The Vancouver Whitecaps ownership group has initiated the process to sell the club.
The group, which includes Greg Kerfoot, Steve Luczo, Jeff Mallett and NBA Hall of Famer and former Brooklyn Nets coach Steve Nash, is looking to secure ownership for the club to continue in Vancouver.
There have been no discussions regarding moving the team, according to sources briefed on the sale talks. The group has retained Goldman Sachs to manage the process.
“Our group has been committed to transforming our local soccer club into a significant contributor to our community,” Kerfoot said in a statement released by the club. “It is gratifying to see how meaningful the Whitecaps have become to so many, and to have been able to contribute to the growth of a vibrant and thriving soccer community in Vancouver, the Lower Mainland, British Columbia, and beyond.”
Kerfoot acquired the Whitecaps in 2002 and helped to re-establish the brand and grow it at the professional level. The ownership group came together in 2008 and was selected for MLS expansion in 2009, beginning MLS play in 2011.
“The Vancouver Whitecaps would not be where they are today without the vision and commitment of this exceptional ownership group,” MLS commissioner Don Garber said in a statement. “The Whitecaps are a terrific club in a world-class city. On behalf of everyone at Major League Soccer, I want to thank them for their tremendous contributions and look forward to working with them to identify new ownership for the club.”
The sale comes at a potentially critical moment in growth for Vancouver and Canadian soccer. Vancouver will host games in the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup and the 2026 World Cup, putting the market on a major stage in international soccer. It would be the first sale of an MLS team since David Blitzer and Ryan Smith bought Real Salt Lake in 2022. Orlando City SC and the Houston Dynamo were sold to new owners in 2021.
Kerfoot has been an important voice at the MLS board level, co-chairing the influential sporting and competition committee for many years. Luczo has also contributed to various committees and was an advisor in the recent media rights negotiations.
Kerfoot and Luzco are focused on estate and family planning, which influenced their decision to explore a sale, the sources said.
Vancouver is coming off of an eighth-place finish in 2024, has made the playoffs in three of the last four seasons and also won three of the last four Canadian Championships. The Whitecaps ranked seventh in league attendance in 2024 and doubled season ticket membership over the past two years, according to the club.
Under the current ownership, the Whitecaps academy produced the most successful homegrown player in league history in Canadian winger/fullback Alphonso Davies, who was sold for a fee that reached north of $22 million. Davies’ success with Bayern Munich has been a crucial storytelling opportunity for MLS academies. The left back’s success at Bayern also means the club could reap still more benefits from his sale if he moved to another club in the future.
The Whitecaps organization also navigated through allegations of misconduct brought by members of the Whitecaps’ women’s team against former coach Bob Birarda in 2008 and former coach Hubert Busby Jr. in 2011. An independent review commissioned by MLS in 2022 found that “the Whitecaps’ response to the allegations was appropriate and that the club acted expeditiously to hire an experienced workplace investigator, relied on the investigator’s judgment, and adhered to all of the investigator’s recommendations.”
Vancouver said in a statement that the potential sale has not changed the goals of the club or the focus on the 2025 season.
“The club intends to build on the momentum of an exciting 2024, and is actively preparing to take another step forward in 2025,” the Whitecaps said.
What a sale means for the Whitecaps
Beyond what a possible sale of the Whitecaps means for the MLS team, there are several different angles to follow with the 2026 World Cup less than two years away. Canada co-hosting the World Cup hangs over every significant decision made surrounding the sport domestically.
How could the sale of the Whitecaps impact Vancouver as a soccer city heading into 2026? You’ll remember that Vancouver was not originally one of the Canadian cities pegged to be a possible host city in 2018, as then-British Columbia Minister of Tourism Lisa Beare said, “The FIFA bid agreement contained clauses which the government felt left taxpayers at unacceptable risk of additional costs.”
But the provincial government’s tune eventually changed and Vancouver will not only be a host city, they are already guaranteed to host two of Canada’s three group stage games.
How much will a possible new owner not only embrace the Whitecaps but the soccer infrastructure surrounding the team and throughout the city of Vancouver? Toronto FC owners Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, for example, have been ardent supporters of the World Cup coming to Toronto.
Will the new owner or ownership group engage in public support for the World Cup, despite costs for hosting the World Cup continuing to rise exponentially?
At the very least, the Whitecaps current ownership group’s support for Canada at the 2026 World Cup is evident: the team supplements part of men’s national team head coach Jesse Marsch’s current salary. The Athletic previously reported that the total amount donated to Canada Soccer by Canada’s three MLS clubs — including the Whitecaps — is approximately $1.5 million and will contribute to the entire Canadian soccer ecosystem.
Will the next Whitecaps owner still be on board with this agreement?
Finally, beyond 2026: Would a new owner be interested in owning a new, soccer-specific stadium in Vancouver? You could make a strong argument that the Whitecaps are in as desperate a need for their own stadium as any other MLS team. Between the turf, the oft-cavernous feel of games at the 54,500-capacity BC Place (22,120 for MLS games) and the fact that the stadium is owned by the province of British Columbia, a new venue feels necessary for the long-term viability of the club. The Whitecaps were forced to play a “home” wild card match against the Portland Timbers in Portland because their stadium was already booked for the World Supercross Championship in October.
It’s a safe bet that when the new owner is unveiled, one of the first questions asked of them will be their stance on a new Whitecaps stadium. If they’re truly invested in not just the team but soccer’s growth in British Columbia, a new stadium feels like part of that equation.
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(Photo: Simon Fearn / Imagn Images)
