The Vancouver Whitecaps were a Canadian professional soccer club based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Founded in 1986, the team played its final year in the second tier of the United States soccer pyramid in the NASL Conference of the USSF Division 2 Professional League coached by Teitur Thordarson. The team played its home games at Swangard Stadium in nearby Burnaby, British Columbia. The team's colours were blue and white.

On March 19, 2009, an ownership group led by principal Greg Kerfoot was granted a Major League Soccer expansion franchise which began play in 2011 under the name Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

In addition to its men's side the Whitecaps also field a women's team in the USL W-League, two developmental teams (Vancouver Whitecaps Residency, in the USL Premier Development League, and the Whitecaps FC Prospects, in the Pacific Coast Soccer League), and four youth teams in the USL Super Y-League (Coastal WFC, Mountain WFC, Surrey WFC and Okanagan WFC) ranging in age from U13 to U17 for both boys and girls.WFC Super Y Affiliates

The team was previously known as the Vancouver 86ers of both the Canadian Soccer League, American Professional Soccer League (APSL), and later the A-League. The club later played in two later versions of the second tier A-League known as the USL-1 and USSF Division 2 Professional League in North America.

History

Vancouver 86ers

In 1986, a professional soccer team was again launched in Vancouver. The club was initially going to be named Vancouver United, but that name was rejected for sounding too British. The name Vancouver 86ers was chosen instead to commemorate the founding of the city of Vancouver in 1886, the founding of the team in 1986, the Expo 86 hosted by Vancouver that year, the Canadian national team's first World Cup qualification, and the 86 people who contributed $500 each to fund the new team as the West Coast Soccer Society.

The 86ers played in the Canadian Soccer League (CSL). Led by player/head coach Bob Lenarduzzi and his assistant Alan Errington, the 86ers were triumphant in their inaugural CSL match, as they defeated Edmonton Brick Men 4–2 in front of 7,646 fans at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby, BC, on June 7, 1987. The 86ers went on to finish second in the Western Division standings that year before bowing out to inaugural league champions Calgary Kickers in the playoff semifinals. From 1988 to 1991, the 86ers won four straight CSL Championships, as well and five consecutive CSL regular-season first-place finishes from 1988 to 1992.

In 1988–1989, the team, coached by Bob Lenarduzzi, set a North American professional sports record by playing 46 consecutive games without a loss. Also in 1988 the Vancouver 86ers and Calgary Kickers played six friendly matches each against the Western Soccer Alliance in the month of May.

In 1990, the Vancouver 86ers captured the North American Club Championship after defeating the Maryland Bays 3–2 in the final played in Burnaby. The game was played between the champions of the Canadian Soccer League and the champions of the American Professional Soccer League (APSL). The 86ers however came up short in the first round of the 1992 Professional Cup North American Club Championship. Facing APSL champions Colorado Foxes over two legs, Vancouver suffered a heartbreaking 3–2 defeat in the first leg in Colorado on August 3, 1992, before the Foxes advanced to the final, as a 2–1 second-leg win at Swangard on August 11, 1992, secured a 5–3 aggregate victory for Colorado. Vancouver played in the CSL from its inception in 1987 until the league folded in 1992, and then moved over to the APSL in 1993 which was later absorbed into the USL hierarchy of leagues in 1997 becoming the A-League, later renamed the USL.

Vancouver Whitecaps (USL)

In 2001, the team began to use the old Vancouver Whitecaps moniker (signifying both the 'white caps' of the nearby mountains, and the waves of the Pacific Ocean). In 2003, the name was again changed, albeit only slightly, to Whitecaps FC, which encompasses the men's, women's, and youth development teams within the organization. At this time, the Whitecaps logo changed slightly in colour (the light teal-green was replaced with a brighter blue) and the word "Vancouver" was dropped from the image.

