This whole USL-TOA situation continues to take a turn for the worse. Today reports out of the Great White North say that both 2009 USL finalists Montreal Impact and the Vancouver Whitecaps will not be coming back to the USL in 2010.

In a radio interview in Montreal, Alex Papadakis confirmed that neither of the Canadian based clubs would be part of the USL for the 2010 season after the two sides failed to reach an agreement for continuing play next season and that the TOA was ready to move in another direction.

“The negotiations are finished,” Papadakis told CKAC.  “We decided to continue our preparation for the season 2010 with the teams which wished to remain with us.”

“I would like to thank the two Canadian teams, the WhiteCaps and the Impact, for all that contributed to the USL for the past few years,” Papadakis told CKAC.  “They were excellent for our League and I have much admiration for them. Now, I wish them good luck in their future plans. “

With the Whitecaps scheduled to join MLS in 2011 you have to wonder what Joey Saputo and his Impact will now do. More than likely they will make a serious push for a MLS bid.

Neither club has announced anything of this news on their websites and apparently according to the report the Impact are still selling season tickets for next season.

There is also a thought that Montreal could still join whatever league comes out of the TOA, possibly a MLS-2 for some daydreamers out there. But the more you look into Montreal the more you got to believe they will be a MLS club before long.

I know I forgot to mention the Houston Dynamo’s 1-1 draw in Tuesday’s CONCACAF Champions League game but to be honest I sort of viewed last night’s contest up in Montreal to be a little bigger. We’ve seen Houston in that environment before but not a USL side like Montreal.

In front of a massive record crowd of 55,571 the Montreal Impact downed Mexican side Santos 2-0 thanks to two goals from forward Eduardo Sebrango. The crowd was the largest ever for a CCL game but more importantly it could draw some major attention from MLS front offices again for MLS expansion.

What’s more impressive, the crowd or the result? I kind of think both are equal. To me it show be a major eye opener to MLS that Montreal should have been a major player in the expansion race. The fan base is there and could instantly be ready to go if needed. I can only name a couple MLS clubs that could even come close to that number for a CCL game, and most of those clubs would only draw that number on a weekend.

I usually wouldn’t care about a CONCACAF Cup qualifier but now that things are shifting into a Champions League in CONCACAF I feel like its time to start taking a little more interest in things. Tonight up in newly opened Stade Saputo in Montreal, MLS side Toronto FC will battle USL side Montreal Impact.

This is the first of a few round-robin type games between Montreal, Toronto and another USL side Vancouver for the lone Canadian bid into the region’s club championship. This little group even as a sponsor, the Nutrilite Canadian Championship.

Both sides know the importance of this and will want to put their best foot forward. Its nice that the stadiums are new and will be packed  between these two clubs. I think even when they travel to Vancouver there will be some solid interest there as well for this.

Toronto’s coach John Carver has put a lot of importance in this one as he wants his club to be able to cash in on the tournament.

“There’s a pot of gold at the end of this tournament,” said the Reds coach. “We’ll get extra money by getting into the Champions League, but it’s also a chance for the players to go up against the best teams in CONCACAF. As a player you thrive on wanting to play against the best in the world, not just the best in your own league. So that adds to the excitement.

“It would be great if this becomes like the FA Cup in England. You have to start somewhere, and in years to come, it would be great to have lots more sides involved in the competition. It would be a fantastic situation for the game in this country if that ever happened.”

I honestly love that CONCACAF is giving Canada a bid for this Champions League. Sure they only have three clubs but I think CONCACAF realized just how well supported each club is.

There’s also a nice sub-plot here with the two USL sides who’s owners are wanting to get into MLS sometime soon. You have to get a feeling that if one of them end up winning this group that their city will have a solid chance of earning that bid with a little more cash in the bank from this competition. Not to mention the bragging rights in the country.

For the game tonight, I’m going with a 1-1 draw between the two sides. I don’t follow Montreal enough to know what they bring to the table but I do know they have some MLS-level talent on their roster. It could be interesting!