Aftn Soccer Show (vancouver Whitecaps/mls)

We’re back with another packed show of Canadian soccer chat for what was a veritable feast of footballing action across the country, as we talk MLS, CPL, League1 BC, and football books in this episode with lots of great chat, interviews, and audio. The Whitecaps extended their unbeaten league run with a goalless draw against Colorado on Saturday. We pick over the bones of that one and dissect the positives and negatives around the team right now. They've turned it around defensively, but can they get the goals flowing or is further help required? Plus we look at some other talking points around MLS. Our feature interview is with author Farhan Devji whose biography of Canadian superstar Alphonso Davies came out today. We chat to Farhan about Phonzie's rise, his early life in Africa, his time at the Whitecaps, the move to Bayern Munich, and more. Plus we round up the action across the opening weekend in League1 BC, hear from TSS Rovers head coaches Darren Russcher and Chelsey Hannesson, chat CPL, hear from V

We’re back with another packed show of Canadian soccer chat for what was a veritable feast of footballing action across the country, as we talk MLS, MLS Next Pro, Canadian Championship, CPL, and League1 in this episode with lots of great chat, interviews, and audio. It's been a week for the history books as we delve into TSS Rovers fantastic win over Valour FC in the Canadian Championship and chat with head coach Will Cromack about the game, the next round, and what's next the club, the players, and himself. We also round up the rest of the action from the competition and hear from Pacific FC head coach James Merriman about facing the Rovers next and from Valour's Phil Dos Santos about his team's now infamous loss. Our other feature interview this week is with League1 Canada commissioner Dino Rossi as we chat about the growth of the league across Canada, future expansions, the importance of the level to the game here in Canada, and more. We also look at another historic game, Vancouver FC's first ever goal

We’re back with another packed show of Canadian football chat for what was and is a bumper week of soccer action across the country. We're talking Major League Soccer, Canadian Premier League, and Canadian Championship primarily in this episode and we kick things off with a look around the opening weekend's action across the CPL, with a particular focus on the first ever derby between Pacific FC and Vancouver FC. Zach shares his experiences, both good and bad, from the match and it's safe to say a tasty rivalry was born. Our feature interview this episode is with CPL Commissioner Mark Noonan. We look at the direction he hopes to take the league under his helm as we talk expansion, creating a Division 2 set up, the role League1 plays in this growth, getting more eyeballs on the league, creating a women's league, and more. Turning our attention to MLS, we look at Vancouver Whitecaps' goalless draw in Austin, a match that saw them increase their unbeaten run to six games and record three straight clean sheets

We’re back with another packed show of Canadian football chat and this episode is a bumper three hour special dedicated to the Canadian Premier League, which is set to kick off its 5th season. With one team folding and one new team joining the league, we cast our eyes over all eight sides, looking at their offseason moves, and what 2023 may hold in store for them. We particularly delve into newboys Vancouver FC and chat with goalkeeper Callum Irving about the season ahead and coming home to play his football again. We also have an in-depth chat with Valour FC head coach Philip Dos Santos about his time in charge in Winnipeg so far, what he's expecting from his side this year, rebuilding the team with a two year plan, and the difficulties of recruitment. Plus we look ahead to next week's big Canadian Championship clash with TSS Rovers. Here’s the rundown for the main segments from the episode: 01.20: Intro and introducing Felipe 03.25: The CPL returns for Year 5 with new playoff format 19.18: Vancouver FC

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat. It's been a week of highs and lows for the Whitecaps. The latter came midweek with a heavy 3-0 loss to LAFC in CONCACAF Champions League action, but they got back in the saddle to beat Portland Timbers 1-0 on Saturday night to make it back-to-back home league wins and extend their unbeaten run in MLS to five matches. We pick over the bones of both matches and ponder how the 'Caps should approach Tuesday's CCL second leg. We also chat with LAFC's Giorgio Chiellini about his CCL experience and nearly coming to Vancouver as a player. Can we ever attract players of that quality here? Plus we round up the action in an interesting and controversial weekend of action in the MLS West. We've also got two feature interviews with Whitecaps young guns for you this week as we chat with Ali Ahmed about his transition to the first team, his excellent performance against Montreal, taking the next step, and fasting

