After Vancouver's World Cup moment, focus turns to Whitecaps' future

VANCOUVER, July 8 : After Vancouver's final World Cup match at a packed BC Place on Tuesday capped weeks of sold-out crowds and city-wide soccer fever, attention is turning to whether the showpiece tournament can help secure the long-term future of the Vancouver Whitecaps.

The Major League Soccer club face an uncertain future as ownership seeks a buyer amid longstanding concerns over revenue and the team's tenancy at provincially owned BC Place. In April, a U.S.-based group formally expressed interest in relocating the franchise to Las Vegas.

Yet for supporters fighting to keep the Whitecaps in Vancouver, the World Cup has provided new evidence of the city's appetite for elite soccer.

"A team should never be moved anyway, but especially from a city that's hosting a World Cup," Vancouver Southsiders President and Secretary Ciaran Nicoll told Reuters.

Founded in 1999, the Vancouver Southsiders are the club's oldest and largest supporters' group, with around 600 paid members this year. The group has spearheaded the #SaveTheCaps campaign through marches and community outreach.

"If anybody, like a prospective buyer, is looking at buying a team and keeping them here, just look at the buzz you're able to generate," Nicoll said.

"The last couple of years have shown that we're packed at BC Place on numerous occasions - top five in the league for attendance consistently. There's such an international population that is really into soccer in the city and it really has shown during the World Cup.

"You can see just how untapped this market still is in terms of inviting these people to come and experience a Whitecaps game."

BIGGEST STAGE

For Darcie Kerr, co-founder of supporters' group The Sisters, the prospect of losing the Whitecaps after