✍️ Baltej Bining

Hello, Vancouver, and welcome back to our weekly column about professional soccer in the city! This week, all four sides got a game in, with three of those happening at their home stadiums. Let's dive in and see what's been happening with the four professional sides in Vancouver.

This is Vancouver Weekly!

Vancouver Whitecaps

It was alright for Jesper Sørensen's side.

It started poorly, as it was officially confirmed that Sebastian Berhalter had departed the Vancouver Whitecaps, joining EFL Championship side Middlesbrough FC on a deal worth around the $2,000,000 mark.

Axel Schuster would hint at making at least two signings for the club, with a potential third if negotiations went well, as the first signing was announced, as 23-year-old forward Kwasi Poku joined the club on a two-and-a-half-year deal following his stint in Belgium, with the fee rumoured to be around $150,000 for the one-time capped Canadian international. He will have to wait to make his debut, as he's been ruled out with a hamstring injury, with the timeline remaining unknown.

On the pitch, the Vancouver Whitecaps finally returned to BC Place Stadium, as they were held to a 1-1 draw against LAFC, with Son Heung-Min's opener cancelled out by a Thomas Müller penalty.

This performance was different compared to the previous two games, as the Whitecaps were the more dominant side in terms of attacking presence, as they created way more chances than the visiting Los Angeles, the only problem being the lack of big chances.

The next 'Caps game in MLS play will happen in a couple of weeks, as the club shifts focus onto Leagues Cup, where they will play two games at BC Place before heading to Mexico for the final game.

First up is Atlante FC on Tuesday, with kickoff set for 7:30 pm PT. They will later face FC Juárez on Friday at home, with the same kickoff time as Tuesday's clash.

Vancouver FC

This side just loves to win.

The Eagles have won their fourth straight match, as they defeated Atlético Ottawa by a 3-1 scoreline, with Mohamed Amissi, Lys Mousset, and Damiano Pecile firing in for the hosts, while Ottawa got a goal back through Tim Arnaud.

Martin Nash's side now jump to third place in the Canadian Premier League standings, as they have built a six-point gap between themselves and FC Supra.

Now comes their most difficult test, as they take on league leaders Forge at Hamilton Stadium on Friday, with kickoff set for 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ET.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2

It's another difficult game for WFC2.

Rich Fagan's side travelled to the state of Washington, where they faced the Tacoma Defiance on Saturday.

After Mark Bronnik opened the scoring after just three minutes, Yeider Zuluaga's free kick found Daniel Ittycheria, who fired in the equalizer four minutes after Tacoma's goal. After Edson Carli scored a penalty, an early second-half goal from Rafael Jauregui and an own goal from Manav Badwal made it 4-1 for Tacoma. Carson Rassak would score a nice insurance goal, but it was overshadowed by Immanuel Mathe's red card, given for DOGSO after he took down a Tacoma player. It was soft, but it was the correct decision by the looks of it.

It will be a bye week for Rich Fagan's side, as they desperately need to regroup, as the season surely looks to be done after the regular season.

They will take on first-placed Austin FC II at Parmer Field next week on Saturday, August 15. Kickoff is set for 5:30 pm PT.

Vancouver Rise

A thrilling defeat at home.

The Vancouver Rise had a game on Wednesday, but it wasn't meant to be as they were defeated by the Montréal Roses by a 4-3 scoreline.

While the defence continues its struggles, it was good to see Latifah Abdu return to the squad with a goal, as she has been missing from the past squads due to presumably injury reasons.

The true effect of that result will depend on tonight's game between the Halifax Tides and Ottawa Rapid, as the Rise will be hoping for a Tides loss or draw to prevent them from steering clear of Vancouver.

For the Rise, they will continue their homestand on Saturday, as they take on a struggling Calgary Wild side at Swangard Stadium, with kickoff set for 4:00 pm PT.

That's it for Vancouver Weekly. A 1-1-2 week isn't great, but it's far from the worst possible outcome.

Three games in Vancouver should be a treat, and I encourage you to attend any of those games if possible!