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat. What a fantastic weekend of football it has been. We've seen 19 goals in three BC Provincial Cup games, WFC2 won a penalty shootout, and best of all, Vancouver Whitecaps put up a five goal performance as they took apart a dreadful looking CF Montreal side. Saturday's 5-0 win over their Canadian rivals was just what the doctor ordered to kickstart the 'Caps MLS season and has them fired up and full of confidence now for the month ahead. We pick over the bones of the match, hear from head coach Vanni Sartini and look at the fantastic contributions from the young guns Simon Becher and Ali Ahmed. Both Becher and Ahmed stood out for WFC2 last season before making the jump to the first team and will be an inspiration to the guys on that team this year. WFC2 had a new gaffer at the helm this year, with Ricardo Clark taking charge and our feature interview this episode is with Rico as we chat about his tran

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat, and not only that, it's our three hour 10th anniversary special! Ten years to the day that episode 1 dropped, we're back with number 555. Once again we're covering a lot of bases in the four parts of the show. If you want to skip the somewhat self indulgent look back at the last ten years of the podcast in the first part and just get into the football chat, just skip ahead to the 45.20 mark where we delve into the Whitecaps latest match, a 1-1 draw in Minnesota. We pick over the bones of that one, look at the concerning issues surrounding the 'Caps as they look for their first win of the season, and delve into how crucial April is for Vanni Sartini and the team. Plus we look around the rest of the weekend's action in the MLS West. Our feature interview this episode is with Whitecaps General Manager and Sporting Director Axel Schuster. In a 35 minute chat, we talk to Axel about the 'Caps' start to th

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat. We're covering a lot of bases in this show, both on the domestic and international stage. The Whitecaps were in action in both and we look back at their midweek loss in Honduras that saw them advance in the Champions League, their draw at the LA Galaxy that still sees them searching for their first MLS win of the season, we hear from Vanni Sartini on trying to fix the team's defensive frailties, and we look at the injury to new DP striker Sergio Cordova. We also look around the rest of the action last weekend in MLS, including the late drama and controversy in Montreal, plus we talk Canadian national teams, and ponder what the new format for World Cup 2026 might mean for Canada and Vancouver in terms of hosting extra games. Here’s the rundown for the main segments from the episode: 01.35: Intro 05.22: Whitecaps move on in Champions League despite dire defending 25.40: Whitecaps still looking for fi

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat. What a busy week it's been. The Whitecaps were in action twice, in two different competitions, and we pick over the bones of both matches - against Real Espana in CONCACAF Champions League action and FC Dallas in MLS. There were highs, there were lows, there were continued frustrations, and we still don't really know how good this Whitecaps team are or aren't this year. Our feature interview this episode is with Whitecaps captain and playmaker Ryan Gauld. We chat to Ryan about preseason preparedness, the start to the season for both the team and himself, and the exciting battles ahead in four competitions for the team this year. All of that and there's still time for a one hour discussion about the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage in Ottawa on Thursday that saw four Canadian women's national team players give testimony against Canada Soccer and the mess the game is in here. A meeting that was

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat. Another week, another Whitecaps halftime lead given up, another loss. After all the talk about the need to get off to a fast start, it's all gone a bit wrong for the 'Caps to start the new MLS season. There's been two good halves of football and two horrible ones. Which showed the real Whitecaps? Can they turn things around quickly with two big games coming up this week and how much pressure is Vanni under after these two losses? We pick over the bones of all of that, talk to Vanni about the form of Brian White and zonal marking and take a deep dive in the Whitecaps' CONCACAF Champions League opponents Real Espana. Plus we look around the action in week 2 of MLS and Football Violence Awareness Month returns in Wavelength! 01.35: Intro - it's our anniversary month! 03.25: Earthquakes v Whitecaps analysis 36.30: Brian White's form and the striker situation 40.20: Vanni and Michael disagree on zonal ma

