Next year, Kingston will have a brand-new addition to its sporting landscape.
On Sept 2, League1 Ontario announced the Kingston Sentinels as one of its newest expansion clubs set to join the league’s third-tier League2 division in 2026. The Sentinels will field both men’s and women’s teams, adding semi-professional soccer to a city better known for its hockey rinks and university athletics.
For Kingston, the announcement represents an opportunity to grow the game locally. The Sentinels could offer local players a chance to stay in the city while competing at a higher level and provide young athletes from community clubs a professional pathway without leaving home.
Paul Barbeau is the managing partner at Victory Ground Ventures, the group behind the push for professional soccer in Kingston. In an interview with The Journal, Barbeau expressed his belief in Kingston as a city with the potential to be a top Canadian soccer fanbase. “There’s a growing group of soccer fans in this region,” Barbeau said. “Year over year, you have more growth in soccer than in any other sport.”
Barbeau anticipates the league’s schedule will plug a key gap in Kingston’s sports scene, with an April season start ensuring fans won’t have to miss their beloved Frontenacs or Gaels in action. “People want to support a local soccer team… in the summer, people have nobody to support,” he said. “That creates a void we can fill.”
The team aims to revive a local soccer presence absent since the Kingston Clippers withdrew from League1 Ontario in 2016, following the dissolution of Kingston FC. Barbeau says Kingston is “just the right spot,” citing both its passionate soccer fanbase and the wealth of local talent that can sustain the team’s future.
The future is a central focus for Barbeau’s Sentinels. The ownership group aims to position Kingston as a high-performance soccer hub, with plans to climb the ranks and compete in the Canadian Premier League (CPL) and Northern Super League (NSL)—the top tiers of men’s and women’s soccer in Canada—by 2027. Barbeau and his group have previously drawn attention for their attempts to build a multi-use soccer stadium in Kingston, though plans for a site at the Kingston Memorial Centre fell through.
While they find a more permanent home, the Sentinels will begin suitable play at CaraCo Home Field beside the INVISTA Centre.
Although fan-based support will be crucial for the success of the team, Barbeau also highlighted the talent pool in Kingston that previously lacked a space for athletes to go. “Right now, there’s great talent playing in Kingston, but what happens is they hit an age like under-17, and they either have to move away or they stop playing,” Barbeau said. “Now they’ll have somewhere local where they can keep pushing.”
While the League2 team is sure to excite locals, the Sentinels’ ambitions remain at the forefront.
“We need to be able to show that Kingston is a market that is willing to support soccer,” Barbeau added. “That will allow me to go to the CPL and say, look, we have bums in seats,” he said, referring to the CPL’s expansion model that should one day allow Barbeau’s group to enter a team in the highest level of Canadian soccer.
For now, though, the Sentinels’ sights will be set on achieving back-to-back promotions over the next two years to reach League1 Premier – the highest level of regional soccer in Canada, and the furthest the Sentinels can reach before Barbeau’s group prepares its pitch to the CPL.
Tags
Canadian Premier League, Kingston Sentinels, league1 ontario, Paul Barbeau
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