FC Continentals

For the American soccer club, see Continentals F.C.

Full nameFC Continentals
Founded2008; 16 years ago (2008) as FC Vorkuta
StadiumCentennial Park Stadium
Toronto, Ontario
Owner(s)Igor Demitchev
ChairmanIgor Demitchev
ManagerDenys Yanchuk
CoachAndrei Malychenkov
LeagueCanadian Soccer League
2022Regular season: 4th
Playoffs: Champions
Websitehttps://continentalsfc.com/

FC Continentals is a Canadian soccer club founded in 2008. The team is currently a member of the Canadian Soccer League, a non-FIFA sanctioned league. The club originally played under the name FC Vorkuta and was renamed FC Continentals in 2022. Their home venue is Centennial Park Stadium in Toronto, Ontario.

History

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The club was formed by Russian immigrants Igor Demitchev and Samad Kadirov in Toronto in 2008.[1][2] The club derived its name from the main financier Demitchev's hometown Vorkuta in Russia.[3][4] Initially the club operated at the amateur level in the Downtown Polson Pier Soccer League. In their debut season, Vorkuta achieved instant success after clinching both the regular and postseason titles. Within a year, the club transferred to the Thornhill Soccer Club League, and continued its uphill climb to success by winning the playoff title.

In 2010, the team remained in the York Region territory by joining the Richmond Hill Soccer League, and the Downsview Hangar Indoor Soccer League. In 2016, the organization decided to make the transition to the professional ranks by applying for membership in the Canadian Soccer League.[5][6] After presenting a successful strategic business plan, the club received the necessary votes in order to be approved by the league ownership.[7][8] In preparation for the 2017 CSL season, the team hired the services of Serhiy Zayets as head coach.[9] Zayets assembled a roster with several key CSL veterans acquired primarily from FC Ukraine United. The acquisitions included Sergiy Ivliev, Oleg Shutov, Mykhailo Bulkin, Vitaliy Dnistryan, Danylo Lazar, Vadym Gostiev, and Oleh Kerchu was assigned the team captain.[10][11] In addition to the CSL veterans, several imports were brought in from Ukraine and Russia to further strengthen the roster.[12][13]

Vorkuta made their professional debut on May 27, 2017 against Milton SC with a 7–0 victory with goals coming from Kerchu, Lazar, Shutov, Gostiev, and Yaroslav Svorak.[14] In the club's inaugural season at the professional level, Vorkuta managed to produce a significant result. By clinching the regular season title, and establishing the best offensive record with the second best defensive record.[15][16] In the preliminary round of the postseason, they defeated Royal Toronto FC by a score of 6–3.[17][18] Their 2017 campaign came to a conclusion in the following round after a 1–0 defeat to Scarborough SC.[19]

In 2018, the club produced a notable season by securing the CSL Championship, and found further success in the Second Division as its reserve squad secured the double (division title and DII Championship).[20][21] In 2022, the club was renamed FC Continentals.[22][23]

Crest

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The crest used from 2008 to 2021

The club's first crest was in the shape of a circle with a soccer ball placed in the center along with the name of the club beneath it.[3] The colors of the crest were blue, red, and white which represented the colors of the Canadian and the city of Toronto flags.[3] On top of the crest was a barbed wire which symbolized the owner's birthplace Vorkuta in Siberia, Russia where a former Gulag labor camp was located.[4][24]

In 2022, the name of the club was changed to FC Continentals which also resulted in a rebranding of the club's logo.[25]

Players

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Current squad

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As of 31 July 2023[26]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
– DF Ukraine UKR Oleksandr Alyeksyeyev
– DF Ukraine UKR Maksym Banasevych
– FW Ukraine UKR Oleksiy Boyko
– MF Ukraine UKR Bohdan Borovskyi
– GK   Andrei Ciurchin
– DF Mexico MEX Jesus Eduardo Compean Gonzalez
– DF Ukraine UKR Leonid Husak
– FW Ukraine UKR Serhiy Ivlyev
– DF Ukraine UKR Serhiy Melnyk
– GK Ukraine UKR Oleksandr Musiyenko
– DF Ukraine UKR Borys Orlovskyi
No. Pos. Nation Player
– DF Ukraine UKR Illya Piltenko
– MF Ukraine UKR Serhiy Pitel
– FW Ukraine UKR Viktor Raskov
– MF Ukraine UKR Pavlo Shulhan
– MF Ukraine UKR Andriy Sorokin
– GK Ukraine UKR Anatoliy Starushchenko
– FW Ukraine UKR Mykola Temnyuk
– DF Ukraine UKR Mykyta Tkachov
– MF Ukraine UKR Vitaliy Tymofiyenko
– MF Ukraine UKR Serhiy Ursulenko

Head coaches

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Honours

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Seasons

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Season League Teams Record Rank Playoffs Ref
2017 Canadian Soccer League (First Division) 8 10–2–2 1st Semifinals [28]
2018 9 12–2–2 2nd Champions [28]
2019 10 15–3–0 1st Quarterfinals [28]
2020 5 4–3–1 2nd Champions [28]
2021 Canadian Soccer League 8 6–1–0 1st Finals [29]
2022 6 4–4–2 4th Champions [30]

