When you think of rivals for the Vancouver Whitecaps, who do you think of?
The most obvious answer would be the Seattle Sounders, the closest MLS team to Vancouver. Given their geographical region, they and the Portland Timbers are the Whitecaps’ biggest rivals. Plus, there is the supporters-created Cascadia Cup, which all three teams compete for during the MLS season.
You could also make the case for Toronto FC. While they are across the country, there is always the East Coast and West Coast rivalry. Also, fans of both clubs on social media have gone at each other over the years, and Vancouver and Toronto have competed for the Canadian Championship.
But, the Whitecaps have developed a rivalry with another team in recent years: LAFC.
The Whitecaps have met the Black and Gold team from Hollywood so many times since 2023. They faced each other in MLS, MLS Cup Playoffs, CONCACAF Champions Cup and Leagues Cup.
Once again, LAFC comes to town. Cue the “Ah s**t, here we go again” line from GTA San Andreas.
We meet again
Vancouver and LAFC have met each other 12 times in all competitions since the start of 2023.
LAFC have had the upper hand. They knocked out the Whitecaps 6-0 on aggregate in the quarterfinals of the then-called CONCACAF Champions League. The black and gold have knocked out the blue and white in the first round of the MLS Cup Playoffs the last two years.
Vancouver has only won three out of the 12 meetings since 2023 against LAFC. The Whitecaps beat them 3-0 at BC Place in Game 2 of their first-round series last year. A few months before, they beat them at BMO Stadium on penalties after LAFC came back from 2-0 down. In June of 2023, the Whitecaps fought hard for a 3-2 win in LA.
Since LAFC entered the league in 2018, Vancouver has a 6-13-5 record in MLS against them.
There are a few connections between the two clubs. Current LAFC assistant coach Marc Dos Santos was the Whitecaps’ head coach from 2019 to 2021. Goalkeeper Thomas Hasal came through the Whitecaps academy and signed with LAFC in 2024. Former Whitecaps midfielder Ryan Raposo was selected by the club fourth overall in the 2020 MLS SuperDraft. After an apparent failed transfer to China, Raposo signed with LAFC in late April. Whitecaps centre-back Tristan Blackmon was drafted third overall by LAFC in 2018 and played in Southern California from 2018 to 2021.
LAFC can score, but are leaky at the back…and still dangerous
LAFC are tied for 12th in scoring with 17 goals this season. However, they have conceded the 10th most goals in the league with 16.
They sit fifth in the Western Conference with a 5-2-4 record, and by their standards, that isn’t good enough. However, it doesn’t feel like they are as strong as years past, but regardless, they are still a side to be feared. They are coming off a 2-0 home win against the Houston Dynamo.
In the past, LAFC have been a possession-based side, much like the Whitecaps are today. However, in recent years, they have shown they are comfortable without the ball. As the Whitecaps saw in the 2024 playoffs, LAFC likes to sit back and then wait for the right time to go on the counterattack and score.
As seen below, they wait for Houston to lose the ball. But they don’t go all guns blazing on the counter. Instead, they are patient and wait for even just a little bit of space to open up to go into lightspeed. This is beautiful soccer from Steve Cherundolo’s side.
They’ve been known for using the wide areas on their counters, too. In their regular season win at BC Place last year, they took advantage of the space given and bad defending from the Whitecaps. Nathan Ordaz set up Kei Kamara, and then Ilie Sanchez fired home the stoppage time winner. One mistake against them could be deadly.
Denis Bouanga has scored eight goals and seven assists in all competitions against the Whitecaps. He is a notorious ‘Caps killer. The French-born Gabonese international is fast, agile, and great at winning duels.
Full-back Ryan Hollingshead has scored multiple times against Vancouver in the past and has been a thorn in their side. While he has only one goal in his MLS career so far, France’s all-time leading goal scorer, Olivier Giroud, is someone who cannot be given space in the box.
Another name to watch is Mark Delgado. The 29-year-old is a workhorse and is excellent at progressing the ball.
Whitecaps want to continue to prove they are not the same team as in the past
The Whitecaps want to keep the good vibes going.
They sit atop the Supporters Shield standings with an 8-2-1 record and 26 points, and even display really good underlying numbers.
This is their first big test in MLS. Vancouver will want to prove to their familiar adversaries that they really aren’t the same team that got beaten by them in the playoffs the past two years.
“We’ve been going at it with them the last couple of years,” said Whitecaps midfielder Ali Ahmed per The Canadian Press. “Honestly speaking, I think they were kind of the big dogs of the West. I think we’ve learned a lot from our challenges with them…We’re more polished, a lot more experienced, a lot more battle-tested. We’ve failed a couple of times, and we’ve gone through the lows that you have to go through to get to the highs. I think we’ve experienced that together the last two years…we’re a smarter and more confident group.”
In sports, history means nothing once the game starts. Even though LAFC has had the upper hand over the past couple of years, Vancouver will be looking to flip the switch.
“Nothing in the past influences the future,” said striker Brian White, who leads the Whitecaps with six MLS goals this season. “I think it’s going to be a good game against a good team. They’re finding a bit of a groove now, so it’s probably a good test for us.”
Jesper Sørensen has done an excellent job so far in his first year as Whitecaps head coach. While he has not coached against LAFC before, he knows that the two teams are very familiar with each other.
“I think that when two teams meet each other and they know each other that well, there aren’t that many surprises that you can bring on the pitch,” he said when asked about throwing a surprise at LAFC.
“I think it’s one of the better teams that I’ve seen so far. I know they have some mixed results, but they have a good combination of experience and individual quality. You can see now they’re picking up results consistently after a difficult start.”
It will be a battle between Sørensen’s possession-based style vs Cherundolo’s counter-attacking style.
Big crowd expected
The Whitecaps are expecting the biggest crowd of the MLS season when LAFC come to town on Sunday. More than 21,000 fans are expected to pack BC Place.
The Whitecaps will be on MLS Season Pass’ Sunday Night Soccer for the first time, and the spotlight will be on them and LAFC. Kickoff is at 4:00 pm PST.
Can the Whitecaps prove to their playoff tormentors that things have changed? Find out on Sunday.
