The Vancouver Whitecaps are a professional soccer team that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS). They play at BC Place Stadium from February to October, against primarily other MLS teams but also against teams from other leagues in various competitions as well.
The Whitecaps average over 20,000 fans for their MLS regular season games, and get up to nearly 55,000 fans in the stands for their biggest matchups! The games have a great atmosphere, especially when the team is doing well and they’re playing a marquee opponent.
Vancouver Whitecaps MLS Soccer Team
The Vancouver Whitecaps are British Columbia’s premier soccer team. They’ve competed in MLS since 2011, as one of the three Canadian teams in the league (along with Toronto FC and CF Montreal).
The Whitecaps play their home games at BC Place Stadium in downtown Vancouver. The stadium is located at 777 Pacific Boulevard, right next door to Rogers Arena and conveniently located very close to the Stadium-Chinatown SkyTrain station.
BC Place is a popular venue for big events like concerts and trade shows. It’s also home to the BC Lions and hosts the Vancouver HSBC World Rugby Sevens series each year. In 2026 it hosts seven games of the FIFA World Cup too!
When do the Whitecaps Play?
The Whitecaps begin the MLS regular season in late February, and finish in either late October or early November. The playoffs end with the MLS Cup in early December.
Vancouver also always competes in the Canadian Championship tournament that runs from May to October, against Toronto, Montreal, teams from the Canadian Premier League (a separate professional league from MLS), and select teams from semi-pro leagues across Canada.
Depending on how the Whitecaps do in Canadian Championship/MLS play, they can also qualify for the CONCACAF Champions Cup (against teams across all of North and Central America) and the Leagues Cup (against other MLS squads and teams from Liga MX in Mexico), which also run concurrently to the MLS regular season at different times of the year.
The Whitecaps have won five Canadian Championships in their history, including four in a row from 2022-25, tied for the longest streak by any team since the competition began in 2008. In 2025 the club reached the finals of both the MLS playoffs and the CONCACAF Champions Cup for the first time, but sadly lost both games.
All MLS (as well as Leagues Cup) games are broadcast on Apple TV, with select games also shown by TSN. Canadian Championship and CONCACAF Champions Cup games are broadcast by OneSoccer.
NOTE: MLS is overhauling its calendar in 2027! The league has announced that beginning in July of 2027, each season will run from the summer until the following spring, with a winter break from mid-December until early February. This is being done to align the MLS calendar with the top European leagues, and those in other regions of the world that use a similar structure. After the end of the 2026 MLS season there will be a “spring” season from February to May with a playoffs and MLS Cup, followed by the 2027-28 season.
Whitecaps Tickets
Generally, tickets to Whitecaps games start at around $32. The get-in price may be higher, however, for certain games depending on the opponent and whether it’s a playoff or other high-profile game.
If you’re buying tickets, be sure to note whether or not the seat you’re getting is in a “standing section”. The south side of BC Place has multiple sections with that designation, where the most passionate fans will be standing and chanting in support of the team for the entire game. If that sounds fun, then go for it! It’ll be a welcoming area for all those cheering on the Whitecaps. But if you don’t want to stand the whole time, then it’s better to buy a ticket somewhere else in the stands.
Season tickets for the 2026 campaign started at $425 for the general admission (and standing) section. They ranged up to around $1000 for sideline sections and up to $3,250 for the premium Pitchside Club area. You can also buy half season (10 games), quarter season (five games) or flex (three games) packs, to save some money over buying individual tickets.
For full ticketing details go to the Vancouver Whitecaps website.
Season Schedule
See below for the Vancouver Whitecaps’ home games for the 2026 season. Unless noted otherwise, the games are for the MLS regular season.
Depending on how the team does in their various cup competitions more games could be added to the schedule at later dates. See the official Whitecaps Schedule for the most up-to-date information.
