EXCLUSIVE: Hassan Mowgli and the Launch of League1 Prairies

Revealed in the perhaps most unorthodox fashion earlier this month, it is finally official: League1 Prairies is real and will be kicking off in late spring 2026. As fans stumbled across a PowerPoint presentation posted to the Saskatchewan Soccer Association website, they uncovered a detailed roadmap for the launch of a new third-tier soccer league under the League1 Canada umbrella that outlined everything from training regiments to league structure.

This reveal comes two years after League1 Canada as an organization began seeking partners to create a pro-am league in Central Canada, though those initial conversations bore little fruit.

Northern Tribune recently had the opportunity to speak with the SSA’s Director of Soccer Operations, Hassan Mowgli, regarding the formation of this incoming league and what fans should expect in 2026, 2027, and 2028.

League1 Prairies: The Basics

The information revealed on the Saskatchewan Soccer Association website provides many exciting details for those who have been patiently waiting for this day since preparations began many moons ago. Here’s the general breakdown, though much of this is subject to change:

Kick-Off Date: Depending on the number of teams, the league is expecting an April 2026 kick-off for their Exhibition Series pilot project, similar to L1Alberta’s 2023 series. A full launch of the league is expected in 2028.

Teams: Although the names of the participating clubs have yet to be revealed, the league is expecting a slate of 6-8 for 2026, 8-12 for 2027, and 12-14 for the first official season in 2028. It has been rumoured for some time that fan favourites like FC Manitoba may make a return along with their USL2, Ontario-based counterparts in the Thunder Bay Chill.

A source within the Chill organization has confirmed to Northern Tribune that the club is in conversations with the new league as well as their previous hosts in USL2. However, they stressed that these conversations are ongoing and did not comment on whether their side will be repatriated come next season.

Divisions: It has been confirmed that there will be both a men’s and women’s competition in L1Prairies, with it expected to follow the L1BC format of double-header game days.

League Format: The league is considering a regular season where each team playing each other twice -one at home and once away – alongside an “L1 Cup” style in-season tournament.

Game Days: Local games are tentatively scheduled for Tuesdays while any games requiring travel will fall on Fridays and Saturdays.

New Faces, Old Faces, Same Dream

Despite the information sessions in 2023 touting a launch date of 2025, fans were not treated a local kick off this past summer. This marked another year without local football to cheer on and what may have seemed to some like another failed venture into the Prairie soccer scene.

First it was the Saskatchewan Selects who, after three back-to-back-to-back successful “Summer Series'” against pro and semi-pro opponents, ultimately did not bounce back in the post-COVID sports revival.

Then came and went the bid by Living Sky Sports and Entertainment to bring a Canadian Premier League franchise to the Bridge City of Saskatoon. Despite much fanfare by the league and owners alike, this bid ultimately went up spectacularly in flames with stadium plans falling through and a $10 Million lawsuit between former partners.

READ MORE: Saskatchewan CPL Ownership Group Facing $10m Lawsuit

And most recently, Winnipeg’s Valour FC announced that they were suspending operations after seven straight mediocre seasons and little support from ownership, driving a dagger into the hearts of fans from the region.

Nevertheless, Hassan Mowgli, his colleagues in the SSA, their Manitoba-based counterparts, and League1 Canada are determined to make this one a success, and they have the groundwork to back it up.

“This has always been something that the Prairies have wanted,” said Mowgli, “it’s just been in the background until now. A lot of different people have worked on this to get it here.”

Although club registration and bond payment have yet to close, Mowgli touted an opening year line up of at least of six clubs from the two provinces, forming a men’s and women’s division, with hints at new and old clubs alike joining the fold. Mowgli stated that “the vision for the opening season was eight and we are on track for six if not more,” adding that the organization has had five clubs from Saskatchewan and three from Manitoba indicate their intentions to participate. Mowgli did stress, however, that indicating interest is a far cry from the actual application and payment of the bond.

It Takes A Village…

Something that was reinforced on several occasions was that this was never an individual effort. “As much as this is driven by the organizations, and League1 Canada, the clubs and our own technical staff and Chris Lourenco from Manitoba have been there since the beginning,” said the Operations Director. “This isn’t a ‘me’ project. The credit goes to everyone.”

