Canada's domestic cup competition, now in its 19th year, pits together the Canadian Premier League teams, the three Canadian-based MLS teams, plus the winners of the semi-pro provincial leagues.
The very first game of the competition produced a stunning upset on Tuesday, with record champions Toronto FC were stunned 3-1 at home to CPL playoff winners Atletico Ottawa.
Toronto, who have now been eliminated in the preliminary round for the second straight year, took the lead through Deandre Kerr 16 minutes in. They nearly made it 2-0 early in the second half, but Jahmarie Nolan's effort was denied by Tristan Crampton.
Semi-finalists in the tournament in 2025, Ottawa levelled the score through Ballou Tabla. The winger got a bit of fortune in the box as the ball ricocheted off a couple of TFC defenders before the former CF Montreal academy player stuck a foot out to shoot it past Luka Gavran.
Ten minutes later, Ottleti scored what proved to be the winner. After a mix-up at the back, TFC coughed the ball up to Tabla, who went in one-on-one with Gavran. The attacker slid the ball home to turn things around and stun BMO Field.
The hosts tried to find a goal to force extra time, but it never came. Instead, they gave away a penalty in stoppage time when Tabla was taken down by Alonso Coello. Up stepped the Ivorian-born Tabla, who sent the ball down the middle to complete the his hat-trick and eliminate TFC.
Tabla is now tied with Toronto FC captain Jonathan Osorio for most goals in the competition all-time with eight.
"It's very good to see the team happy," Tabla said after the win. "It's been a tough few months for us, and I think we deserved (the win)."
Ottawa will face FC Supra du Quebec in the two-legged quarter-finals in July. Supra, making their debut in the tournament, got past Ontario Premier League holders Woodbridge Strikers 3-1 on Friday.
A Diyaeddine Abzi penalty put the hosts in front early in the match, only for Woodbridge to score a stunning equaliser at the half-hour mark. Jacob Spizirri went for goal from distance, beating Joakim Milli with a powerful strike into the top corner.
Supra held their nerve, finding their winner just before break, as Aboubacar Sissoko turned the ball in from close range. David Choiniere added a third to send his team through.
TFC were not the only professional side from Toronto to be on the wrong end of an 'cupset': Sunday saw Inter Toronto lose 1-0 to CS Saint-Laurent at home to also bow out at the first hurdle.
The only goal came in the 18th minute from Younesse El Mehdi Chibane, who broke in on goal before finding the bottom corner with his strike.
Inter mustered more than 30 attempts in the match, but could not beat Martin Cantona, nephew of former Manchester United star Eric. Instead, the Torontonians suffered their first defeat of 2026 across all competitions.
In what is their second appearance in the Canadian Championship, Saint-Laurent, hailing from LS PRO Quebec, defeated another professional team just like they did in 2024. This time, they managed to do so in 90 minutes, having beaten the HFX Wanderers on penalties.
Forge get past Wanderers with four-goal haul
Next for Saint-Laurent will be the 2020 finalists Forge FC, who defeated the HFX Wanderers 4-0 on Saturday in Hamilton.
Forge, who have reached at least the semi-finals in all but two of their appearances, had a penalty stopped midway through a first half in which they dominated. Yet, they went in front towards the end of the half when Tristan Borges stepped up and curled a free kick from the outside of the box to the back post, finding the far top corner.
Offseason signing Antoine Batisse doubled the Hammers' advantage in first half injury time as he powered home a deflected header on the goal line.
It became 3-0 early on in the second half when Hoce Massunda's cross found Borges, who slid in to get his foot on the ball and beat Marco Carducci for the second time. The attacker played a key part in the fourth as well, when his effort was not properly handled by the visitors' keeper. That allowed Brian Wright, who had his penalty stopped in the opening half, to finish the attack and get his goal.
The game was stopped for about an hour in the 70th minute due to lightning, but the damage was already done by the home side, who were not troubled in the final 20 minutes.
Halifax had just one attempt on target throughout the match as they succumbed to defeat against Forge in the preliminary round for the second straight year. Overall, the Wanderers have now failed to get past this stage in any of the last four editions.
In other preliminary round matches, CF Montreal came out on top with a comfortable 5-0 success over Alberta Premier League side Calgary Blizzard on Wednesday night. Five different players found the back of the net for a heavily rotated CFM side, who did not give up a shot on target in the match.
Next for Montreal will be Vancouver FC, who prevailed on Sunday by beating fellow Langley-based side Langley United 2-0. The Eagles made the final in 2025 despite finishing last in the CPL.
Vancouver were made to work for the win against the BC Premier League team, only finding their breakthrough in the 74th minute when Tom Field tipped Marcello Polisi's shot into the net.
Nicolas Mezquida scored the other goal in the final few minutes after Kian Proctor went from one box to the other to slip in the Uruguayan.
The other all-CPL match in the round saw Cavalry FC defeat Pacific FC 3-1 on the road. Centre-back Daan Klomp opened the scoring in the first half with a first-time finish from inside the box.
Josha Belluz tied things up for Pacific with 12 minutes left in normal time as his header found the bottom corner. The Cavs did not panic though, with Tobias Warschewski netting a penalty in the 87th minute to send his team through.
Michael Baldisimo added a third at the end to complete the win for Tommy Wheeldon Jr's side.
Cavalry, who have only been eliminated in the first round once, will face the Whitecaps next. The Caps have won the last four editions, and will face the Alberta-based Cavalry for the fourth time in the competition's history.
Both legs of the quarter-finals will be in July during the World Cup, before the semi-finals take place in September. The final is slated for October 21st.