Spring 2026 Home Games
- Saturday, February 21 vs Real Salt Lake at 4:30 pm
- Wednesday February 25 vs C.S. Cartaginés at 6:00 pm (CONCACAF Champions Cup)
- Saturday, February 28 vs Toronto FC at 6:30 pm
- Thursday, March 12 vs Seattle Sounders at 7:00 pm (CONCACAF Champions Cup)
- Sunday, March 15 vs Minnesota United at 1:30 pm
- Saturday, March 21 vs San Jose Earthquakes at 7:30 pm
- Saturday, April 4 vs Portland Timbers at 7:30 pm
- Saturday, April 11 vs New York City FC at 4:30 pm
- Friday, April 17 vs Sporting Kansas City at 7:30 pm
- Saturday, April 25 vs Colorado Rapids at 7:30 pm
Summer 2026 Home Games
- Wednesday, July 8 vs Cavalry FC at 7:30 pm at Swangard Stadium (Canadian Championship)
- Saturday, August 1 vs LAFC at 4:30 pm
- Tuesday, August 4 vs Atlante FC at 7:30 pm (Leagues Cup)
- Friday, August 7 vs FC Juarez at 7:30 pm (Leagues Cup)
- Wednesday, August 19 vs Houston Dynamo at 7:30 pm
- Saturday, August 22 vs FC Dallas at 6:30 pm
Fall 2026 Home Games
- Saturday, September 5 vs St. Louis SC at 7:30 pm
- Wednesday, September 9 vs LA Galaxy at 7:30 pm
- Sunday, September 13 vs Austin FC at 3:30 pm
- Saturday, September 26 vs DC United at 7:30 pm
- Wednesday, October 28 vs San Diego SC at 7:30 pm
- Sunday, November 1 vs Seattle Sounders at 1:30 pm
About the Whitecaps
While the Vancouver Whitecaps’ MLS history dates back to just 2011, the team itself has a far richer history that dates back to the club’s original founding in 1974. Back then the team played in the North American Soccer League (NASL), which was the most popular soccer league in Canada and the United States at the time. The Whitecaps won the NASL Soccer Bowl in 1979 to become league champions, with upwards of 100,000 people lining Robson Street for the championship parade.
Unfortunately, the NASL did not last, and the original iteration of the Whitecaps folded in 1984. Soccer came back quickly, however, as a new team was founded in 1986 to join the new Canadian Soccer League (CSL). The team was christened the Vancouver 86ers, in reference to all four of the following: the year the team was founded, that year’s Expo 86, Canada qualifying for the 1986 World Cup, and the year that Vancouver itself was founded (1886).
The 86ers (who later returned to the Whitecaps name in 2001) bounced around various leagues due to the instability of professional North American soccer at the time, winning four championships in the CSL (where they also broke the Canadian pro sports record for longest undefeated streak at 46 games) and two in the United Soccer League (USL), the club’s final stop pre-MLS.
Since joining MLS as an expansion team in 2011, the Whitecaps have been up-and-down in terms of success, but have enjoyed consistent fan support and earned several accolades.
They were the first Canadian team to ever qualify for the MLS playoffs when they did so in 2012, and in addition to their five Canadian Championships the Whitecaps have won the Cascadia Cup (a fan-created trophy awarded since 2004 to the best performing team in league games played between Vancouver, Portland and Seattle, first in the USL and then MLS) eight times, the most of any of the three rivals.
Other Information
For more information visit the Vancouver Whitecaps website.
The Whitecaps are also not the only professional soccer team in the Lower Mainland! Beginning play in 2025, Vancouver Rise FC are a professional women’s soccer team that compete in the Northern Super League (NSL). The Rise won the league’s inaugural championship with a 2-1 victory over AFC Toronto in the final! Vancouver Rise play their home games at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby (previously home to the Whitecaps).
There’s also Vancouver FC, a Canadian Premier League team that plays their home games at Willoughby Stadium in Langley. The Whitecaps and Vancouver FC played each other for the first time in the 2025 Canadian Championship Final, which the Whitecaps won 4-2.