Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a professional soccer team from Vancouver, Canada. They play in Major League Soccer (MLS), one of the top soccer leagues in North America. The Whitecaps joined MLS in 2011, becoming the 17th team in the league. Before that, teams with the same name played in older soccer leagues starting in 1974.

The Whitecaps have had many exciting moments. In 2012, they became the first Canadian team to reach the MLS Cup playoffs. They have won five Canadian Championships and have reached the finals of important tournaments like the CONCACAF Champions Cup and the MLS Cup. Their big matches against Seattle and Portland are very popular, as fans compete for the Cascadia Cup.

In 2025, the team signed famous German player Thomas Müller, who won the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Other well-known players who have worn the Whitecaps jersey include Jay DeMerit, the club’s first captain, Camilo Sanvezzo, who won the 2013 MLS Golden Boot, and current Canadian men's national team captain Alphonso Davies, who grew up in the team’s youth system.

History

Main article: History of Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club started in 2009 when a group of people in Vancouver got to join Major League Soccer. The team kept the Whitecaps name, which was first used in 1974. The original Whitecaps played from 1974 to 1984 in the North American Soccer League and won one league championship. After that league ended, a new team called the Vancouver 86ers was founded in 1986 and later also adopted the Whitecaps name.

The Whitecaps began playing in Major League Soccer in the 2011 season. Their first match was on March 19, 2011, against Toronto FC, and they won 4–2. The team had some good and bad times in those early years but managed to attract many fans. Over the years, the Whitecaps have had many changes in coaches and players. They have qualified for the MLS playoffs several times and have also competed in international tournaments like the CONCACAF Champions League.

In recent years, the Whitecaps have seen both successes and challenges. They won the Canadian Championship multiple times and reached the MLS Cup final in 2025, though they lost that match. The team has continued to grow and aims to achieve more in the future.

Colours and badge

The Vancouver Whitecaps FC kept the "Whitecaps" name but got a new logo on June 8, 2010. The name talks about the snow-capped mountains north of Vancouver and the white-capped waves of the Pacific Ocean to the west.

The team's official colours are navy blue, white, and light blue. The navy blue means the ocean around Vancouver, and the light blue stands for the mountains' reflection in the water. It also honors the team's original colours from 1979. A silver outline shows respect for the team's championship wins since 1974.

In 2010, the team's first jersey was shown, sponsored by Bell Canada. The home shirt is white with navy blue stripes that get wider toward the top. The away shirt is deep blue with a special diamond pattern. In 2012, they added a third jersey in arbutus brown with sky blue details, showing the beautiful forests of British Columbia.

In 2019, they made a special jersey to celebrate the team's 1979 championship win. In 2023, they created the Bloodlines Jersey to show support for blood donation in Canada. In 2024, they made The 50 Jersey to celebrate being the longest-running professional soccer club in Canada and the United States.

Kit history

Home, away, and third kits.

• Home

• Away

• Third

Sponsorship

Stadium

Main article: BC Place

The Vancouver Whitecaps FC play their home games at BC Place in Vancouver. They share this stadium with the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League. BC Place has many seats and was built in 1983. It was updated to have a special roof.

The field has special artificial turf approved by FIFA.

In their first season, the Whitecaps played at Empire Field, a smaller stadium nearby. They moved to BC Place in 2011.

The team worked with the government and the University of British Columbia to build a training center.

Because of travel rules during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Whitecaps played some home games in the United States in 2020 and 2021.

In April 2025, talks began about building a new stadium at Hastings Park.

Club culture

Supporters

The biggest group of fans for the Vancouver Whitecaps is called the Southsiders. This group began in 1999 when fans of an older Vancouver team started to meet up.

There are three main supporter groups: the Vancouver Southsiders, Curva Collective, and the Rain City Brigade. There are also smaller groups, like Vancouver Albion, the Prawnsiders, South Sisters, and Couch Ultras.

Mascot

The official mascot for the Whitecaps is Spike, a Belted kingfisher, a bird often seen in the Vancouver area.

Main article: Vancouver Southsiders

Rivalries

The Vancouver Whitecaps FC have strong rivalries with two nearby teams: the Portland Timbers and the Seattle Sounders FC. These rivalries began before the team joined Major League Soccer and are very important to fans in the Pacific Northwest.

