Our Programs

Foothills’ success is due to our leadership, coaches, players, sponsors, volunteers, and parent groups who give their all to achieve great things for our players. Every member of the Foothills family is kept to the highest standards to ensure the best experience for the players. We attract the best at every level because we are the best.

Grassroots

For the youngest members of the Foothills family (U4 to U8) our goal is simple. We want to provide a positive environment that fosters a love for soccer. We emphasize the concept of team, friendship, and camaraderie and prioritize fundamental movements and skills development while also ensuring every player is having fun and enjoying the game. Learn more about our Grassroots program. 

These are the “skill-hungry years.” Throughout our indoor and outdoor seasons, we work on building key motor skills such as agility, balance, and coordination to provide a solid foundation for future development.

We also develop our coaches and help them to grow and become innovative, successful members of the Club. We share teaching methods that will engage players and inspire them with passion and flexibility. We inspire our Grassroots volunteer coaches with boundless enthusiasm and dedication to growing the future of soccer in Calgary.

Youth

As our players grow and graduate from the Grassroots stage, they enter our Youth program, which includes indoor and outdoor seasons.  At this stage, we continue to ensure everyone is having fun, but we begin to apply a more formalized process to player development. This is the beginning of our PATHWAY TO PRO for motivated players, but we still ensure a place for all abilities. Skills Development: FUN-damental Phase. Developing the little dribbler. Generation Phase. Developing winning behaviours. Foundation Phase. Encouraging the creative artist. Development Phase. Building the confident player.

Pro-Am Men's and Women's Teams

Foothills has programs for our Pro-Am level men (Foothills FC) and women (Foothills WFC). Our men’s team competes in League1 Alberta, and our women compete in League1 Alberta as well as the United Women’s Soccer League.

About Foothills FC

The Foothills Men's team program is formally affiliated with Cavalry FC. The team currently plays in the League1 Alberta Exhibition series but previously participated in USL League Two (formerly PDL), a semi-professional developmental soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada. The team participated in the West Conference, which intermittently included the Portland Thorns, Seattle Sounders, and Vancouver Whitecaps MLS development teams. Foothills was a consistent contender, winning three Division titles and two Conference titles, was National runner-up, and won a National US Championship. The team is led by head coach Jay Wheeldon, a former professional player with Cavalry FC. Learn more about Foothills FC. 

About Foothills WFC

Foothills WFC has operated in Calgary and competed in the United Women's Soccer League since 2017. The team's mandate is to be a bridge for the game's future stars to develop and succeed in Canada while providing our fans with a premier sporting experience. In 2023, Foothills WFC created a second team that is participating in the League1 Alberta Exhibition series to support its pathway to the long-awaited Canadian Women's Professional Soccer League (Project 8), set to kick off in 2025. Learn more about Foothills WFC. 

About League 1 Alberta

League1 Alberta is the province of Alberta's Pro-Am, standards-based senior league.  Founded in 2023 and in its inaugural exhibition season, the League comprises five teams in the men's and women's divisions, with Foothills fielding a team in each. The League was announced in 2023 as an exhibition series. It plans to fully launch in 2024 with membership in Canada League 1.

About United Women's Soccer (UWS) League

UWS is a Pro-Am league composed of professionally operated clubs within the United States and Canada. UWS provides high-level competition for college players, aspiring and former professionals, and international stars. The overarching goal of this league is to achieve equality of opportunity for women's soccer. In a time when there are several professional and amateur leagues for men's soccer across North America, a huge gap exists between the college and professional ranks on the women's side. UWS fills that gap.

About Project 8

Project 8 Sports Inc. ('Project 8'), founded by Diana Matheson and Thomas Gilbert, is creating a new, long-awaited Women's Professional Soccer League in Canada, kicking off in 2025 with eight teams nationwide. Calgary Foothills WFC is set to be one of the founding franchises. Project 8’s mission is to create an opportunity for every Canadian to engage with the promise of sport through the establishment of a women’s professional soccer league founded on the principles of inclusion, community, and identity.