References

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  1. ^ "FC Vorkuta » About FC Vorkuta". www.fcvorkuta.com. Archived from the original on October 27, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  2. ^ "Клуб мигрантов из России и Украины стал чемпионом Канады. ФК «Воркута» из Торонто, на эмблеме — колючая проволока - 13 января 2021 - Sport24". sport24.ru (in Russian). January 13, 2021. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c Kazantsev, Mikhail (June 26, 2017). "Воркута в Канаде | Моя Воркута". Моя Воркута (in Russian). Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  4. ^ a b Kovalev, Alexey. ""Нас постоянно просили снять "колючку" с логотипа". Жизнь русскоязычного клуба в Канаде" (in Russian). Retrieved June 6, 2018.
  5. ^ "FC Vorkuta » 2017! Here we come!!!". www.fcvorkuta.com. Archived from the original on October 27, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  6. ^ "FC Vorkuta to Join the CSL in 2017?". TOTAL90 Canada. December 5, 2016. Archived from the original on May 28, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  7. ^ "ФК "Воркута" – победитель регулярного чемпионата Канады по футб... Cтоп, кто?". Sports.ru (in Russian). October 1, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  8. ^ Adamson, Stan (April 29, 2017). "CSL EXPANSION TEAMS VORKUTA AND ROYAL TORONTO GIVE NEW LOOK……End of May kickoff | Canadian Soccer League". canadiansoccerleague.ca. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  9. ^ источники, Внешние. "Керчу стал игроком канадского клуба" (in Ukrainian). Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  10. ^ "Pre-Carpathian footballer switched to Russian-Canadian club "Vorkuta"". Archived from the original on January 24, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  11. ^ "Досвідчений буковинський футболіст Керчу грає за "Воркуту"" (in Ukrainian). Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  12. ^ "ФК "Воркута" Торонто: футболисты, тренеры, история, статистика, трансферы, протоколы". footballfacts.ru. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  13. ^ "Волчков: "Воркута" настроена на высокие задачи". Sports.ru (in Russian). October 28, 2017. Retrieved November 27, 2017.
  14. ^ Adamson, Stan (May 29, 2017). "EXPANSION TEAM VORKUTA SHINES IN CSL OPENER………the weekend wrap-up | Canadian Soccer League". canadiansoccerleague.ca. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  15. ^ "Чернівці Спорт — "Воркута" з буковинцями перемогла у Канадській лізі" (in Ukrainian). Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  16. ^ "FC Vorkuta » 2017 SUCCESS". www.fcvorkuta.com. Archived from the original on October 28, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  17. ^ Adamson, Stan (September 18, 2017). "SERBIAN EAGLES, VORKUTA, SCARBOROUGH AND YORK REGION ADVANCE ……..weekend games in the CSL playoffs | Canadian Soccer League". canadiansoccerleague.ca. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  18. ^ ""Воркута" выиграла "регулярку" чемпионата Канады и вылетела в полуфинале". October 1, 2017. Retrieved November 27, 2017.
  19. ^ "Побългареният "Скарбъро" на исторически финал за титлата". Вестник СТРУМА (in Bulgarian). Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  20. ^ "Денис Янчук: "Спортивні цілі у "Воркути" найвищі" — Чернівці Спорт". chernivtsisport.com (in Ukrainian). December 21, 2018. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  21. ^ Stanchev, Stancho (October 18, 2018). "Прокобата на дузпите отново провали К. Димитров в Канада". Вестник СТРУМА (in Bulgarian). Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  22. ^ Adamson, Stan (May 9, 2022). "New Name, New Teams for a New-Look CSL". Canadian Soccer League. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  23. ^ "У Канаді зникла футбольна "Воркута" — Чернівці Спорт" [Vorkuta Football Disappears in Canada]. chernivtsisport.com. April 14, 2022. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  24. ^ "Клуб мигрантов из России и Украины стал чемпионом Канады. ФК «Воркута» из Торонто, на эмблеме — колючая проволока - 13 января 2021 - Sport24" [The club of migrants from Russia and Ukraine became the champion of Canada. FC "Vorkuta" from Toronto, on the emblem - barbed wire]. sport24.ru (in Russian). January 13, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  25. ^ Fitz-Gerald, Sean (June 28, 2022). "In Toronto, a semi-pro soccer team of Ukrainians lifts each other up". The Athletic. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
  26. ^ "Canadian Soccer League". Canadian Soccer League. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  27. ^ Adamson, Stan (October 14, 2018). "Vorkuta, Vorkuta, Vorkuta Spells Three CSL Titles". Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  28. ^ a b c d "CSL First Division Standings". canadiansoccerleague.ca. Archived from the original on May 1, 2021. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
  29. ^ "ProSound Cup Standings". Canadian Soccer League. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
  30. ^ "Standings". Canadian Soccer League. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
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