Results
None Found...
None Found...
Description
Available in: 
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).
The Whitecaps of that era included international players such as Alan Ball, Ruud Krol and Bruce Grobbelaar, but also British Columbian stars like Bobby and Sam Lenarduzzi, Buzz Parsons, and Bruce Wilson.
In 1979, the team from the "Village of Vancouver" (a reference to ABC TV sportscaster Jim McKay's observation that "Vancouver must be like the deserted village right now", with so many people watching the game on TV) beat the powerhouse New York Cosmos in one of the most thrilling playoff series in NASL history to advance to the 1979 Soccer Bowl. They triumphed against the Tampa Bay Rowdies at the Giants Stadium before a crowd of 50,699 (66,843 tickets had been sold for the game).
It was during this short period that soccer interest peaked in Vancouver. The Whitecaps attendance at Empire Stadium grew to an average of 28,000 per game with playoff matches reaching the 32,000 capacity. The team also recorded two tracks, with "White Is the Colour" (a takeoff on Chelsea's "Blue Is the Colour") becoming a hit on local radio during the run-up to their championship win.
After playing at Vancouver's 32,000-seat Empire Stadium for most of their existence, the team moved into the new 60,000-seat BC Place Stadium in 1983.
The team played indoor soccer on and off during their existence. The Pacific Coliseum served as the home field for their 1980–81 and 1983–84 NASL indoor seasons. However for the 1981–82 indoor season the Whitecaps used the much smaller PNE Agrodome, as the Pacific Coliseum became unavailable.
With the demise of the NASL in 1984 the Whitecaps, along with many other teams in the NASL, were forced to fold.
Team Members
= Player Contract years remaining
Showing 0 to 0 (Total: 0)
Stadium or Home
Empire Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium that stood at the Pacific National Exhibition site at Hastings Park in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Track and field and Canadian football, as well as soccer and musical events, were held at the stadium. The stadium was originally constructed for the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. The stadium (which sat 32,375 upon opening, but 30,229 after 1974) hosted both Elvis Presley and The Beatles. It saw most of its use as the home of the BC Lions of the CFL from 1954 to 1982, in which the venue also played host to the first Grey Cup game held west of Ontario in 1955. Empire Stadium also hosted the Grey Cup game in 1958, 1960, 1963, 1966, 1971, and 1974; seven times in total.
Trophies 
Fanart
Banner
Other Links
User Rating
Soccer
(0 users)
