Alumni Spotlight

He joins an April 24 UCC “Speaking Of” panel discussion on Leadership in Women’s Sports, along with former pro player and two-time bronze medal winner Diana Matheson (pictured at right), who founded the league and is its chief growth officer. 

“Diana will tell the story of how this has come about,” Cohon says. “This is an important movement for our country, and everyone in our community should support it. I would say, ‘Watch the games on TV, come out to the stadiums to watch these players, and be a part of something historical for Canada.’”

The league launched on April 16 with the hometown Vancouver Rise FC downing Calgary Wild FC 1-0, and the visiting Montreal Roses FC beating AFC Toronto 1-0. For Cohon, who attended both matches, things are off to a promising start. Reported attendance for the games was 14,018 and 14,518, respectively.  

“It was moving and exciting, and we’ve got great momentum coming out of it,” Cohon says. 

The league’s other teams include the Ottawa Rapid FC and Halifax Tides FC, and Cohon — whose many senior business roles include former Canadian Football League commissioner and an executive with the National Basketball Association and Major League Baseball — sees room for more.

“Because it’s starting from scratch, we can develop the league and grow it without any barriers in place,” he says. “We can be very entrepreneurial: what are the next cities we want to put in place? Are there other rules we could test out? What are the international competition opportunities we have? There are many things we can look at.”   

The teams’ 25-player rosters are built predominantly of homegrown talent, with up to eight imports allowed. 

“For decades, players on our national team had to go to other countries after the World Cup or the Olympics to play professionally,” Cohon notes. “To see the opportunity for Canadians to stay here is a great message for our girls and young women. It’s also a great opportunity for boys and young men at UCC to come see some of the best athletes in the world.” 

Cohon values his involvement on UCC Upper School football, basketball and tennis teams as foundational.
 

“The experience of being on a team — and a captain on the football team — taught me how to deal with different types of personalities, how to pull people together, rally when people are down or calm them when they’re hyper,” he reflects. “Sports and extracurricular activities are mission-critical to a student’s overall experience and learning.”

Cohon and Matheson are being joined on the Speaking Of panel by Teresa Resch, inaugural president of the Women’s National Basketball Association’s Toronto Tempo, which are scheduled to hit the hardwood next year.