In 2006, the Whitecaps organization won an unprecedented double-championship, claiming both the United Soccer Leagues First Division championship trophy, defeating the host Rochester Rhinos 3–0 at PAETEC Park, and winning the W-League women's trophy. The men's team also won the Nation's Cup, a new tournament established by their club as a way to feature the Whitecaps playing against international competition. The 2006 Nation's Cup tournament featured the Chinese and Indian U-20 National teams and Championship Welsh club Cardiff City F.C. (the "Bluebirds"). The gradually added the "Vancouver" back into their name, changing it officially to "Vancouver Whitecaps FC".

The following season, the Whitecaps signed a deal to play an exhibition match against the Los Angeles Galaxy, which featured international David Beckham, and promoted Director of Soccer Operations Bob Lenarduzzi to team president.

October 12, 2008, they claimed their second United Soccer Leagues First Division championship with a 2–1 victory over the Puerto Rico Islanders. Charles Gbeke scored twice with his head in the second half to help secure the title. In 2009, they placed 7th in the league and were eliminated in the final by the Montreal Impact on a 6–3 aggregate.

In November 2009 the Whitecaps, along with several other teams, announced their intent to leave the USL First Division to become the co-founders of a new North American Soccer League, which was to begin play in 2010. On January 7, 2010, the USSF announced that neither the USL nor the NASL would be permitted to have a second division league, and the USSF would administer a league where the NASL and USL are conferences within the league.

On November 24, 2009, it was announced that Paul Barber, the former executive director of Tottenham Hotspur, will become the Chief Executive Operations director of the Caps.Whitecaps appoint CEO from EPL club

Whitecaps played a 30-match regular season, with 15 home games and a 15 games away in the United States Soccer Federation Division 2 Professional League.2010 regular season announced

The Whitecaps and Major League Soccer

In May 2008, the Whitecaps announced plans to move to BC Place stadium once renovations were completed. Following the announcement, MLS commissioner Don Garber commented "there is no doubt the market for professional soccer exists in Vancouver, as we saw last November when nearly 50,000 fans attended the exhibition match between the Los Angeles Galaxy and the Whitecaps".

On July 24, 2008, the MLS announced they were seeking to add two expansion franchises for the 2011 season. One day later, the Whitecaps officially announced that they were pursuing one of the two expansion slots. The Whitecaps also announced that local sports icon Steve Nash will join the Whitecaps ownership team.'Caps pursue franchise in MLS

Vancouver's bid was officially submitted on October 15, 2008, along with bids from six other cities. Whitecaps representatives Greg Kerfoot and Jeff Mallett met with MLS officials on November 21, 2008, to go over their bid. Don Garber, who was previously involved in National Football League expansion, described the bid presentation as, "one of the best I've ever seen." Garber and MLS president Mark Abbott were in Vancouver on December 7, 2008, to tour BC Place Stadium and learn about the proposed renovations, which were scheduled to be completed in time for the 2011 MLS season.

Vancouver was officially named an MLS expansion city on March 18, 2009, and joined the league in 2011. They began their inaugural MLS season at Empire Field, a temporary stadium built at the former site of Empire Stadium, and moved into BC Place Stadium when renovations to the stadium were completed.MLS awards Vancouver team for 2011

Players

Notable former players

Staff

Management Greg Kerfoot Owner Bob Lenarduzzi President Paul Barber Chief Executive Officer Rachel Lewis Chief Operating Officer Dave Irvine Manager of Technical Programs Tom Soehn Director of Soccer Operations Chris Murphy Director of Professional Development Dan Lenarduzzi Director of Youth Development

Sports Teitur Thordarson Head Coach Colin Miller Assistant Coach Mike Salmon Goalkeeping Coach

Medical Graeme Poole Physiotherapist Chris Franks Physiotherapist Al Ezaki Athletic Therapist Dr. Bob McCormack Team Physician Dr. Jim Bovard Team Physician Steve Ramsbottom Strength & Conditioning Specialist Darren Woloshen Equipment Manager