This spirit of collaboration has emanated from every level of planning and operation, from the clubs, to League1 Canada, to even several of the university soccer teams in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. But perhaps the best representation of this is the partnership that is growing between Mowgli, his team, and their counterparts in League1 Alberta.

It’s no secret that Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba share a similar history and a socio-geographic makeup that has defined the Prairies as a region. The distances between the provinces’ major cities are similar; their populations – while quite different – are the fourth, fifth, and sixth-most populous provinces, and their soccer associations face similar situations as they pertain to club make-up.

But this is what Mowgli wants to rely on: Alberta has seen success with their League1 program, and so why not rely on and learn from your neighbour and trusted allies?

“Alberta is as close as one can be to our reality. The issues in Ontario and Quebec and BC are just so much different from ours,” stressed Mowgli. This, then, is exactly the reason why he has scheduled a trip to Alberta Soccer’s headquarters early next year to learn how to keep clubs sustainable, how to make a good game-day experience, and how to build a similarly successful model.

“We will make our own mistakes, but [learning from Alberta] will help us be better.”

What’s Next

As mentioned before, club registration for the 2026 exhibition season has yet to close, but that only means that Mowgli’s work has yet to truly begin.

From finalizing and approving participating clubs, to confirming the league schedule, and outlining what the game day will look like, it’s a group effort going forward. All of this hinges on the Technical Committee that is being established to guide the league into the future.

But who and what is this committee, you might ask? Made up of Mowgli, members of the SSA, MSA, club representatives, L1Canada reps, coaches, players, and community members, the Technical Committee will be subbing-in come December to determine all the finite details that one would expect at the semi-pro level. It will be the Technical Committee that will decide the venues, what the league standards will look like, the league format, the league rule book, and so much more.

Once again, a community effort, for a community and player-focused league.

Mowgli and company did emphasize, however, that this first season is truly a test-run. Though their pilot project seeks to replicate much of the successes seen in the League1 structures coast to coast, it is meant to acclimatize the Prairie soccer scene to the new standards-based, semi-professional approach.

READ MORE: Opinion: League1 Canada Must Uphold The ‘Standards’ Of ‘Standards-Based’ Soccer

A particular point of contention for the fans for the past few years of League1 Canada’s growth has been the widening gap between the most and least professionally presented teams, an expectation that is defined by the various leagues’ technical standards. It may then come to the chagrin of many that League1 Prairies will operate off an honour system for standard compliance during the 2026 season as they build and grow their foundation.

“A lot of the expectations we have come from League1 Canada as they help us achieve the vision we share… [but] we won’t be enforcing the standards in year one; it will be an honour system to start,” says Mowgli.

He did add that the registered clubs have agreed to the expectations and that the league will support the clubs to meet those standards.

“We’re happy to provide training, Canada Soccer advisors. We want to support the platform.”

For now, Mowgli is working towards his dream game day. All of these months and years of work will culminate come the spring, and it’s clear that all involved share a singular dream.

“I close my eyes and I see a scene like El Classico. I see it as a great, family time, like how I grew up walking to a game,” espoused Mowgli. “There’s lines for tickets and people are eating, drinking, and having a great time.” The ultimate goal, he shared, is the hope that one day, the entertainment product put on by L1PR clubs can compete with that of the Western Hockey League’s Saskatoon Blades, a beloved staple of the Bridge City’s sports scene.

Until then, Hassan Mowgli, the SSA, the MSA, and everyone else involved will continue their diligent work behind the scenes, awaiting those key milestones until they eventually kick off next April.

League1 Prairies is a new semi-professional league launched by the Saskatchewan Soccer Association in conjunction with the Manitoba Soccer Association and League1 Canada. The league has a scheduled kick off for their 2026 Exhibition Series in April of next year, just a few months before the FIFA World Cup comes to Canada, the United States, and Mexico.

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Author’s Note: The League1 Prairies logo utilized in this article’s thumbnail and featured image is a fan-crafted badge and not representative of any potential branding used by L1Canada.