Malik Owolabi-Belewu

Malik Owolabi-Belewu makes Whitecaps London proud: the former club player reached professional soccer with Forge FC in Canada and Chesterfield FC in England. His journey from London, Ontario, also took him through a youth opportunity in Italy and a championship season with Forge. Every chapter adds something to the story we celebrate. ¹²³⁴⁵

From one London to another

Malik was born in London, England, and moved with his family to London, Ontario, when he was 13. He played for Whitecaps London after the move. It is a club connection we celebrate as his football story travelled through two countries and back across the Atlantic. ¹²

The two cities named London mark an actual move in Malik's youth, followed by a new place to play. For Whitecaps London players, it is striking to see a former member of their club appear years later in professional match reports. The young player who arrived in our city went on to wear a Forge shirt in a title‑winning season. ¹²⁵

Malik then spent a year with SPAL's under-19 side in Italy. He was on the first-team bench for two cup matches but did not play in either. The Italy chapter was a youth development experience before he came back to Canada for senior professional soccer. It gave his path a different setting before the Forge years that followed. ⁵

Building a professional record at Forge

Forge FC brought Malik into the Canadian Premier League in 2022. In his first season he made 23 appearances across competitions. The league's account also records his goal in an October derby that clinched a playoff place and his substitute appearance in the CPL final. Forge won the 2022 North Star Shield, giving Malik a place in a championship squad. Forge's later departure announcement also credits its team with the 2023 playoff title and the 2024 and 2025 regular-season shields during his time there. ⁴⁵

He stayed with Forge. When the club exercised his 2025 contract option, it reported 73 appearances and three goals across all competitions over his first three seasons. Forge also named him to the league's Team of the Week in June 2025. The match detail behind that honour is specific: 33 completed passes from 36 attempts, five recoveries, two interceptions and three clearances against Cavalry. ⁶⁷

Forge's 2025 Canadian Championship run supplied another measure of his work. In its quarter-final report against CF Montréal, the club described a back line that held up under long pressure and noted Malik's defensive play across the match. The team advanced to the semifinal. A defender's part in that result belongs beside his scoring and appearance records. ⁸

An English league step

Forge confirmed Malik's departure in December 2025 after 87 appearances across four seasons and several competitions. By June 2026, the Canadian Premier League identified Chesterfield as his English Football League Two team and reported ten appearances, including six starts, for the club. The dated record shows that his next professional chapter had begun in England after the Forge years. ³⁴

Whitecaps London is proud that a player from our London community has competed in these places. Malik went from a youth club here to an Italian under-19 side, a Forge championship team and ten English league matches recorded by June 2026. For a young defender at our club, that is a reason to dream and to keep working through the next stage. The journey is Malik's; the pride of seeing where one of our former players has gone is ours. ²³⁵

Sources

Canada Soccer, Malik Owolabi-Belewu profile, adult eligibility and move between the two Londons canadasoccer.com
Forge FC, Canadian Championship feature naming Whitecaps London as Malik's youth club cplsoccer.com
Canadian Premier League, 9 June 2026 Forge report identifying Chesterfield as Malik's English Football League Two team, with ten appearances and six starts there cplsoccer.com
Forge FC, December 2025 departure announcement: 87 all-competition appearances in four seasons and team titles during his tenure cplsoccer.com
Canadian Premier League, Malik's 2023 interview and verified SPAL, 2022 appearances, goal and final role cplsoccer.com
Forge FC, 2025 contract option and 73 appearances through 2024 cplsoccer.com
Forge FC, June 2025 Team of the Week and match figures cplsoccer.com
Forge FC, 2025 Canadian Championship quarter-final report cplsoccer.com