Vancouver FC

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This article is about the Canadian Premier League club. For the Major League Soccer club, see Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Vancouver FC
Full nameVancouver Football Club
Nickname(s)Eagles
Short nameVanFC, VFC
FoundedNovember 2, 2022; 17 months ago (2022-11-02)
StadiumWilloughby Community Park, Langley, British Columbia
Capacity6,560
OwnerSixFive Sports and Entertainment
PresidentRob Friend
CoachAfshin Ghotbi
LeagueCanadian Premier League
2023Regular season, 7th
Playoffs, did not qualify
WebsiteClub website
Current season

Vancouver Football Club, commonly known as Vancouver FC, is a Canadian professional soccer club competes in the Canadian Premier League, the top tier of the Canadian soccer league system.[1] The club is based in Langley, British Columbia and plays their home matches at the Willoughby Community Park stadium.

History[edit]

On November 10, 2021, the Canadian Premier League announced that it had awarded an expansion club in Vancouver to SixFive Sports and Entertainment LP.[2] More details were announced on April 13, 2022, when the CPL and SixFive announced that the new club would play in Langley, British Columbia, at Willoughby Community Park, adjacent to the Langley Events Centre.[3]

On November 2, 2022, the club held its official launch event where it announced its name; revealed its branding; and presented Afshin Ghotbi as the club's first head coach.[4] The CPL announced that the club would begin league play for the 2023 season.[5]

In March 2023, Eugene Martínez was called up to the Belize national team for 2022–23 CONCACAF Nations League B matches against Guatemala and the Dominican Republic. In the process he became the first Vancouver FC player to be called for international duty as a member of the club.[6]

Vancouver FC played its first league match on April 15, 2023, away to provincial rivals Pacific FC. The match ended in a 1–0 victory for Pacific with Manny Aparicio becoming the first-ever goalscorer against Vancouver.[7] On matchday two, Vancouver defeated York United FC 2–1 for the club's inaugural victory. Shaan Hundal scored the first-ever goal for the club, while Gael Sandoval scored the eventual game-winner.[8][9]

The club faced Cavalry FC in its first home match at the newly-constructed Willoughby Community Park stadium in front of a sell-out crowd of over 6,500 fans on May 7, 2023.[10] Despite playing a man-down for over an hour after a red card was shown to Rocco Romeo, the club managed a 1–1 draw. First-ever Vancouver FC scorer Shaan Hundal scored the equalizing goal which was also the first home goal in club history.[11]

Crest and colours[edit]

The primary crest is circular and features the name of the club and year of establishment in the outer ring. In the centre is a stylized eagle in the shape of the letter V. The club colours are black, grey, and red (branded as charcoal black, silver, warm red, dark grey, and cinder).[12]

Period Kit manufacturer Shirt partner
2023–present Macron[13] CIBC, Carlsberg[14]

Stadium[edit]

Main article: Willoughby Community Park (stadium)

Vancouver FC play in a new stadium at Langley's Willoughby Community Park.[4] It has a capacity of 6,560 seats in its initial configuration, with potential for further expansion. The construction operations began in February 2023 and involved the usage of modular prefabricated elements.[15]

Players and staff[edit]

Roster[edit]

As of April 12, 2024[16]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Canada CAN Callum Irving (captain)
2 DF Canada CAN Kadin Chung
3 DF Canada CAN Rocco Romeo
5 DF Canada CAN Matteo Campagna
6 MF Peru PER Vasco Fry
7 MF Canada CAN Ben Fisk
8 MF Brazil BRA Renan Garcia
9 FW Mexico MEX Alejandro Díaz (on loan from Sogndal)
10 MF Lebanon LBN Gabriel Bitar
11 FW Haiti HAI Mikaël Cantave
12 DF Canada CAN Tyler Crawford
13 DF Canada CAN David Norman Jr.
16 MF England ENG Elliot Simmons
17 MF Canada CAN Zach Verhoven
No. Pos. Nation Player
18 FW New Zealand NZL Moses Dyer
19 FW Mexico MEX José Navarro
20 DF Canada CAN Anthony White
21 MF Canada CAN Kembo Kibato
23 DF Canada CAN Paris Gee
24 DF Canada CAN Elage Bah
25 DF Canada CAN James Cameron
26 MF Canada CAN T.J. Tahid
27 MF Republic of Ireland IRL Grady McDonnell
28 GK Canada CAN Niko Giantsopoulos
29 MF Canada CAN Thomas Powell
40 MF Canada CAN Joey Buchanan
44 FW Canada CAN Sebastian Dzikowski

Staff[edit]

As of February 21, 2024[17][18][19]
Executive
President Canada Rob Friend
Coaching staff
Head coach Iran United States Afshin Ghotbi
Assistant coach Brazil Marco Ferreira
Assistant coach Canada Azad Palani
Video Analyst Canada Dominic Rajna
Goalkeeping coach Canada Mark Village
Equipment manager Canada Cortlin Tonn
Manager of football operations Canada Jeevin Kang

Head coaches[edit]

As of October 6, 2023
Coach Nation Tenure Record
G W D L Win %
Afshin Ghotbi  Iran November 2, 2022 – present 29 8 5 16 027.59

Club captains[edit]

Years Name Nation
2023–present Callum Irving[20]  Canada

Records[edit]

Year-by-year[edit]

Season League Playoffs CC Continental Average
attendance 		Top goalscorer(s)
Div League Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts PPG Pos. Name Goals
2023 1 CPL 28 8 5 15 28 50 -22 29 1.04 7th DNQ R1 Ineligible 2,790 Lebanon Gabriel Bitar
Canada Shaan Hundal 		6

All-time top scorers[edit]

