Here's how some CPL defensive records could be broken at the end of the 2026 regular season
A midweek meeting between Inter Toronto and Pacific FC certainly didn’t disappoint, as both teams combined for six goals in a 3-3 thriller at York Lions Stadium on Wednesday.
FT: Three each in Toronto!
— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) September 10, 2026
A wild clash between @inter__toronto and @Pacificfccpl sees five goals scored in the second half in a back-and-forth battle which ends in a draw. #CPLSoccer pic.twitter.com/jDPaoSOhWs
After Pacific took an early lead through Ronan Kratt in the 14th minute, the game came alive in the 55th minute, as Toronto’s Kembo Kibato tied the game at 1-1.
Before you could even blink, the game was then all of a sudden 2-2 by the 60th minute, as Pacific scored the 2-1 goal through Yann Toualy in the 57th minute before Toronto’s Luca Accettola scored in the 59th minute to make it 2-2.
From there, the game unsurprisingly yielded a dramatic finish, as Pacific thought they had found their winner with an 85th-minute penalty goal from Alejandro Díaz, just for Toronto to equalize with an 87th-minute goal from Luke Singh. In the end, both teams were unable to keep things tight at the back, which prevented them from being able to find a victory, one they’ll each feel they deserved.
Yet, for those who have followed those teams this season, it wasn’t surprising to see them leak goals this way; however - through 19 regular season CPL games, Toronto has conceded 41 goals, while Pacific has conceded 42 in 20 regular season games of their own, which are the two highest marks in the league.
For context, this was the seventh time this season Pacific have conceded three or more goals in a game; Toronto, meanwhile, have conceded three or more goals eight times.
Given that, you can see why both teams traded goals the way they did, as they’ve made a habit of leaking goals that way.
GOAL🔱 🔱
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) September 10, 2026
Just as quickly as they conceded, Pacific have found another goal, as Yann Toualy curls one into the bottom corner to put his team back ahead 2-1
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Because of that, both teams could soon be on pace to break an unwanted record. As it stands, Pacific is on pace to concede just under 59 goals, while Toronto is on pace to concede over 60 goals.
As it stands, the record for most goals conceded in a season belongs to Valour FC, who conceded 62 goals during the 2025 season, so both sides are safe from that record for now, but Toronto is on pace to beat the 59 goals Pacific conceded in 2025, which is the second-highest mark.
If both teams have a few more games like the one they had in midweek, it’s not unreasonable to imagine a world where they end up breaking that record, one that they’d love to steer well away from.
What that shows, though, is why both teams will be focusing on tightening things up defensively going forward. In particular, Toronto will feel they have a lot of work to do in that department, given that they lead the CPL in xG against with 38.71, showing that the 41 goals they’ve conceded isn’t even that unreasonable given their advanced numbers.
Pacific, meanwhile, has conceded 33.07 xG, which is fifth in the league, showing that their defensive struggles can be as much pinned on factors such as goalkeeping and bad luck, even if they’ll acknowledge their defensive shortcomings, such as the issues they’ve had with defensive crosses.
GOAL🦝 🦝 🦝
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) September 10, 2026
Don't look away from this clash for even a second, as Inter Toronto have already found an equalizer, with Luke Singh powering home a header to make it 3-3 in a CPL thriller
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To that point, though, both teams will want to improve the shot volume they allow, too, as Toronto have allowed a league-high 319 shots and 28 shots on target, while Pacific has conceded 298 shots (third-highest in the CPL), with 104 of them being on target (also third-highest).
Of course, it’s worth noting that Pacific has turned things around as of late, even if the raw numbers haven’t always reflected that. Not only have they recently snapped their long losing streak, one that stretched over a calendar year, but they’re actually undefeated in five of their last six games - the problem is that four of those games have been draws.
Since new head coach Terry Dunfield’s first game in charge on July 26th, Pacific have become a lot harder to play against, and that’s reflected in the results, even if they’ve continued to leak goals at a concerning rate. Since July 25th, Pacific’s conceded the third-fewest xG with 11.1, and lead the league in xG with 17.21, showing that their advanced figures have become quite strong.
Therefore, even if they’ve underperformed that offensive xG by almost five goals, and the xG they conceded by over four goals, they’ll take those metrics as a sign that they’re on the right track - their next step will be sharpening up their play in both boxes to turn those good advanced numbers into more wins.
Toronto, meanwhile, have a lot more to worry about defensively, as since July 25th, they’ve conceded a league-high 18.21 xG - which shows why they’ve conceded 19 goals across that span.
That’s quite frustrating to see from their perspective, because despite their defensive struggles, they have remained in the CPL playoff race - while they sit 10 points behind fourth-place Vancouver, they have two games in hand and two more head-to-head clashes against Vancouver.
Therefore, they still have some runway to make the playoffs, although that runway is quickly running out with both of those head-to-head matchups against Vancouver coming within their next three games.
Pacific, meanwhile, will know that while they remain mathematically alive in the race, they’re extremely unlikely to make up a gap of 20 points with just eight games to go, which perhaps has given them some more freedom to operate with. Right now, their focus is on building good habits and preparing for the future, one where they want to be tougher to play against, which has contributed to their recent run of results.
Yet, that shows why it’ll be so fascinating to follow the end of the season from Toronto’s perspective. As the numbers show, they’re the more likely team to break the record for most goals conceded, but to do so while remaining in a playoff race would be shocking to see - even if that’s becoming emblematic of their season.
Either way, it gives a clear idea of what they’ll want to clean up if they’re to chase that postseason berth, and that’s their defensive game - and the same goes for Pacific as they chase long-term improvement.
Funnily enough, though, while a pair of teams are looking to avoid some unwanted defensive records, a pair of teams are also chasing some impressive defensive records of their own in Forge and Cavalry.
It's only early September and we've already got some #CPLSoccer playoff clinching scenarios at play this weekend
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) September 10, 2026
Can league leaders Cavalry continue a strong end to summer? Will Forge be able to end a slump and get the help needed to book an early postseason berth? pic.twitter.com/mohTy09oSs
As it stands, Forge’s 2025 season stands out as the best regular-season defensive team, as they only conceded 22 goals en route to a CPL Shield triumph.
Right now, though, Forge and Cavalry are both on pace to beat that record - Forge has conceded 15 goals, putting them on track to concede 21, while Cavalry has conceded 12, putting them on track to concede just under 17 goals.
While both numbers stand out, showing why each side is competing to win the CPL Shield and could already book a playoff berth as soon as this weekend, Cavalry’s defensive figures really shine in particular. 
They’ve conceded just 15.12 xG, which is over six xG less than the next best team, Forge (who have 21.15), showing that while they might’ve been a bit lucky numbers-wise, that luck is likely cancelled out by factors such as strong goalkeeping.
Certainly, you can only tip your cap to their defensive ability when you realize they’re yet to concede more than one goal in a game this season. Therefore, when considering that they actually sit second in the CPL behind Forge in clean sheets with eight, it gives an idea of how consistent they’ve been defensively.
Because of that, it’s going to be fascinating to see if they can maintain this pace over their last eight games of the season.
Even if they don’t keep a clean sheet in any of those games, as long as they continue this streak of not allowing a goal a game, they can still set the record - and if they have a couple of clean sheets in there, they could very well smash the record.
In a year where goals have been flying around, and some teams have struggled defensively, that would be a big achievement, but that shows why Cavalry are leading the race for the CPL Shield and have to be the early favourite to win the North Star Cup. As the adage goes, defence wins championships, so perhaps Cavalry’s success on that side of their game can inspire Toronto and Pacific as they chase unwanted history.
