The Vancouver Whitecaps have been a pleasant surprise this season, becoming the top seed in the Western Conference halfway through MLS play. Vancouver qualified for the CONCACAF Champions Cup through their domestic Cup in Canada.
This competition ended historically badly when losing to Liga MX side Cruz Azul 5-0. Vancouver’s form was poor as they were on their heels for all 90 minutes of this final.
Vancouver has dominated their competition by controlling the midfield and high-effort striking from Brian White, who is having a career year.
Their play style has worked in their favor this year, with a few key pieces leaving from a season ago. A young core that works together tactically has been what this Canadian team has needed all these years.
Despite their current form, they were sent packing by Cruz Azul in dominating fashion. We are going to explore how this blowout happened and how it affects the rest of the MLS.
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What was Missing?
It was clear in the first half that Vancouver was missing quality in the midfield with how little they controlled the ball. Vancouver from the very start was on their back heel defending for their lives against a well-structured attack.
Vancouver likes to stretch the field out with Brian White playing far up on defense. On counterattacks, they move quickly with Sebastian Berhalter getting the ball in the midfield and finding White down the field in a position to make a play.
Berhalter has been one of the best midfielders in the MLS this year at the age of 24. His play has been so impressive that he has earned a call-up to the USMNT for the Gold Cup for the first time.
Berhalter was missing in this final due to yellow card accumulation. Fans may hate this rule, but it prevented the team’s star from participating, which could be one of the reasons the game got out of hand so fast.
How does this affect the MLS?
The MLS has traditionally done badly in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, as only three teams have ever won the competition. Vancouver was hoping they could be the fourth to win it and the first Canadian team to bring the Cup home as well.
A loss was expected by many non-MLS fans, a close loss would give the MLS respect across different leagues. Displaying one of their hottest teams and putting together a well-respected effort may have put more eyes on the league.
A loss like the one we saw Sunday night just confirms the opinions many non-MLS fans have had on the league for years.
The MLS has had a major uptick in quality over the past decade, with teams’ expansion and a deeper talent pool in the USA system has allowed more teams to play well-respected soccer.
In the 2000s, the best teams were the ones that had the most USMNT players on them. Now, with most of the top talent competing overseas, it has created a deeper talent pool of American players than ever before.
The Apple TV deal has also allowed the league to bring in bigger stars who are still playing at a top level. None of this can be acknowledged by new fans if the best MLS teams are getting blown out by international competition.
Vancouver still has a chance at gold this season, it is not the end of the road for this squad. Despite that fact, this loss weighs heavily on the MLS and all of its fans as they wait for a time when one of their clubs will bring more eyes to the beautiful game in the United States.
Main Photo
Credit IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire
Recording Date 31.05.2025