranks after their time with FC London, or played professionally before joining the club.

Men

{{cmn|colwidth=18em|

}}

Women

{{cmn|colwidth=18em|

}}

Seasons

=Men=

class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
Season

!League

!{{abbr|Record|Wins, draws, losses}}

!Regular season

!Playoffs

!League Cup

!Canadian Championship

!Ref

2009

| rowspan="7" |Premier Development League

|8–3–5

|3rd, Great Lakes

|Divisional Semifinals

|rowspan="7"|—

| rowspan="9" | not eligible

|{{cite web|url=http://cansha.coffeecup.com/forestcity.html|title=Forest City London|work=Canadian Soccer History Archives|access-date=September 17, 2020|archive-date=April 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416165011/http://cansha.coffeecup.com/forestcity.html|url-status=live}}

2010

|10–1–5

|2nd, Great Lakes

|Conference Semifinals

|

2011

|9–5–2

|3rd, Great Lakes

|Conference Quarterfinals

|

2012

|7–5–4

|2nd, Great Lakes

|bgcolor="FFEBAD"|Champions

|

2013

|10–2–2

|bgcolor="B3B7FF"|1st, Great Lakes

|Conference Final

|

2014

|6–4–4

|4th, Great Lakes

|did not qualify

|

2015

|9–4–1

|3rd, Great Lakes

|Divisional Playoff

|

2016

| rowspan="8" |League1 Ontario

|15–2–5

|bgcolor="B3B7FF"|1st, West

|Runner-up

|Round of 16

|{{cite web|url=http://cansha.coffeecup.com/fclondon.html|title=FC London|work=Canadian Soccer History Archives|access-date=September 17, 2020|archive-date=April 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416174540/http://cansha.coffeecup.com/fclondon.html|url-status=live}}

2017

|11–5–6

|4th, West

|did not qualify

|Quarter-finals

|

2018

|12–2–2

|bgcolor="B3B7FF"|1st (overall)

|Group stage

|Quarter-finals

|did not qualify

|

2019

|8–1–6

|7th (overall)

|Runner-up

|—

|did not qualify

|

2020

|colspan="6"|Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic{{cite web |title=League1 Ontario cancels Fall season plans for 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions |url=https://canpl.ca/article/league1-ontario-cancels-fall-season-plans-for-2020-due-to-covid-19-restrictions |website=Canadian Premier League |date=September 4, 2020 |access-date=December 4, 2020 |archive-date=March 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302014742/https://canpl.ca/article/league1-ontario-cancels-fall-season-plans-for-2020-due-to-covid-19-restrictions |url-status=live }}

2021

|8–0–4

|3rd, West

|did not qualify

|—

|did not qualify

|

2022

|2–4–15

|22nd

|did not qualify

|—

|did not qualify

|

2023

|6–7–7

|13th

|did not qualify

|—

|did not qualify

|

2024

|League1 Ontario Championship

|13–2–3

| style="background:#ddffdd"| 2nd ↑

|–

|Round of 16

|did not qualify

|

=Women=

File:FC London 2017 Cup.jpg

class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"

!Season

!League

!Teams

!{{tooltip|Record|Wins, draws, losses}}

!Rank

!Playoffs

!League Cup

!Ref

2016

|rowspan="8"|League1 Ontario

|9

|14–0–2

|{{won|place=1|Champions}}

|–

|Semi-finals

|{{cite web|url=http://cansha.coffeecup.com/l1owomen.html|title=League1 Ontario Historical Standings Women's Division|work=Canadian Soccer History Archives|access-date=October 7, 2020|archive-date=October 21, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021220940/http://cansha.coffeecup.com/l1owomen.html|url-status=live}}

2017

|11

|15–3–2

|{{won|place=1|Champions}}

|–

|{{won|place=1|Champions}}

|

2018

|13

|11–1–0

|bgcolor="B3B7FF"|1st

|Semi-finals

|Quarter-finals

|

2019

|14

|7–3–3

|3rd

|{{won|place=1|Champions}}

|–

|

2020

|colspan="6"| Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic

2021

|7

|9–2–1

|bgcolor="B3B7FF"|1st

|Semi-finals

|–

|

2022

|20

|13–2–4

|4th

|Semi-finals

|–

|

2023

|19

|9–5–4

|6th

|Semi-finals

|–

|

2024

|League1 Ontario Premier

|10

|12–2–4

|2nd

|–

|{{won|place=1|Champions}}

|

Honours

  • Premier Development League
  • National Champions: 2012
  • Central Conference Champions: 2012
  • Great Lakes Division Champions: 2013
  • League1 Ontario
  • Western Conference Champions: 2016
  • Regular Season Champions: 2018

Head coaches

  • Martin Painter (2009–2016)
  • Mario Despotović (2016–2017)
  • Dom Kosic (2017–2018)
  • Michael Marcoccia (2018–2021)
  • Ruben Quintão (2022)
  • Yiannis Tsalatsidis (2023–present)

Stadium history

Average attendance

Attendance{{cite web|url=http://www.uslsoccer.com/history/index_E%2Ehtml |access-date=December 14, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100105175057/http://www.uslsoccer.com/history/index_E.html |archive-date=January 5, 2010|title=Previous Season Stat Archives|work=United Soccer League}}

  • 2009: 1632
  • 2010: 1246
  • 2011: 841
  • 2012: 507
  • 2013: 1146
  • 2014: 777
  • 2015: 944
  • 2019: 250
  • 2024: 947

References

{{reflist}}

External links

  • {{Official website|http://www.FCLondon.ca}}
  • [https://web.archive.org/web/20140416183620/http://www.uslsoccer.com/teams/2011/13598680.html#MAIN Official PDL site]

{{FC London}}

{{League1 Ontario}}

{{League1 Ontario (women)}}

{{Soccer in Canada}}

{{Ontario Sports}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:London, FC}}

Category:Soccer clubs in London, Ontario

Category:League1 Ontario teams

Category:Association football clubs established in 2008

Category:2008 establishments in Ontario

Category:Toronto FC