Vancouver Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club that competes in the Canadian Premier League, the top tier of the Canadian soccer league system. The club is based in Langley, British Columbia and plays their home matches at Willoughby Stadium.

History On November 10, 2021, the Canadian Premier League announced that it had awarded an expansion club in Vancouver to SixFive Sports and Entertainment LP. 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 Stadium, adjacent to the Langley Events Centre.

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. The CPL announced that the club would begin league play for the 2023 season.

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.

First seasons 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. 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.

The club faced Cavalry FC in its first home match at the newly-constructed Willoughby Stadium at Langley Events Centre in front of a sell-out crowd of over 6,000 fans on May 7, 2023. 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.

Vancouver participated in the 2023 Canadian Championship for the first time but lost in the opening round to York United. The club ended their inaugural CPL season in seventh place out of eight – with a record of 8 wins, 5 draws, and 15 losses – and missed the playoffs by nine points. In 2024, Vancouver once again lost in the first round of the Canadian Championship and finished second last in the CPL. Vancouver started the season strong and sat in 2nd place at the end of June but then won only two of their final sixteen matches to fall out of playoff contention.

On July 23, 2025, Vancouver FC relieved manager Afshin Ghotbi of his duties. Despite still being active in the semifinals of the 2025 Canadian Championship at the time of the coaching change, the club sat in last place in the CPL with only 8 points through 15 matches played. Over Ghotbi's two-and-a-half year tenure, the club held a combined 16–22–38 record. Under interim manager Martin Nash, the team earned 13 points in their final 13 games but still finished the season in last place in the CPL. The team did reach the finals of the Canadian Championship where they were defeated by their crosstown rivals Vancouver Whitecaps FC by a score of 4–2. Despite the loss in the final and their regular season record, Vancouver FC qualified for the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup.

In December 2025, former head coach Afshin Ghotbi filed a civil claim against Vancouver FC's ownership group, SixFive Sports & Entertainment, alleging the club failed to repay a $500,000 loan he provided in July 2023 to assist with the team's cash flow. After Ghotbi's departure as head coach in July 2025, he sought repayment of the principal plus accrued interest, by then totalling over $700,000, and is seeking damages for breach of contract and misrepresentation. The defendants have disputed the allegations and stated they will contest the claim through the legal process. The lawsuit was publicly reported by CBC News and other outlets in late 2025.

Crest and colours

The primary crest 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).

Kit history

Home and away kits.

Home

Away

Sponsorship

PeriodKit manufacturerShirt partner (chest)Shirt partner (sleeve)2023–2024MacronCIBC, Carlsberg2025Cafe Artigiano 2026–presentHummelMoneris

Stadium

Vancouver FC play in a new stadium at Willoughby Stadium at Langley Events Centre. It has a capacity of 6,137 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.

Players and staff

Roster

Out on loan

Staff

ExecutiveCoaching staff

Head coaches

CoachNationTenureRecordGWDLWin % Afshin Ghotbi November 2, 2022 – July 23, 2025 Martin Nash (interim) July 23, 2025 – January 14, 2026 Martin Nash January 14, 2026 – present

Club captains YearsNameNation 2023–present Callum Irving

Records

Year-by-year SeasonLeaguePlayoffsCCContinentalTop goalscorer(s)Div League Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts PPG Pos. Name Goals20231CPL 2885152850 -22291.047thDNQR1Ineligible Gabriel Bitar Shaan Hundal62024CPL 2879122943 -14 301.077thDNQR1DNQ Alejandro Díaz102025CPL 28 4 9 15 35 57 -22 21 0.75 8th DNQ RUDNQ Ndiaye Pathé Hugo Mbongue 6

International competition The following is a list of results for Vancouver FC in international competitions. Vancouver FC's scores are listed first.

YearTournamentRoundOpponentHomeAwayAgg. 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup Round One Cruz Azul

All-time top scorers

#NameNationCareer at clubGoalsCPLCupInt'lTotal1Alejandro Díaz2023–20251310142Gabriel Bitar2023–20241000103Nicolás Mezquida2025–present53084Hugo Mbongue202561075Shaan Hundal20236006Ndiaye Pathé202560067Mikaël Cantave2023–20255005Vasco Fry2023–20255005Thierno Bah2024–present4105 Note: Bold indicates active player

Note: 4 Others tied at 4 goals

All-time top assists

#NameNationCareer at clubAssistsCPLCupInt'lTotal1Gabriel Bitar2023–202460062Mikaël Cantave2023–202550053Paris Gee2024–present40044Vasco Fry2023–20253003Kadin Chung2023–20243003Gael Sandoval202330037Min-jae Kwak20232002Alejandro Díaz2023–20252002Grady McDonnell20242002Austin Ricci20242002 Note: Bold indicates active player

All-time most appearances

#NameNationCareer at clubGames playedCPLCupInt'lTotal1Callum Irving2023–present8380912Vasco Fry2023–20255670633Alejandro Díaz2023–20255230554Paris Gee2024–present4950545Gabriel Bitar2023–20245120536Rocco Romeo2023–2024482050Allan Enyou2024–20254640508Thierno Bah2024–present416047David Norman Jr.2024–202540704710T.J. Tahid2023–2025460046 Note: Bold indicates active player

Awards Canadian Premier League Awards YearNameAwardStatus2023James CameronBest Canadian U-21 Player

References

External links