Owners of the Vancouver Whitecaps announce plans to sell the MLS team
Vancouver Whitecaps players are silhouetted as smoke from pyrotechnics hangs in the air before Game 2 against Los Angeles FC in the first round of the MLS Cup soccer playoffs in Vancouver, British Columbia, Nov. 3, 2024. Credit: AP/Darryl Dyck
The Vancouver Whitecaps are up for sale, the Major League Soccer team's current ownership group announced Friday.
In a release issued by the club, the group said “it is the right time for an owner with the platform, resources and ambition to enhance the club’s ability to compete at the highest levels of MLS and steward the club in realizing its significant potential.” The group hired Goldman Sachs to help sell the team and guide the transition.
Greg Kerfoot has been owner of the club since 2002, when it was part of the North American Soccer League. Steve Luczo, Jeff Mallett and former NBA star Steve Nash joined Kerfoot in 2008, and the Whitecaps became part of MLS in 2011.
The Whitecaps went 13-13-8 during the 2024 regular season before downing the Portland Timbers in a wildcard game. After Vancouver fell to LAFC in the first round of the playoffs, coach Vanni Sartini was fired.
“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.”
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