The inaugural League1 Ontario season for the Sudbury Cyclones was filled with positive takeaways as local soccer fans embraced the highest level of soccer to be seen in these parts in quite some time.
That memorable 2024 campaign became all the more fruitful today with the announcement that the Cyclones have earned a promotion to League1 Ontario Championship Division status for the upcoming summer.
After battling it out with both Vaughan Azzurri and Alliance United for top spot in League2 Men's Northeast Division grouping last summer, the Sudbury entry would come up just three points short of securing a tob of the table position.
Thankfully for the local crew, there remains still a fair bit of shuffling within the League1 Ontario landscape and given the competitiveness of the Cyclones in their circuit debut, their addition at the next step of the ladder is all too fitting.
From top to bottom, the organization was thrilled with the belated Christmas present.
"This is an opportunity to test ourselves against the best in the league, further develop our players and continue elevating the profile of soccer in Northern Ontario," noted Cyclones owner Dario Zulich.
"Our community has been the backbone of our success and I know they’ll be thrilled to see us competing at a higher level," he added. "This promotion is as much theirs as it is ours, and we’re committed to making them proud in the Championship Division."
A graduate of the Laurentian Voyageurs women's soccer program, Cyclones General Manager was among the early hopefuls who believed that the time was ripe for a Sudbury soccer entry could prosper at a higher level, provincially, both on the field and off.
"Our ambition is not just to compete but to excel," she said. "We want to establish ourselves as a force in the Championship Division, building a pathway for local talent to reach their potential and creating a legacy that inspires future generations in Sudbury and beyond."
"Sport is essential to the fabric of a healthy, happy community, and our goal is to continue to inspire and unite as many as possible with the love and joy of the beautiful game of soccer."
In the coming months, we expect to receive plenty of news regarding a finalized schedule for 2025 as well as information on both returning players as well as the newcomers looking to join the Sudbury Cyclones in their pursuit of soccer excellence.
In 2024, the League1 Championship Division were ten teams strong, with TFC Academy and FC London leading the group at season's end and St Catharines Roma and Unionville Milliken roughly ten points back.