The Hockey Hall of Fame is a museum and hall of fame located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League (NHL) records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup. Founded in Kingston, Ontario, the Hockey Hall of Fame was established in 1943 under the leadership of James T. Sutherland. The first class of honoured members was inducted in 1945, before the Hall of Fame had a permanent location. It moved to Toronto in 1958 after the NHL withdrew its support for the International Hockey Hall of Fame in Kingston, Ontario, due to funding issues. Its first permanent building opened at Exhibition Place in 1961. The hall was relocated in 1993, and is now in Downtown Toronto, inside Brookfield Place, and a historic Bank of Montreal building. The Hockey Hall of Fame has hosted International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) exhibits and the IIHF Hall of Fame since 1998.
In Canada, soccer is the most popular sport in terms of participation rate; according to FIFA's Big Count, almost 2.7 million people played in Canada in 2006. Professional soccer in Canada is played in the Canadian Premier League and Major League Soccer. Canada also has many semi-professional and amateur soccer leagues. Canada's men's and women's national soccer teams are ranked 49th and 9th respectively in the FIFA World Rankings as of April 4, 2024.
Sports in Canada consist of a wide variety of games. The roots of organized sports in Canada date back to the 1770s. Canada's official national sports are ice hockey and lacrosse. Other major professional games include curling, basketball, baseball, soccer, and football. Great achievements in Canadian sports are recognized by numerous "Halls of Fame" and museums, such as Canada's Sports Hall of Fame.
Robert Italo Lenarduzzi, OBC is a former North American Soccer League player, Canadian international, and coach of the Canadian national and Olympic soccer teams. He is currently club liaison for Vancouver Whitecaps FC. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
Geraldine Heaney is an Irish-Canadian ice hockey coach and former defenceman. She played 18 seasons and over 1,000 games with the Toronto Aeros organization, won six Ontario provincial championships and was named Ontario Women's Hockey Association (OWHA) most valuable defenceman on three occasions. The Aeros retired her jersey number 91 in 2006. Internationally, Heaney was a member of the Canadian national team in the first seven Women's World Championships, winning gold each time. She is a two-time Olympian, winning silver at the inaugural tournament in 1998 tournament, and gold in 2002. On June 14, 2022, she became the head coach of the Toronto Six of the Premier Hockey Federation.
Kenneth Pears was a Canadian soccer goalkeeper. He was a four-time national champion with Westminster Royals FC (1953), Vancouver Hale-Co FC (1956), Vancouver Columbus FC (1964), and Vancouver Firefighters FC (1965). He was Canada's starting goalkeeper during FIFA World Cup Qualifiers in 1957. He is an honoured member of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class in 2000.
Pat Philley was a Canadian soccer player. He was a national champion with Vancouver City FC in 1950. He was Canada's starting centre half and captain during three matches in FIFA World Cup Qualifiers in 1957. He is an honoured member of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame.
Domenic Mobilio was a Canadian professional soccer player who played as a striker.
The Challenge Trophy is the trophy presented to Canada's men's amateur soccer champions as part of Canada Soccer's annual National Championships. The men's competition was created with the inauguration of the Dominion of Canada Football Association in 1912 and the first club winners were presented the Connaught Cup in 1913. The first Challenge Trophy, donated by The Football Association, was presented to the Dominion of Canada Football Championship winners for the first time in 1926. The new Challenge Trophy was presented to the men's amateur champions for the first time in 2004.
Andrea Neil is a pioneer of women's soccer in Canada. Neil retired from the game after representing Canada more than any other Canadian player in history.
The Edmonton Scottish Soccer Club, better known as Edmonton Scottish, is a Canadian semi-professional soccer club based in Edmonton, Alberta.
Carmelina Moscato is a Canadian soccer coach and former professional player who is currently an assistant coach for Racing Louisville FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She played as a defender for UPC Tavagnacco in the Serie A; Piteå IF and Dalsjöfors GoIF in the Damallsvenskan; the Chicago Red Stars, Boston Breakers and Seattle Reign FC in the NWSL; and Western Sydney Wanderers in the Australian W-League. She made 94 appearances for the Canadian national team. She served as the commissioner of League1 Ontario Women's Division from 2019 to 2020. She was the director of women's football for the Bahamas Football Association in 2021.
Paul Hamilton is a Canadian soccer player who is the head coach for League1 Alberta side Edmonton Scottish. Previously having played professionally for the Vancouver Whitecaps, FC Edmonton and the Carolina Railhawks.
Robyn Krista Gayle is a former Canadian soccer player who was both a Concacaf champion and Olympic Bronze Medal winner. She played her club career in Canada and the United States, including two years with the Washington Spirit of the National Women's Soccer League. She is an honoured member of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame as part of the Class in 2024.
Paris Donald Gee is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a defender for Vancouver FC in the Canadian Premier League.
Antonio Rocco Romeo is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a centre-back for Vancouver FC.
Carrie Serwetnyk is a former forward with the Canada women's national soccer team from 1986 to 1991. While playing with Canada, Serwetnyk appeared at the 1988 FIFA Women's Invitation Tournament and the 1991 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification before leaving the team in 1991. After playing in Japan in the early 1990s, Serwetnyk returned to the Canadian national team in 1996 before retiring. Serwetnyk was the first woman to be named into the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame upon her 2001 induction and was a torchbearer for the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Thomas Hasal is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Los Angeles FC in Major League Soccer.
Robert George Hindmarch was a Canadian educator, sports administrator and ice hockey coach. He was a multi-sport athlete at the University of British Columbia (UBC) as a student, and returned as a professor and its director of physical education. He and Father David Bauer established a permanent Canada men's national ice hockey team based at UBC in preparation for ice hockey at the 1964 Winter Olympics. Hindmarch later coached the UBC Thunderbirds men's ice hockey team for 214 wins in 12 seasons; they became one of the first Western Bloc sports teams to play a tour of games in China. He developed additional international sporting relationships for the Thunderbirds in South Korea and Japan, and served as vice-president of the Canadian Olympic Association for 16 years. Hindmarch was made a member of the Order of Canada and the Order of British Columbia; and is inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame and the BC Sports Hall of Fame.
John Arthur Sullivan was a Canadian journalist and writer. He worked for The Canadian Press from 1929 to 1975, where he served as the sports editor for 27 years, and covered the Olympic Games, the Stanley Cup, the Commonwealth Games, and the Grey Cup. He amassed background information on players, coaches, when no previous database had existed, which was subsequently used as a reference by sports media across Canada. He later served as the head researcher for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in preparation for coverage of the 1976 Summer Olympics. He was inducted into the builder category of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 1983, and was posthumously inducted into the Football Reporters of Canada section of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1994.
