PREVIEW – The 2025 AFC Toronto season will be a historic one and one that will be the very first in Toronto. This is the first time a first-tier professional women’s soccer team has arrived in Toronto. This is also the first time Toronto had a major women’s soccer team since the Toronto Lady Lynx existed in the second-tier USL league from 2005-15.
AFC Toronto Roster: First-Ever Team
Goalkeepers: Sierra Cote-Yarde and Sofia Manner
Defenders: Ashley Cathro, Kaela Hansen, Hong Hye-Ji, Sarah Rollins, Sonia Walk, Sarah Jones, and Croix Soto
Midfielders: Aoi Kizaki, Colby Barnett, Nyota Katembo, April Lantaigne, Ivymae Perez, Victoria Pickett, Emma Regan, Nikalya Small, and Cloey Uddenberg
Attackers: Shaina Ashouri, Kaylee Hunter, Jade Kovacevic, Esther Okoronkwo, Leah Pais, and Mya Jones
Note: There are a few players who can play more than one position, such as Pais (attacker and midfielder) and Regan (defender and midfielder).
Note: There are a few players who can play more than one position, such as Pais (attacker and midfielder) and Regan (defender and midfielder).
The AFC Toronto roster can be seen on their website.
Emma Regan and Kaela Hansen – Two British Columbians
Emma Regan was probably the biggest signing AFC Toronto made. She is the only player on the club who played for the CANWNT this year. Judging from what Marko Milanovic said, though, Regan most likely would play the midfield role as seen below (Source: AFC Toronto Website):
“Emma exemplifies the ambition, hunger and leadership we look for in a player. She’s a natural leader who has excelled across national team programs and has continued to rise with a determination to play at the highest level,” said Milanovic, Head Coach of AFC Toronto. “Her versatility in midfield, strong fundamentals, and relentless drive to develop make her a perfect fit for our club’s vision.”
Regan is only 25 years old and has a lot of years left. She is also not the only leader on this team, as other players on this roster have also been in a leadership role at least some time in their careers. This will help when things get tough and when a team needs to bounce back.
Also, while she plays as a midfielder for the CANWNT, she played both as a midfielder and as a defender for HB Køge.
READ MORE: AFC Toronto and CANWNT Player Profile: Emma Regan
It will be interesting to see how Regan plays with Kaela Hansen. Hansen will play as a defender for the club and was most recently playing in the top league in Finland with Kuopion Palloseura. This is what Regan said about Hansen (Source: The Canadian Press):
“She’s an amazing player,” Regan said of Hansen. “Just very fearless, A ruthless defender. Very smart going forward as well. She’s the type of player that you don’t want to play against. When you see her lining up across from you, you should have a bit of fear in you.”
READ MORE: Leah Pais: The Person Behind the Mask (Part One)
How these players work (Jade Kovacevic and Leah Pais as discussed later) could be a big factor in how well AFC does in their inaugural season. The thing is that, in a league starting its first-ever season, chemistry will be an issue for all teams. So, having a few players that know each other will be very beneficial to the club when they try and earn results in the NSL/SLN.
Noteworthy Players from the NWSL
AFC Toronto has some noteworthy players to come from the NWSL. The first of their signings from the NWSL was American, Croix Soto, the young 24-year-old defender, who will likely be relied upon for Toronto. It also looks like Soto is coming to play in the NSL/SLN with the right mindset, as she said this (Source: Signa Butler of CBC Sport):
“Canada has needed a women’s pro league for far too long,” the Pasadena, California native told CBC Sports. “You’re never really able to be a pioneer or a first for many things. That’s what drew me in, to start from the ground up. I want to be a part of that in an impactful way.”
Soto played previously for the Kansas City Current and the Houston Dash, and her NWSL experience will be valuable with Toronto.
Likewise, Canadian midfielder Victoria Pickett has significant experience playing with the Kansas City Current, NJ/NY Gotham FC, and the North Carolina Courage. She also has a high-profile signing as she played three games with the CANWNT.
