This article is about the semi-professional division of Premier Soccer Leagues Canada. For the youth high-performance league, see BC Soccer Premier League.
BC Soccer originally looked into the possibility of starting a "Regional Tier 3" league in their 2016 Strategic Plan, with the goal of beginning in 2018 with eight teams. However, nothing came to fruition due to insufficient interest from clubs. In June 2019, they announced their intention to begin play in 2021 with at least six clubs. Teams would need to commit for three years minimum and field teams in both the male and female divisions. The proposed league would be open to professional clubs fielding reserve sides, provided they are not branded with "Reserves" or "U-23" in their team name.
In January 2021, the league was rumoured to be launching later that year with six or eight teams, including a development team from the Major League Soccer club Vancouver Whitecaps FC. On October 5, 2021, the league was officially announced by BC Soccer to begin play in May 2022. The inaugural league began on May 22, with the Championship Final occurring on August 1 (British Columbia Day), with seven clubs participating in the first season. It was announced that with the creation of the league, the Juan de Fuca Plate, which was previously awarded to the top BC-based Premier Development League team in head-to-head matches, would now be awarded to the League1 BC club that accrued the greatest number of points across both the men's and women's divisions in an aggregate table. In addition, a cedar trophy was created to be awarded to both the men's and women's division champions. In November 2022, it was confirmed that the league winner would qualify for the following season's Canadian Championship, the national cup tournament. For the 2023 season, the league announced its first expansion club (Harbourside FC) bringing the league up to eight clubs.
On December 1, 2023, Canadian Soccer Business acquired L1BC from BC Soccer. CSB have owned League1 Ontario since 2018 and now oversee the day-to-day operations of both leagues. For the 2024 season, another expansion club joined, however, two original clubs withdrew from the league, bringing the total back to seven. For 2025, two additional clubs joined, bringing the league to nine clubs.
In January 2026, the league re-branded as the British Columbia Premier League, in line with a move across all the leagues in Canada. In April 2026, they announced, in partnership with the Fraser Valley Soccer League, a new fall/winter division for BCPL license holders, they would operate a fall/winter division under the FVSL umbrella, although the BCPL will retain sole authority over the competition model, the establishment of match-day standards, and technical direction and club licensing criteria, to maintain alignment with the BCPL's high-performance standards from the spring/summer season which will continue.
Competition format
The BCPL regular season lasts approximately four months, from early April to late July. Teams play each other team home and away for a total of 14 matches in 2026. The regular season champion and runner-up advance to a single match final where the winner is crowned finals champion.
Seasons
2022–2024: league championship decided by playoffs
As of 2026 there are 8 teams are members of the league, of which six are based in Greater Vancouver, one on Vancouver Island, and one in the province's interior. All teams compete in both the men's and women's divisions of the league.
Note: There is no clear information from CSA about tier of U.S. based leagues which have Canadian clubs. In terms of historical information, they have been deployed as tier 3 league as USSF have done.
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