Orlando City
Orlando City Signs Canadian International Goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau
Orlando City brings in the Canadian veteran to serve as the successor to Pedro Gallese.
The Lions have their successor to Pedro Gallese. Orlando City announced today that the club has signed free agent Canadian international goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau to a contract through the 2027-2028 season. This signing comes after the club reportedly reached a deal with former New York Red Bulls goalkeeper Carlos Coronel, who then left Orlando hanging and went to Sau Paolo FC in Brazil.
“Maxime is a proven goalkeeper with a championship pedigree and a wealth of experience at the highest levels,” Orlando City General Manager and Sporting Director Ricardo Moreira said in a club press release. “He’s an MLS Cup and Supporters’ Shield winner, a former MLS Goalkeeper of the Year finalist, and a Canadian international who brings leadership, professionalism, and composure to our squad. His ability to speak multiple languages and his international experience will help him connect seamlessly with our diverse group and further elevate leadership in the locker room. We’re thrilled to welcome him to the club and look forward to the impact he’ll make in the City Beautiful.”
Crepeau, 31, will enter his 14th professional season in 2026. The Greenfield Park, Quebec native has spent the last two seasons with the Portland Timbers after two seasons with LAFC, three with the Vancouver Whitecaps, and six with the Montreal Impact / CF Montreal. He has appeared in 234 matches across all competitions at the club level, recording 58 career clean sheets. The veteran netminder has 135 career MLS regular-season starts and nine more in the postseason.
The 2022 season was a memorable one for Crepeau, who won both MLS Cup and the Supporters’ Shield with LAFC. A 2021 finalist for MLS Goalkeeper of the Year during his time in Vancouver, Crepeau is also a two-time Canadian champion with CF Montréal (2013, 2014) and was named the USL Goalkeeper of the Year award while on loan with Ottawa Fury FC in 2018.
On the international stage Crépeau has made 29 appearances with the Canadian Men’s National Team since debuting in 2015, recording 10 shutouts. He was part of Canada’s 2017, 2019, and 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup squads, serving as the team’s starter in the latter of those tournaments and helping Canada reach the semifinals. He was part of Canada’s team during 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying but a broken leg sustained in the MLS Cup final prevented him from being on his nation’s World Cup squad.
What It Means for Orlando City
While this may feel like a consolation prize to some, he has performed at a high level in Major League Soccer before. He started 15 games for Portland in 2025, helping the Timbers reach the playoffs, and his teams have made the postseason each of the last four years. Still, he kept only three clean sheets with the Timbers a year ago, had a save percentage of just 68.1%, and James Pantemis started more matches for Portland (19) in 2025. If you’re into the goals prevented stat, you’re not going to be impressed by his -1.49 from a year ago in Portland or two errors that led to goals. Gallese also had two errors that led to goals (per FotMob) but was a +3.11 in goals prevented. Crepeau didn’t get booked a single time, compared to Gallese’s six yellow cards, so there’s that.
Getting left in the lurch by Coronel meant that Orlando City had to pivot after several other top free agents had new found homes already, and it’s not the worst thing in the world to bring in someone who knows the league. It may feel a bit underwhelming to replace Gallese with Crepeau, but it will also likely allow the Lions to save a little money. Crepeau made a base salary of $585,000 in 2025 with a total guaranteed compensation of $648,333, which is just over half of what Gallese made and is likely a few hundred thousand dollars less than what Orlando would have committed to Coronel, who was in line for a big raise from the $550,000 he made last year.
In terms of goalkeeping, this signing is likely to work out somewhere between what Orlando got from Gallese and what it got from Brian Rowe, which is a step in the wrong direction, so it is up to the back line and central defense to help Crepeau more than it did Gallese in 2025. Perhaps Crepeau will arrive with a chip on his shoulder and regain his form from his time in Vancouver and Los Angeles.