| Competition: | League1 Ontario Men's Division |
| Dates: | July 29 – November 7, 2021 |
| Season: | 2021 |
| Winners: | Guelph United F.C. |
| Shield: | Vaughan Azzurri |
| Shieldtitle: | Regular Season Champions |
| Matches: | 90 |
| Total Goals: | 374 |
| League Topscorer: | Jace Kotsopoulos (15) |
| Best Goalkeeper: | Christian Calabro (1.03 GAA) |
| Prevseason: | |
| Nextseason: | 2022 |
The 2021 Men's League1 Ontario season was the seventh season of play (the 2020 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic) for League1 Ontario, a Division 3 men's soccer league in the Canadian soccer pyramid and the highest level of soccer based in the Canadian province of Ontario.
After the 2020 League1 Ontario season was cancelled, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the league was optimistic that the 2021 season would be able to proceed. The league initially announced a projected start date of July 2, 2021, also announcing a 'drop-dead date' of June 7, 2021 that will confirm the start of the season on that date depending on restrictions in the province, otherwise the season would be cancelled.[1] [2] In mid-June, the league start date was later revised to July 29, 2021, in accordance with the local re-opening plans.[3]
The league was divided into two divisions with the East Division having seven teams and the West division having eight teams. Each team played 12 games against teams in their own divisions (East played each opponent home and away, while West played five of the teams twice, and the remaining two teams once). The top two teams from each division advanced to the playoff semi-finals, with the winner of the championship final in November qualifying for the 2022 Canadian Championship.[4]
Because the season began three months later than normal and with very short notice, some clubs have opted to delay their return to Premier Division competition until the 2022 season. As a large portion of the L1O player pool consisted of university and college student athletes, some sides would have limited squads after Labour Day. To combat these challenges, the league created a short-season ‘Summer Championship Series’ for 2021, which will conclude by Labour Day.
In addition, the Reserve Division will return, following a similar format to the Premier Division, featuring 21 teams in three division playing 12 matches, with the top teams advancing to the playoffs and featuring Championship Finals weekend on November 6-7.
The men's division consists of 21 teams, an increase from 17 teams in 2020. 1812 FC Barrie, Guelph United F.C., Scrosoppi FC, St. Catharines Roma Wolves, and Waterloo United are new entries, while Aurora FC will not be returning. Hamilton United, who joined in 2020, will also be debuting after their inaugural season was cancelled due to the pandemic.[5] However, some teams opted out of the main division due to the delayed start, resulting in only 15 teams participating. Some of these clubs will still operate teams in the short-season Summer Championship or full length Reserve Division.
The following clubs are set to participate in the league.
| Team | City | Principal stadium | Main Division | Summer Championship | Reserve Division | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1812 FC Barrie | Terry Fox Stadium (Brampton) | |||||
| Alliance United FC | Mount Joy | |||||
| Blue Devils FC | Bronte Park | |||||
| Darby FC | Whitby Soccer Centre | |||||
| Guelph United F.C. | ||||||
| Hamilton United | Redeemer Sports Complex | |||||
| FC London | Hellenic Community Centre | |||||
| Master's Futbol | L'Amoreaux Park | (2 teams) | ||||
| North Mississauga SC | ||||||
| North Toronto Nitros | ||||||
| Pickering FC | Kinsmen Park | |||||
| ProStars FC | ||||||
| Scrosoppi FC | ||||||
| Sigma FC | ||||||
| St. Catharines Roma Wolves | Club Roma Stadium | |||||
