The Halifax Wanderers announced Wednesday the club has signed goalkeeper Marco Carducci to a two-year contract through 2027.
The 29-year-old Calgary native is a Canadian Premier League original, having spent the last seven years as the starter for Cavalry FC. In his time with the Cavs, Carducci became one of the most decorated players in the CPL, winning a North Star Cup and a CPL Shield, while also collecting two Golden Glove awards as the league’s top goalkeeper.
In total, Carducci has 160 CPL regular season matches under his belt — more than any other keeper — plus 16 in the CPL Playoffs, 13 for Cavalry in the Canadian Championship and four in the Concacaf Champions Cup.
He is the league’s all-time leader among goalkeepers in regular season wins (85) and clean sheets (52). On top of winning two Golden Glove awards (in 2019 and 2022), Carducci has been nominated for the honour a further three times (2021, 2023 and 2025). He has played in four CPL Finals, including the past three in a row.
“Getting to experience for the last seven years how ingrained the Wanderers are in their community, I’m looking forward to being a part of the club’s culture both on and off the field while pushing myself as a player to continue growing,” Carducci said in a statement. “I have a lot of respect for Vanni [Sartini] and appreciate both him and the club’s excitement about bringing me to Halifax. It’s a bit of a full-circle moment, as he was interested in bringing me into Vancouver when he was the head coach at the Whitecaps.”
Prior to joining Cavalry as one of the club’s inaugural signings for the 2019 season, Carducci spent significant time in the Vancouver Whitecaps’ academy system. He made two first-team appearances for them, in both legs of the 2014 Canadian Championship semifinal against Toronto FC.
“Calgary is my hometown, and it was special to win there and see what it meant to the community,” Carducci said. “What excites me about going to Halifax is the club’s ambition to bring that first trophy to its fans, knowing how much they support the club and the atmosphere they create at the stadium.
“It will be nice to not dread the 45 minutes in front of The Kitchen.”
Carducci also had single-season stints with the USL’s Rio Grande Valley Toros and PDL’s Calgary Foothills (where he won a PDL title in 2018).
At the international level, Carducci has been called up by the Canadian men’s national team once, for a camp in 2019. He was the first active CPL player ever to receive a senior call-up. Carducci had also previously represented Canada at the U-17, U-23 and U-23 levels.
This is the second piece of major news from the Wanderers this month, after they announced last week that former Whitecaps boss Vanni Sartini is taking over as the club’s head coach and general manager.
“Marco is a fantastic goalkeeper who immediately adds leadership and championship-winning experience to our roster,” Wanderers head coach and general manager Vanni Sartini said. “His consistency and ability to read the game are top-level and bring confidence to his defenders. His quality has always stood out to me, and we’re thrilled to welcome him to our team in Halifax.”
The Wanderers also revealed previously that nine players remain under contract for 2026, and they have until Dec. 31 to decide whether or not to exercise options on eight further players, including their starting goalkeeper in 2025, Rayane Yesli.