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.
Bruce Alec Wilson is a former NASL and Canadian international soccer player. He played the second most games of any player in the former league, 299. He also captained the Canadian team at the 1986 FIFA World Cup finals. In 2012 as part of the Canadian Soccer Association's centennial celebration, he was named to the all-time Canada XI men's team.
Randolph FitzGerald Samuel is a Trinidad-born Canadian former soccer player who played as a defender. His 82 international caps were a Canada national team record until he was surpassed by Paul Stalteri in September 2010.
Dale William Mitchell is a Canadian former professional soccer striker who played for several North American teams in the 1980s and 1990s.
Carl Howard Valentine is a former professional soccer player and coach who has had a long association with soccer in the Vancouver area.
Martin Nash is a Canadian soccer coach and former player.
The Vancouver Whitecaps FC women was a Canadian soccer club based in Vancouver, British Columbia that played in the USL W-League, the second tier of women's soccer in the United States and Canada. The team was formed in 2001 under the name Vancouver Breakers following a merger of the Vancouver Lady 86ers and Vancouver Angels. In 2003, they changed their name to the Whitecaps to match the men's team.
Robert "Bob" Bolitho is a Canadian former soccer player who played for the Canadian national team and in the North American Soccer League and Canadian Soccer League.
Les "Buzz" Parsons is a Canadian former soccer player who played at both professional and international levels as a midfielder. During his career in North America with the Vancouver Whitecaps, Parsons was affectionately known as "White Shoes", owing to the white boots he wore. After retiring as a player, Parsons later became a professional soccer coach.
Silvano "Sam" Lenarduzzi is a former Canadian soccer player. He was a two-time national champion with British Columbia Selects (1966) and Vancouver Columbus FC (1969). He represented Canada in three cycles of FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. He was part of the inaugural class honoured by the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame in 2000.
Ian Christopher Bridge is a soccer coach and former professional who played as a defender. A former player for the Canada national team, he has coached the Canada women's national team among other teams.
Domenic Mobilio was a Canadian professional soccer player who played as a striker.
Chris Bennett is a former soccer player who played as a forward in the North American Soccer League. Born in England, he played for the Canada national team at international level. He was one of the original Vancouver Whitecaps players from their first season in 1974. Since retiring from playing, he has been a football coach and instructor in the Vancouver area.
The original Vancouver Whitecaps were a professional soccer team founded on December 11, 1973. During the 1970s and 1980s they played in the North American Soccer League (NASL).
Columbus FC is a Canadian soccer club based in Vancouver, British Columbia currently playing in the Premier division of the Vancouver Metro Soccer League. In 2013, the club was recognized as a Canada Soccer Hall of Fame Organization of Distinction.
The Canadian Soccer League was a Division 1 professional soccer league that operated for six seasons between 1987 and 1992. It was a nationwide league that had teams in six provinces over the course of its history. It was the last top-division league in Canada until the Canadian Premier League began play in 2019.
The history of Vancouver Whitecaps FC, a professional soccer team based in Vancouver, Canada, spans over four decades. The first team to use the "Whitecaps" name was the Vancouver Whitecaps of the now-defunct North American Soccer League, playing from 1974 to 1984. After two years while the core of the players were focused on preparations for the 1986 World Cup, a second version of the club was founded in 1986 as the Vancouver 86ers. This team bought back the Whitecaps name in 2000 and has operated continuously in various leagues since 1986. A Whitecaps FC team began play in Major League Soccer starting in 2011 making it the first time since 1984 that a "Whitecaps" team played in the top tier of soccer in the United States and Canada.
Leslie John "Les" Wilson is a football administrator and former professional player. He played in The Football League for Bristol City, Norwich City, and most notably Wolverhampton Wanderers, one of the first North American-trained players to do so. Following his playing career with the original North American Soccer League's and his hometown Vancouver Whitecaps, Wilson became a Canadian Soccer Association coach and administrator involved in some of the national program's finest ever results. He is an honoured member of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame.
The 1993 Vancouver 86ers season was the club's eighth year of existence, as well as their first as a Division 2 club in the franchise model of U.S.-based soccer leagues. After their 1992 CSL season, the CSL folded and the Whitecaps joined the American Professional Soccer League for the 1993 season. They continued the tradition of excellence from the CSL capturing the Commissioner’s Cup but losing the playoff semifinal in a shootout to the Los Angeles Salsa.
James Howatson Easton is a Canadian retired soccer midfielder who played professionally in the North American Soccer League, the Scottish First Division, the Canadian Soccer League and for the Canada men's national team.
