July 29, 2025
CF Montreal shock Club León at the Leagues Cup
The 2025 edition of the Leagues Cup got underway tonight, as Mexico’s Club León came to battle CF Montreal at Stade Saputo. While there were still empty seats around the grounds, the fans that had come out made as much noise as any sold out crowd would have,
This was to be a match up that would see the two clubs face off against each other for the first time in their histories – and the last chance CF Montreal has at redeeming their disastrous season in any way. Just four teams from the eighteen each league send to the tournament can move on to the knockout round though, making this a touch challenge for the struggling Montreal club.
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For this year’s edition of the Leagues Cup, eighteen teams from Mexico’s LMX league will face off against eighteen MLS teams from Canada and America. Both the Eastern and Western conferences of the MLS will have their top nine teams from last season – basically those that made the playoffs last season, represented in the tournament.
The four teams from each league that accrue the most points, will then advance to eight team quarterfinal knock-out stage. As there are no ties; each team will earn a single point for a draw and a further point for winning their match on penalties, while a regulation time win will earn three points.
With their MLS season already sunk, CF Montreal needed to start off their three-game opening round of the Leagues Cup strong.
Despite there strong and dominant play, just a single defensive laps led to Rogelio Funes Mori opened the scoring for Club León in the 11th minute of play. James Rodríguez saw Mori all alone and headed towards the box, and sent a rocket of a cross from midfield in his direction. CF Montreal defender Brandan Craig hadn’t noticed the incoming cross, and was powerless to prevent Mori heading the ball past goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois and into the net.
In a show of character and iron will, CF Montreal responded brilliantly and were even more dominant after having conceived the Mori goal. Chances were coming but they weren’t able to capitalize on them. Until they did. In the 67th minute, CF Montreal striker Prince Owusu slipped a low, hard shot cross crease into the corner of the net, drawing the match even at one goal a piece. A fancy bit of foot work from Dante Sealy opened up a clear path for Sealy to thread a crisp pass to Owusu, who now has ten goals in his last ten matches for CF Montreal.
Club León goalkeeper Oscar Jiminez needed to be alert for the rest of game as CF Montreal were energized and pushing harder than ever in a game where they should have, and deserved to have walked away with the regulation win. Such is sports.
With draws not an option at the Leagues Cup, the game went to penalty kicks in order to determine a winner, with each team banking a point for the tie, and a further point on the line for the winner.
It would take seven rounds before a result was to be had. Joel Waterman, Brendan Craig, Bryce Duke, Olger Escobar, Luca Petrasso, Tom Pearce and Owusu scored for Montreal. Club León responded with markers from James Rodriguez, Adonis Frias, Emiliano Rigoni, Ettson Ayon, Rodrigo Echeverria and Valentin Gauthier. Every shot taken was sent past the goalkeeper, until León’s Sebastian Santos struck the crossbar, giving the win to CF Montreal. Something that has been such a rarity for the squad at home this season.
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CF Montreal had played perhaps their best match of the entire season, and deserved to come away with the victory. With little else left to play for, having already been ousted from the Canadian Championship and a playoff spot in the MLS well out of reach, giving the Montreal fans something to hope for at the Leagues Cup is a welcome bonus to a tough season.
Next, CF Montreal travel to Mexico for their second of three Leagues Cup matches, when they take on Liga MX Champions Deportivo Toluca in New Jersey. Following that, they return to Stade Saputo to welcome Mexican side Puebla in their final match up of the League Cup’s first round.
