Former Valour FC Captain Dylan Carreiro Retires

Former Valour FC Captain Dylan Carreiro has retired from the professional game at the age of 26.

The Winnipeg-born midfielder made the announcement last evening, stating that he will continue to coach and participate in football after stepping down as a professional athlete. In his official farewell post, the former Valour FC Captain stated that he would soon have official news on what his next career steps will be.

The move comes after Carreiro featured in all seven Valour FC matches at The Island Games, with the captain scoring the final goal of his career in a 4-0 drubbing of Atletico Ottawa. He made 31 appearances for Valour FC overall, which ties him with Diego Gutierrez as the club’s all-time appearance leader across all competitions.

The 26-year-old officially departed from Valour FC to return to the Toronto area this October, with Valour disclosing that there was a coaching opportunity in the works. While he was linked with York United, a Twitter exchange regarding news media revealed that Carreiro would not ultimately be joining the side.

Carreiro’s youth career began in Winnipeg and transitioned to Toronto as a teenager, with the midfielder joining the Toronto FC Academy before an overseas stint alongside Michael Petrasso at Queens Park Rangers. His first professional contract saw him join Dundee FC in 2014, With Dylan seeing two loan spells at Arbroath FC before departing from the Scottish side.

His next playing move took place with League1 Ontario side Woodbridge Strikers, with Carreiro pursuing a university education and featuring for the York Lions at the same time. He won the 2017 League1 Ontario MVP award for his efforts, and later featured in a sole playoff match for the Vaughan Azzurri against his old club a year before his move to Valour.

He has also represented Canada at the youth level, being named the Canadian U-20 Male Player of the Year in 2013 and earning a sole senior team call up in 2014.

Carreiro isn’t the only Canadian Premier League athlete to retire early this offseason, with the likes of Luca Gasparotto, Dean Northover, and Jason Beaulieu all hanging up their boots to pursue career moves outside of the beautiful game. The news comes in the midst of an overarching conversation about the league’s salary cap, with former Fury midfielder Christiano Francois stating that the league was better-suited for young players trying to prove themselves rather than established veterans who had larger bills to pay.

Before the Island Games, Giuliano Frano also opted leave Forge FC to pursue coaching aspirations, while former Valour FC midfielder Dylan Sacramento zeroed in on a business venture with Control Sox. Other CPL athletes like Dylon Powley have alternate careers that can keep an income coming in throughout the offseason.

This summer, the Players Union angling to officially represent Canadian Premier League athletes stated that half of the athletes in the league last season made less than $22,000.

While Carreiro hasn’t stated what his next steps will officially be beyond that he’ll continue to coach, the now-retired midfielder suggested that he’ll cross paths with Valour FC gaffer Rob Gale again in the future.

We wish Carreiro all the best in his next steps.