As the Vancouver Rise lifted the trophy for the first Northern Super League championship, the Canadian government pledged up to $5.45 million Canadian to help grow the women's professional soccer league.

The Rise downed AFC Toronto 2-1 on Saturday before 12,429 fans at Toronto's BMO Field.

“We hit a lot of milestones this year,” Vancouver captain Samantha Chang said. “Playing in the first-ever game and now winning the first trophy, it does feel so full circle for us.”

Canada’s first pro league kicked off in April with six teams: the Halifax Tides, Montreal Roses, Calgary Wild, Ottawa Rapid, Toronto and Vancouver. Sponsors of the startup league included Coca-Cola, Toyota and DoorDash.

The Rise also won the league's first game, 1-0 over Calgary in front of more than 14,000 fans at BC Pla

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