AFC Toronto forward and NSL Player of the Month for June is having the breakout season of her career. But the path to get here was anything but straightforward.
TORONTO, ON (July, 30 2026) — The moment Lauren Rowe decided she could actually do this was not from the pitch. It was a conversation with her father.
Growing up in Conception Bay South, Newfoundland, Rowe had always played soccer. She had always been good, but playing professional soccer from a small town on an island at the edge of the country? That was something different. Then the Northern Super League was announced, and suddenly the idea felt possible, and when she told her father, he did not hesitate.
“A specific moment was when my father said he had no doubt I could make it.”
That was the moment that started it all. Now, in her second season with AFC Toronto, named the Northern Super League's Player of the Month for June after scoring in five consecutive matches, it is hard to argue with him.
THE ISLAND
Playing soccer in Newfoundland means learning to leave. Rowe was making trips to Vancouver to train with the Whitecaps Academy as a young kid, long before most players her age had even considered what professional soccer might look like.
“My travelling helped me learn how to be independent and see what the level was like outside of my own bubble on the island. I'd bring back what I learned and soaked up as much information as I could.”
She played multiple sports and specialized late, qualities she now sees not as disadvantages but as the source of her adaptability and resilience. Coming from where she came from forced her to be resourceful in ways that players from bigger soccer markets never had to be.
“Coming from CBS, I got the opportunity to play multiple sports at a high level and specialized late. I have had to overcome many barriers, which has made me stronger. It is possible if you believe it's possible. Just don't give up.”
THE SETBACKS
Before Lauren Rowe ever played a minute of college soccer, she tore her ACL. In her second year, she broke her leg. Two years of her development, consumed by recovery rooms and rehabilitation sessions, before she had properly begun.
She does not talk about those years with bitterness. She talks about them as the foundation of everything that came after.
“These setbacks were the most important part of my journey. I learned how much I truly love football and would do anything for it. It brought me so much mental toughness and a new ability to push myself to new levels. I became a more physically and mentally resilient player.”
THE BREAKTHROUGH
Rowe's 2025 debut season was strong. Her 2026 season has been something else entirely. Named the NSL's Player of the Month for June, she scored in five consecutive matches during a run that announced her as one of the most dangerous forwards in the league.
She is quick to credit the environment around her. The coaching, the teammates, the culture of a club now in its second year and growing into itself.
“I feel that I've improved being in AFC Toronto's environment over the past year. This year my confidence is clicking and my team has been getting me in great scoring opportunities. I'm so happy that I can help contribute and support the team, and to be recognized is really special.”
And when asked if this stretch feels even more meaningful after everything she has been through to get here, her answer is simple and complete.
“Everything that has happened has come full circle since signing with AFC Toronto. I'm proud of myself for not giving up.”
BEYOND THE PITCH
There is another side to Lauren Rowe that most fans do not know about. She is a psychology student, working toward her degree while playing professionally. And she is not just studying psychology abstractly. She is conducting original research on the very athletes she plays alongside.
Her research focuses on how professional female athletes cope with perfectionism and how self-compassion can serve as a psychological buffer.
“I'm interested in how athletes thrive and not just survive, and how parenting influences this dynamic.”
It is the kind of curiosity that, once you know about it, makes perfect sense. She is someone who has always been trying to understand things more deeply, whether it is the game she loves, the city she plays in, or the mind behind the performance.
Catch Lauren in action at an upcoming home game, join the action and secure your tickets here.
About AFC Toronto
AFC Toronto is a founding club in the Northern Super League, Canada’s professional women’s soccer league. Following a first-place finish and Supporters’ Shield-winning inaugural campaign in 2025, the club continues to build momentum in its second season — driven by a commitment to high performance, meaningful community connection, and the long-term growth of the women’s game in Canada.
Rooted in Toronto and guided by its ethos — Run It Our Way — AFC Toronto exists not only to compete at the highest level, but to create a platform where girls and women can lead, grow, and thrive both on and off the pitch.
Media Contact
Christina Miller
Director, Public Relations, Media & Communications
AFC Toronto
cmiller@afctoronto.ca