Whitecaps fans rally against relocation rumours - BERITAJA

VANCOUVER -Barry Walker has spent each Vancouver Whitecaps crippled this play starring instrumentality chants and holding up signs that publication “STAY CAPS STAY.”

The 75-year-old superfan said the posters switch the ones he antecedently carried that said “Go Caps Go.” He swapped them retired arsenic rumours about the early of the Major League Soccer nine grew successful caller months.

“Of people we want our Whitecaps to stay. We don’t want them to spell to different city, truthful that’s the volition of the signs,” he said successful an question and reply Friday.

Walker, who said he has not missed a Whitecaps location lucifer successful 12 years, has made it his ngo to summation fanfare astatine the games.

“The crowds are getting much educated. They’re loving the squad much and each twelvemonth is getting a small better,” he said. “The past mates of years person been fantastic.”

Similar calls were made earlier this week by midfielder Thomas Muller, who encouraged fans to capable the little vessel during games astatine BC Place.

The Whitecaps faced Sporting Kansas City astatine BC Place connected Friday, winning 3-0.

An announced crowd of 21,777 fans attended the match, marking the 18th consecutive MLS crippled pinch much than 20,000 group astatine the stadium.

Throughout the game, the crowd was engaged, gasping astatine a adjacent header extremity astatine the 2nd minute, past jumping from their seats and erupting successful cheers erstwhile Emmanuel Sabbi scored a scrappy extremity astatine the 13th infinitesimal mark.

The aforesaid power came astatine 23rd and 28th minutes, arsenic the squad scored 2 much earlier halftime.

Fan Kevin Schachter, 42, said it is “huge” for him to person a section MLS squad successful Vancouver wherever he could be games live.

The Winnipeg autochthonal said he moved to Vancouver a fewer years agone and has go “quite a important protagonist since.”

“I cognize there’s a consequence of losing the nine and that would beryllium devastating,” he said successful an interview.

The squad made its first MLS Cup last quality past year, wherever it fell to Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami.

New Whitecaps instrumentality Lauren Bugliarisi said it is her first twelvemonth pinch play tickets.

“We started pursuing intimately aft the extremity of past play erstwhile it was picking up and we were winning a batch aft the playoffs,” the 30-year-old said successful an question and reply up of kickoff Friday.

“It feels for illustration the first squad that I’ve followed that has gone far. It’s conscionable bully to get to cheer for Vancouver and spot america spell acold and beryllium doing well.”

Bugliarisi said she feels the excitement about the athletics has proceed to turn this twelvemonth arsenic the FIFA World Cup nears. Vancouver will big 7 matches successful June and July.

“That’s portion of the logic why we started pursuing Vancouver arsenic well,” she said of the tournament. “It feels for illustration it’s going to beryllium this adjacent activity of sports for our city.”

Alison Martin, 31, sported a Whitecaps scarf arsenic she made her measurement to her seats alongside her father.

They’ve person seasons tickets since about 2015, she said, and person “pretty overmuch been to each crippled since.”

“I emotion coming to these games. I find it’s the champion sporting acquisition passim the Lower Mainland, and now that we besides person the (Northern Super League’s) Vancouver Rise, it is fantastic,” Martin said, noting she has seasons tickets to Rise games arsenic well.

“It conscionable seems for illustration each play there’s a shot game.”

She said the instrumentality acquisition has grown successful caller years.

“It’s ever conscionable been truthful electric. I ever show group for illustration if you want to person a bully sporting acquisition travel to a Whitecaps game,” Martin said.

“If they near the city, it would beryllium really sad and I deliberation location would beryllium a immense spread successful the sporting organization and the power of the city.”

For some, including Schachter, it’s about soaking up each infinitesimal of unrecorded master shot successful lawsuit the extremity is near.

“If this is the past clip we person a top-tier team, I want beryllium present for each infinitesimal of that,” he said.

But Walker is doing what he could to forestall that from happening, and is encouraging different Vancouverites to do the same.

“I deliberation group should cognize they should travel present and watch the Whitecaps. Simple arsenic that, because it’s going to thief the squad enactment here,” he said. “We person to get down the team.”

This study by BERITAJA was first published April 17, 2026.