Year-by-year

This is a complete list of seasons for the CSL and USL club. For a season-by-season history including the current Vancouver Whitecaps FC MLS franchise, see History of Vancouver Whitecaps FC. For solely MLS results, see List of Vancouver Whitecaps FC seasons. SeasonLeaguePositionPlayoffsCCContinentalAverage attendanceTop goalscorer(s)DivLeaguePldWLDGFGAGDPtsPPGConf.OverallNameGoals1987 1 CSL 20 9 8 3 37 27 +10 30 1.50 2nd 4th SF – Ineligible 5,993 Domenic Mobilio 121988 CSL 28 21 1 6 84 30 +54 69 2.46 1st 1st W Western Soccer Alliance N/A 4,919 John Catliff Domenic Mobilio 221989 CSL 26 18 2 6 65 33 +32 60 2.31 1st 1st W Ineligible 4,572 Domenic Mobilio 121990 CSL 26 17 6 3 69 26 +43 54 2.08 1st 1st W North American Club Championship W 4,218 John Catliff 191991 CSL 28 20 4 4 69 31 +38 64 2.29 N/A 1st W Ineligible 6,347 Domenic Mobilio 261992 CSL 20 11 6 3 42 28 +14 36 1.80 1st RU CONCACAF Champions' Cup Professional Cup R1 R1 4,344 John Catliff Dale Mitchell 61993 2 APSL 24 15 9 0 43 35 +8 45 1.88 1st SF Ineligible 4,866 Domenic Mobilio 111994 APSL 20 7 13 0 25 41 –16 21 1.05 6th DNQ 4,742 Domenic Mobilio 71995 A-League 24 10 14 0 43 43 0 30 1.25 3rd SF 4,493 Giuliano Oliviero 91996 A-League 27 13 14 0 38 38 0 39 1.44 5th DNQ 4,068 141997 A-League 28 16 12 0 50 29 +21 48 1.71 3rd 6th SF 3,558 Domenic Mobilio 221998 A-League 28 15 13 0 55 42 +13 45 1.61 4th 15th R1 4,185 Jason Jordan 81999 A-League 28 19 9 0 77 31 +46 57 2.04 3rd 4th R1 4,559 Niall Thompson 202000 A-League 28 14 11 3 62 41 +21 45 1.61 5th 9th QF 3,959 Darren Tilley 122001 A-League 26 16 8 2 44 33 +11 50 1.92 1st 4th SF 5,542 Jason Jordan 92002 A-League 28 11 12 5 41 39 +2 38 1.36 5th 10th SF 3,769 Jason Jordan 92003 A-League 28 15 6 7 45 24 +21 52 1.86 4th 5th QF 4,292 Ollie Heald Jason Jordan 92004 A-League 28 14 9 5 38 29 +9 47 1.68 2nd 6th SF 4,833 Jason Jordan 72005 USL-1 28 12 7 9 37 21 +16 45 1.61 N/A 3rd QF 5,086 Jason Jordan 172006 USL-1 28 12 6 10 40 28 +12 46 1.64 4th W 5,085 Joey Gjertsen 122007 USL-1 28 9 7 12 27 24 +3 39 1.39 7th QF 5,162 Eduardo Sebrango 72008 USL-1 30 15 7 8 34 28 +6 53 1.77 2nd W 3rd DNQ 4,999 Eduardo Sebrango 162009 USL-1 30 11 10 9 42 36 +6 42 1.40 7th RU RU 5,312 Charles Gbeke 132010 D2 Pro 30 10 5 15 32 22 +10 45 1.50 2nd 5th SF RU 5,152 Martin Nash 5 Total – – 639 330 199 110 1139 759 +380 1100 1.72 – – – – – – 167 1. Avg. attendance include statistics from league matches only. 2. Top goalscorer(s) includes all goals scored in League, League Playoffs, Canadian Championship, CONCACAF Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup, and other competitive continental matches. 3. Points and PPG have been adjusted from non-traditional to traditional scoring systems for seasons prior to 2003 to more effectively compare historical team performance across seasons.

Honours

Major

Domestic Canadian Soccer League Playoff Championship Winners: 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 Runners-up: 1992 Regular Season Winners: 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992 Canadian Championship Runners up: 2009, 2010 USL First Division Playoff Championship Winners: 2006, 2008 Runners-up: 2009 Commissioner's Cup Winners: 1993 Runners-up: 2008

International North American Club Championship Winners: 1990

Minor