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat and we're joined by Harjeet Johal again this week to talk about it all. It's big breaking news to kick things off as we look at the resignation of Nick Bontis as Canada Soccer President as the pressure mounted from the provincial associations, media, players, and fans. Where does this leave the CSA now and what does the future hold in store? Who will replace him, is it time for a new approach by appointing a former national team player, and can they be a unifying figure? We entered the new MLS season full of confidence, hope, and expectations for the Whitecaps, and it only took 90 minutes of football to have us reconsidering all of that after a 2-1 home loss to RSL in the season opener! It wasn't a great start to the season and we pick over the bones of the match - the good, the bad, and the ugly, the latter of which just sees us screaming "zonal marking, aaarrrggghhhh". Plus we see who knows the most

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat. It's the second part of our 2023 MLS season preview. We'll take a look around the Western Conference and give some predictions for both the Whitecaps and the rest. Plus we'll look at the official announcement of the the 'Caps' new DP striker Sergio Cordova, hear some thoughts about him from Vanni Sartini and Axel Schuster, and we pay tribute to John Motson in this episode's Wavelength. Here's the rundown for the main segments from the episode: 01.25: Intro 03.30: Cordova is finally an official Whitecap 12.50: Whitecaps season predictions 19.45: MLS 2023 season predictions 57.10: Wavelength - John Motson - FIFA 97 track

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat. The new MLS season is just days away. Excited yet? Well you should be because this feels like it could be a good year for the Whitecaps. We look at how ready the team feels heading into it's season opener at home to RSL and chat with head coach Vanni Sartini and Sporting Director Axel Schuster to gauge how they're feeling ahead of the new campaign. Their final two preseason signings have finally been announced and we hear from new Japanese goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka about why he's chosen to make the move to MLS, why Vancouver is a great landing spot for him, and how excited he is to get this new chapter of his career underway. We also hear from Axel Schuster about why they were so keen to bring the J1 champion to the Whitecaps. All of this plus we look at the Whitecaps new jersey and the announcement of a new shirt sponsor, take a look at the best and worst of the 2023 jerseys around MLS, and ponder w

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat. We are spreading the love this Valentine's week and we're joined by Harjeet Johal to help us do it. The big talking point in Canadian soccer this past weekend has been the continuing battle between the women's national team and Canada Soccer. The players' fight for equality and better working conditions has turned quite ugly. We delve into the raft of statements that have been coming out from both sides and try and make what we can from what has become a giant mess and an embarrassment for the governing body. On the domestic front, the Whitecaps have three more preseason matches under their belt down in Palm Springs and are still unbeaten. We delve into those and the other Whitecaps news of the week from new signings still not yet announced to the appointment of Ricardo Clark as new WFC2 head coach. Plus we chat to head coach Vanni Sartini about the form of Cristian Dajome and what he would ideally l

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Major League Soccer, and Canadian football chat and this episode is part of the CiTR Radio Fundrive week. After the lack of news last week, there's a lot to chat about in Whitecapsland this time around as the team continue their preseason prep down in Palm Springs, California. They've got two more games under their belts and there's two new players set to join them very soon - striker Sergio Cordova and goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka. We chat about all of that and hear the thoughts of how things are looking as the new season approaches from 'Caps head coach Vanni Sartini. We've two feature interviews for you this episode with two Whitecaps Canadians. We kick things off with a in-depth chat with Ryan Raposo. About to enter his fourth season with the team, Ryan is now one of the veterans on the side, despite his young age. We chat with him about his MLS journey so far, his standout 2022, and what lies in store for him in the season to come. We also chat wi