Lastly, before getting to the players being loaned from an NWSL team, there is Shaina Ashouri. While she did not come from the NWSL to the NSL/SLN, she was at one point signed with the Houston Dash for the 2020 NWSL season.
Two Canadian forwards, Amanda West (who can represent either Canada or Sweden), played with the Houston Dash last year, with 15 games played and one goal scored. She also knows how to score, as she is the all-time goal scorer for the Pittsburgh Panthers before getting drafted into the NWSL.
Lastly, there is Mya Jones, whom the San Diego Wave FC is loaning to AFC Toronto. She played 19 games for San Diego and scored two goals during that time. Both West and Jones are likely to get playing minutes for Toronto to try to score goals. They have some lethal players on the bench as well, with players such as Kovacevic and others.
AFC Toronto: Signed Teenager Kaylee Hunter
AFC Toronto signed one noteworthy teenager to the club. This is 17-year-old Canadian forward, Kaylee Hunter, who made a big impression while playing for the Whitecaps FC Girls Elite, making 15 appearances and scoring 13 goals from 2023-24. She also represented the Canada U17 team, scoring eight goals in six appearances, and scored six goals in eight appearances for the Canada U20 team.
This is what Milanovic, head coach of AFC Toronto, said about Kaylee Hunter (Source: Neil Davidson of The Canadian Press):
“We believe Kaylee is undoubtedly one of the best emerging players in the country, and we are ecstatic that she has decided to take the first steps of her professional career with AFC Toronto,” Toronto sporting director Billy Wilson said in a statement.
Players to Watch: Leah Pais and Jade Kovacevic
READ MORE: Leah Pais: Looking at the Big Picture (Part Two)
Leah Pais was the second-ever player to be signed by AFC Toronto. The midfielder and forward for the club is only 23 years old and already has experience playing professionally in Iceland with Knattspyrnufélagið Þróttur. This is what Pais said about her experience in playing as both a midfielder and a forward/striker:
Being a leader off the field can be an important attribute to a club and/or national team. A prime example of that is Doneil Henry, and what he did with the CANMNT, including helping the national team qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Pais also has good chemistry with fellow Vaughan Azzurri teammate, Jade Kovacevic (who was the first-ever player signed by AFC Toronto). Kovacevic plays as a forward and is an accomplished League1 Ontario and Ontario Colleges Athletic Association player. Pais seems excited about playing with Kovacevic, as seen below:
READ MORE: First-Ever AFC Toronto Forward: Jade Kovacevic Player Profile
It will be interesting to see how these two players play with Pais playing at either the midfielder or the forward position and Kovacevic having the forward position, and what that would look like. There might be pressure on both of them as they were the first two-ever signings made by the club.
Games Coming Up for AFC Toronto
AFC Toronto will have two games in April. The first one will be an unforgettable one at BMO Field against the Montreal Roses FC/Roses de Montréal at BMO Field (the rest of AFC Toronto’s home games will be at York Lions Stadium). That game will take place on April 19 at 4:00pm EST. That game will be televised live on TSN and RDS in Canada and will also be shown on the streaming service CBC Gem. As for the Americans, they can watch the game live on ESPN+.
READ MORE: 2025 Northern Super League Season: Big Storylines
AFC will then travel to the nation’s capital for the first-ever Battle of Ontario in the NSL/SLN. That game will take place at TD Place Stadium at 1:00pm ET on April 19 against the Ottawa Rapid FC/CF Rapide Ottawa. That game will be televised live in Canada on TSN and will also be available on nsl.ca. The game will also be shown for the Americans on ESPN+.
READ MORE: AFC Toronto Logo and Stadium: York Lions Stadium
Note: AFC Toronto signed New Majority Owner, Mark Mitchell, who is Michigan-based and is the founder of the Mitchell Family Office (Source: Canadian Press).
Photo Credit: AFC Toronto on August 28, 2024.