The rivalry with the Portland Timbers is one of the oldest, starting in 1975. They have played many exciting games over the years.

The rivalry with the Seattle Sounders FC also goes back to the 1970s. The teams have faced each other many times, making it a long-standing competition.

Broadcasting

All Vancouver Whitecaps FC matches are shown on TV and radio. Before 2014, channels like Sportsnet Pacific and Sportsnet One showed many games. In 2014, TSN began showing these games instead. Today, TSN shows all regular season games.

Radio broadcasts are mainly on CKNW.com with commentators Asa Rehman and Colin Miller. The team has changed over the years, with different people providing play-by-play and commentary for the games.

Ownership

Vancouver Whitecaps FC is owned by four investors: Greg Kerfoot, Steve Luczo, Jeff Mallett, and Steve Nash. Greg Kerfoot has been the main owner since 2002. Jeff Mallett used to be a top leader at Yahoo! and grew up in Victoria, British Columbia. Steve Nash is a famous basketball player who won two top awards in the National Basketball Association. Steve Luczo is a leader at a big technology company. In 2009, the group paid to join Major League Soccer.

In 2026, there was a proposal to buy the team and move it to Las Vegas.

Current players and staff

For details on former players, see All-time Vancouver Whitecaps FC roster.

Roster

As of February 17, 2026

Note: Flags show which country's team a player can join, as decided by FIFA eligibility rules. Some players can belong to more than one country outside of these rules.

Out on loan

Note: Flags show which country's team a player can join, as decided by FIFA eligibility rules. Some players can belong to more than one country outside of these rules.

Technical staff

As of July 10, 2025

Executive leadership

Former players and staff

Head coaches

Club captains

Affiliated teams

Whitecaps FC 2

Main article: Whitecaps FC 2

Whitecaps FC 2 is the club's reserve team that started playing in the new MLS Next Pro league in 2022.

The team used to play in the United Soccer League from 2015 to 2017.

Vancouver Rise FC

Main article: Vancouver Rise FC

Vancouver Rise FC is a women's club that plays in the Northern Super League, the top league for women’s soccer in Canada. The Rise joined the league and helps keep female players from the Whitecaps' academy team involved in soccer.

Whitecaps FC Academy

Main article: Whitecaps FC Academy

The Whitecaps FC Academy is the youth academy for Vancouver Whitecaps FC, started in 2007. It has teams for boys and girls that play in League1 British Columbia, which began in 2022.

Defunct teams

Vancouver Whitecaps FC (women)

The Whitecaps had a women's team that played from 2001 to 2012. The team won prizes in 2004 and 2006.

Fresno FC

Main article: Fresno FC

In 2017, Vancouver Whitecaps FC partnered with Fresno FC, a new team that was getting ready to start playing.

But in 2019, Fresno FC stopped playing.

Honours

This section shows the awards won by the current Vancouver Whitecaps team. For awards won by older versions of the team, see: Vancouver Whitecaps (1986–2010) § Honours and Vancouver Whitecaps (1974–1984) § Honours.

Note: Only MLS regular season goals counted

Team records

Main article: List of Vancouver Whitecaps FC records and statistics

Year-by-year

Main article: List of Vancouver Whitecaps FC seasons

This is a list of the last five seasons for the Whitecaps. For the full history, see List of Vancouver Whitecaps FC seasons. For more about the club's past, see History of Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

^1. Avg. attendance includes league matches only.
^2. Top goalscorer(s) includes goals from League, MLS Cup Playoffs, Canadian Championship, MLS is Back Tournament, CONCACAF Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup, and other continental matches.

International tournaments

Further information: Canadian soccer clubs in international competitions

CONCACAF Champions Cup

Vancouver has qualified for the CONCACAF Champions Cup five times, the first in 2015–16.

Other competitions

• 2011 World Football Challenge

Group stage vs. !England Manchester City – 1–2

Player records

Main article: List of Vancouver Whitecaps FC records and statistics

Here are some records for the Vancouver Whitecaps FC players. These show how many times players appeared in games, how many goals they scored, and how many games the team played without letting the other team score.

As of December 1, 2025

As of September 14, 2024^{[citation needed]}

As of December 1, 2025^{[citation needed]}