| Toronto Skillz FC | ||||||
| Unionville Milliken SC | Bill Crothers Turf | (2 teams) | ||||
| Vaughan Azzurri | North Maple Regional Park | |||||
| Waterloo United | RIM Park | |||||
| Windsor TFC | Libro Centre | |||||
| Woodbridge Strikers | Vaughan Grove |
The following clubs, while not formally part of League1 Ontario are operating teams in the Summer Championship or Reserve Divisions:
| Team | City | Principal stadium | Main Division | Summer Championship | Reserve Division | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tecumseh SC | ||||||
| Athlete Institute | The Hill Academy | |||||
| Toronto FC III (U19) | BMO Training Ground | |||||
| Toronto FC IV (U17) | BMO Training Ground | |||||
| Whitecaps London | North London Stadium | |||||
| FC Durham Academy | Vaso Field | |||||
| Richmond Hill SC | Richmond Green | |||||
| Rush Canada Academy | Bronte Athletic Park |
Semifinals
Final
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jace Kotsopoulos | Guelph United | 15 |
| 2 | Ethan Gopaul | FC London | 11 |
| Master's FA | |||
| 4 | Tomasz Skublak | Guelph United | 10 |
| 5 | Johnson Amoo | 1812 FC Barrie | 8 |
| Kadiebue Kadiebue | Woodbridge Strikers | ||
| Alexander Zis | Guelph United | ||
| 8 | Leaford Allen | Blue Devils FC | 7 |
| Jevonate Layne | ProStars FC | ||
| Raheem Rose | Vaughan Azzurri | ||
| Jason Squeo | Sigma FC | ||
| Rank | Player | Club | Minutes | GAA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christian Calabro | Vaughan Azzurri | 788 | 1.03 | |
| 2 | Lucas Birnstingle | Blue Devils FC | 810 | 1.22 | |
| 3 | Svyatik Artemenko | Guelph United | 1080 | 1.25 | |
| 4 | Spiridon Koskinas | Master's FA | 636 | 1.27 | |
| 5 | Alexander Pothemont | Woodbridge Strikers | 810 | 1.33 |
The following awards and nominations were awarded for the 2021 season.[6]
East Division
| Award | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player | Master's FA | |
| Coach of the Year | Vaughan Azzurri | |
| Top Goalkeeper | 1812 FC Barrie | |
| Top Defender | Master's FA | |
| Top Midfielder | Master's FA | |
| Award | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player | Guelph United F.C. | |
| Coach of the Year | Guelph United F.C. | |
| Top Goalkeeper | Guelph United F.C. | |
| Top Defender | Guelph United F.C. | |
| Top Midfielder | Guelph United F.C. | |
East Division
| Player | Position | |
|---|---|---|
 Quillan Roberts (1812 FC Barrie) | Goalkeeper | |
 Terrell Spencer (Master's FA) | Defender | |
| Reggie Laryea (Vaughan Azzurri) | Defender | |
| Keegan Wilson (Woodbridge Strikers) | Defender | |
| Jarred Phillips (Vaughan Azzurri) | Defender | |
| Francis Ameyaw (Master's FA) | Midfielder | |
| Raheem Rose (Vaughan Azzurri) | Midfielder | |
| Dante Pavan (Woodbridge Strikers) | Midfielder | |
| Ali El-Zeir (1812 FC Barrie) | Forward | |
| Reshon Phillip (Master's FA) | Forward | |
| Shaquille Agard (Master's FA) | Forward |
| Player | Position | |
|---|---|---|
| Svyatoslav Artemenko (Guelph United FC) | Goalkeeper | |
| Amardo Oakley (Guelph United FC) | Defender | |
| Adam Czerkawski (Blue Devils FC) | Defender | |
| Bradley Heath (FC London) | Defender | |
| Kyle Walton (Sigma FC) | Defender | |
| Brandon Duarte (Blue Devils FC) | Midfielder | |
| Alex Zis (Guelph United FC) | Midfielder | |
| Dion Stergiotis (Guelph United FC) | Midfielder | |
| Jace Kotsopoulos (Guelph United FC) | Forward | |
| Tomasz Skublak (Guelph United FC) | Forward | |
| Ethan Gopaul (FC London) | Forward |
Due to the delayed start to the season, some teams were unable to commit to the full season for the Premier Division. For 2021, a short season "Summer Championship" (also called the 'University' Division) was created which will conclude by Labour Day and will include some of the teams that could not participate in the full season.
Semi-finals
Final