Welcome to the Starting XI, The Athletic’s weekly series that examines some of the current soccer news around MLS, CPL as well as the men’s and women’s national teams.



1. What does Canadian Soccer Business (CSB), the sports enterprise launched late last week mean for the CPL? It’s a continued effort from the new league to take things slow and lay the groundwork for a successful enterprise for years to come. CSB will serve as a kind of marketing and rights management arm for Canada Soccer.



According to a press release, “Canadian Soccer Business debuts with a suite of top-tier national assets that comprise the backbone of soccer in Canada. This includes representation for all corporate partnerships and media rights related to Canada Soccer’s core assets including its national teams, along with all rights associated with the CPL – Canada’s professional men’s soccer league set to...