The Canadian Premier League will play their 2020 season on Prince Edward Island.
The league made the announcement Wednesday afternoon, with all games to be played behind closed doors at the University of Prince Edward Island’s Alumni Field in Charlottetown.
The second season for the league will be very different from what fans saw in 2019, with the multi-stage competition being called ‘The Island Games’.
The first stage of play will have a total of 28 games, with every team playing each other once.
The top four teams will then advance to a six-game second group stage, again with everyone playing each other once.
The top two teams from stage two will then meet in a one-off championship final, with the winner awarded the North Star Shield and named as 2020 Canadian Premier League champions.
We Are Back.
The Canadian Premier League season will kick off on August 13th in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, and will conclude with the crowning of a 2020 Champion.#CanPL l : https://t.co/Z4SpoTSMzT pic.twitter.com/8V9MiCgfhO
— CanPL (@CPLsoccer) July 29, 2020
The tournament is scheduled to kick off on August 13th with Hamilton’s Forge F.C. taking on Calgary’s Cavalry F.C., a rematch of the 2019 finals.
The complete schedule has not yet been announced, though the league says The Island Games will wrap up in September.
All players and coaches will be tested for COVID-19 prior to leaving for Charlottetown on August 8th, testing to continue throughout the tournament.
International players will first make the trip to their home market and undergo the mandatory 14-day quarantine period, and be tested, before travelling to P.E.I.
The 2020 CPL season was originally scheduled to get underway back on April 11th.