As of October 6, 2023[21][22][full citation needed]
# Name Nation Career at club Goals
CPL Cup Int'l Total
1 Gabriel Bitar  Lebanon 2023–present 6 0 0 6
Shaan Hundal  Canada 2023 6 0 0 6
3 Mikaël Cantave  Haiti 2023–present 4 0 0 4
4 Taryck Tahid  Canada 2023–present 3 0 0 3
5 Alejandro Díaz  Mexico 2023–present 2 0 0 2
6 James Cameron  Canada 2023–present 1 0 0 1
Vasco Fry  Peru 2023–present 1 0 0 1
Renan Garcia  Brazil 2023–present 1 0 0 1
Ameer Kinani  Iraq 2023 1 0 0 1
Min-jae Kwak  Republic of Korea 2023 1 0 0 1
Gael Sandoval  Mexico 2023 1 0 0 1

Note: Bold indicates active player

All-time top assists[edit]

As of October 6, 2023[21][22][full citation needed]
# Name Nation Career at club Assists
CPL Cup Int'l Total
1 Gabriel Bitar  Lebanon 2023–present 4 0 0 4
2 Gael Sandoval  Mexico 2023 3 0 0 3
3 Mikaël Cantave  Haiti 2023–present 2 0 0 2
Min-jae Kwak  Republic of Korea 2023 2 0 0 2
5 Kadin Chung  Canada 2023–present 1 0 0 1
Renan Garcia  Brazil 2023–present 1 0 0 1
Vasco Fry  Peru 2023–present 1 0 0 1
Shaan Hundal  Canada 2023 1 0 0 1
Ameer Kinani  Iraq 2023–present 1 0 0 1
Elliot Simmons  Canada 2023–present 1 0 0 1
Anthony White  Canada 2023–present 1 0 0 1

Note: Bold indicates active player

All-time most appearances[edit]

As of October 6, 2023[21][22][full citation needed]
# Name Nation Career at club Games played
CPL Cup Int'l Total
1 Shaan Hundal  Canada 2023 28 1 0 29
2 Callum Irving  Canada 2023–present 27 1 0 28
3 Min-jae Kwak  Republic of Korea 2023 26 1 0 27
4 Rocco Romeo  Canada 2023–present 25 1 0 26
Ibrahim Bakare  England 2023 25 1 0 26
Gabriel Bitar  Lebanon 2023–present 25 1 0 26
Elliot Simmons  Canada 2023–present 25 1 0 26
8 Tyler Crawford  Canada 2023–present 23 0 0 23
9 Ameer Kinani  Iraq 2023 20 1 0 21
10 Anthony White  Canada 2023–present 20 0 0 20
Taryck Tahid  Canada 2023–present 20 0 0 20

Note: Bold indicates active player

Awards[edit]

Canadian Premier League Awards[edit]

Year Name Award Status
2023 James Cameron Best Canadian U-21 Player Nominated

References[edit]

  1. ^ Jacques, John (November 3, 2022). "Langley Launched: Introducing Vancouver FC". Northern Tribune. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  2. ^ O'Connor-Clarke, Charlie (November 10, 2021). "Canadian Premier League awards expansion club in Vancouver to SixFive Sports & Entertainment". Canadian Premier League. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  3. ^ O'Connor-Clarke, Charlie (April 13, 2022). "SixFive Sports reveals Langley, BC location for Vancouver 2023 CPL team". Canadian Premier League. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  4. ^ a b "New Langley-based pro soccer team will be called Vancouver FC". Langley Advance Times. November 2, 2022. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  5. ^ Tierney, Mitchell (November 2, 2022). "'This market is ready for something different': Vancouver FC owner Rob Friend on the vision behind the CPL's newest club". Canadian Premier League.
  6. ^ Jacques, John. "Club History: Vancouver FC's 'Pele' Martinez Called Up For Belize". Northern Tribune. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  7. ^ Wallace, Kelly. "Pacific FC beats new rivals Vancouver FC – photo gallery". Total Soccer News. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
  8. ^ "CPL new boys Vancouver FC score first goal and secure first win in club history". Canadian Soccer Daily. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
  9. ^ O'Connor Clarke, Charlie (April 22, 2023). "HIGHLIGHTS: York United vs. Vancouver FC | April 22, 2023". OneSoccer. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
  10. ^ Jacques, John. "Making History: Vancouver FC Sells Out Tonight's Home Opener". Northern Tribune. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  11. ^ Saelhof, Todd. "Cavalry can't find way to win against 10-man Vancouver FC". Calgary Sun. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  12. ^ "Canadian Premier League unveils newest franchise Vancouver FC". CBC. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
  13. ^ Jacques, John (March 26, 2023). "Revealed: Vancouver FC Inaugural Kits". Northern Tribune. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  14. ^ "Vancouver FC unveils kits for inaugural season". Canadian Premier League. March 27, 2023. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  15. ^ Davidson, Neil (February 9, 2023). "Vancouver FC offers a look at its new modular Canadian Premier League stadium home". Toronto Star. The Canadian Press. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
  16. ^ "Vancouver FC Roster". Vancouver FC. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  17. ^ O'Connor-Clarke, Charlie (November 2, 2022). "'It's a way of life': Vancouver FC coach Afshin Ghotbi reflects on passion, unifying power of soccer". Canadian Premier League. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  18. ^ Jacques, John (January 4, 2023). "Vancouver FC Staff Taking Shape". The Northern Tribune. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  19. ^ "Vancouver FC add two assistant coaches ahead of 2024 season". Canadian Premier League. February 21, 2024. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
  20. ^ "Historic weekend ahead as Vancouver FC host inaugural home opener on Sunday". Canadian Premier League. April 26, 2019. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
  21. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Canadian Premier League was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Canadian Championship was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vancouver FC.
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