One of the several mediocre Vancouver sports teams that is being talked about less in the past few years is the Vancouver Whitecaps.

🍁 CHAMPIONS OF THE NORTH 🍁#VWFC | #VANvTOR | #CanChamp pic.twitter.com/hewpk4XvFh

— Vancouver Whitecaps FC (@WhitecapsFC) July 27, 2022

So, what is up with the Whitecaps lately? Why is there less chatter about this franchise? There are a few reasons why I think this could be the case, most of which has to do with the marketing and product that is being put out on the field.

Perhaps the most talked about news so far this year regarding the Whitecaps was their participation in the Concacaf Champions League. The Whitecaps earned their place by winning the Canadian Championships (which if I’m being honest shouldn’t be that difficult) and got the opportunity to play other North American teams for a chance at Concacaf glory.

But just like the classic Whitecaps you and I know they disappointed when it mattered most. The Vancouver Whitecaps won their first-round matchup against Real Espana, a team from a league in Honduras that does not really compare to the Whitecaps MLS league (Major League Soccer). Was this a sign of good things to come for the Whitecaps? Unfortunately, not, as they had to play the defending MLS champions LAFC in the next round, and they got badly outplayed in both games.

(Pexels / Kelly)

In terms of how the Whitecaps are doing in the MLS, well it should be reiterated that the Whitecaps seemingly mediocre pattern in their results is continuing. They aren’t downright bad, but they aren’t good either, just hanging around in the middle of the standings with 2 wins, 2 losses and 4 ties. The next game for the Whitecaps is April 29^th after having two weeks off. Maybe now the Whitecaps can start winning?

Going back to why the Whitecaps aren’t being talked about much lately, there are several reasons that have been noticeable as of late which make this team appear less relevant. One of which is not the Whitecaps fault, but rather the fault of MLS. The league signed a deal with Apple TV to broadcast a good number of games on its service throughout the year. Unless you already have Apple TV, nobody is going to go out of their way to purchase it just the watch MLS, especially just to watch the Whitecaps.

(Pexels / Markus Spiske)

A secondary reason why the Whitecaps are less relevant in the Vancouver sports scene is that the owners don’t seem to want to spend their money to go after big name players from other leagues. I understand it’s a business, but at some point, the owners and managers need to realize that they have acquired a decent amount of money for players they have traded over the last couple of seasons, and it’s time they made some more upgrades.

Either way, it is a good idea to at least check up on what the Whitecaps are up to, and we will see if anything changes with the franchise in the coming months.