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps, Canadian, and North American football chat! It's been pretty quiet on the western front when it comes to the Whitecaps (should we be concerned yet?), but there's been other stuff to talk about to make up for it, a lot of which we'll discuss in this episode. The draw for the 2023 Canadian Championship has been made, we delve into that and look at the paths ahead for the three BC sides, one of those being TSS Rovers. We sit down for a chat with TSS head honcho Colin Elmes about the club's stellar 2022 on and off the pitch, what lies ahead in 2023, and the team's first ever shot at the Voyageurs Cup. We also sit down for an in-depth chat with League1 BC General Manager Sian Bagshawe about the league's successful inaugural season, expansion, the upcoming season, and future plans. Plus there's still time to chat about the new strategic partnership between CONCACAF and CONMABOL, we wrap up our musical tribute to Terry Hall, and take another trip in the

We’re back with another packed show of Vancouver Whitecaps and Major League Soccer chat! The Whitecaps preseason is in full flow and the Spanish part of it has now wrapped up with a couple of games under their belt against good quality European opposition. We look at the two matches and performances, talk about the continuing transfer rumours, and chat with head coach Vanni Sartini about the team's time in Spain, the Tai Baribo and Salif Sane transfer rumours, and the 'Caps Leagues Cup draw. We have two feature interviews for you this episode. First up is 2022 draft pick Simon Becher, who recently signed his first MLS deal with the club. We chat about his year with WFC2, his goalscoring MLS debut, signing his first pro deal, and his hopes for the season ahead. We also chat with this year's first round draft pick J.C. Ngando about his journey to Vancouver and hear from the Whitecaps' Julian Gressel about his US national team call-up. All of this plus Fatt Father features in this episode's Wavelength, we con

We're back with another packed episode of the AFTN Soccer Show as we chat Vancouver Whitecaps, Vancouver FC, Major League Soccer, and the Canadian Premier League. The Whitecaps are in Spain and getting set for the first of what is now going to be two preseason matches in Espana against European opposition. We look ahead to those games and chat about the new man in camp, Senegal international centre back, Salif Sane. Is there a real chance he could sign or is this just a win-win situation for both club and player? Would he need to be a DP if he did? And what about those injury concerns? We also look at some of the news coming out of Montreal as Kei Kamara looks to move on and they look to move on Kamal Miller. Could either or both end up in Vancouver? One man that was in Vancouver this past week was MLS Commissioner Don Garber. But why?! Turning our attention to the Canadian Premier league, we bring you a quick 2022 season in review, as we sum up each club's year in one to three words, look at the demise of

The boys are back in town! Vancouver Whitecaps 2023 preseason camp is underway and we've got your covered with all the news, rumours, and chat on this episode of the AFTN Soccer Show. We hear from head coach Vanni Sartini as he talks about the preseason ahead and getting the team ready for the tough season to come, where the 'Caps will be fighting on four fronts. How many more players does he see coming, what will he do with the ones he has, where does new signing Mathias Laborda fit in, can the club avoid the Champions League hangover that many others suffer? We delve into all of that and more, including the search for a new shirt sponsor, plus we bring you two interviews with two of the new Canadian faces in the squad - defender Karifa Yao and forward Levonte Johnson. We chat about their journey to Vancouver, their careers so far, and their hopes for the season to come. Plus we find out the burning question - do either of them fancy a chocolate digestive? Plus we talk about the rise of Wrexham FC and is

Happy New Year everybody! The AFTN Soccer Show is back with our first show of 2023, so there's no better time to kick off our year end reviews and year to come previews, starting with a Vancouver Whitecaps focused show. 2022 was certainly a bit of a mixed bag for the Whitecaps both on and off the pitch. It felt in many ways a season of regression. Can they advance again in 2023 and can they take the great leap forward that they really need to do after 12 fairly mediocre MLS seasons to date? We look at all the highs and all the lows and ponder what may be in store for them this year as they fight for glory in MLS, the Canadian Championship, the CONCACAF Champions League, and the new Leagues Cup. With the team back in training at the end of this week, we take a look at the new season that's coming up fast, delve into the schedule, the transfer rumours, and chat about the players selected in last month's MLS SuperDraft, getting some thoughts from head coach Vanni Sartini and Sporting Director Axel Schuster alo