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In comes Canada Soccer, out go the Vancouver Whitecaps.
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After this week’s news that the University of B.C. will serve as home base for Canada during the World Cup, Postmedia has confirmed the Vancouver Whitecaps will be taking over training facilities normally used by St. George’s School, a tony private school on Vancouver’s west side.
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The Whitecaps, as well as the Rise and the Next Pro squad, are being forced out of the National Soccer Development Centre at UBC, the training facility they’ve occupied since 2017 by the World Cup. Both the Next Pro team, otherwise known as Whitecaps 2, and the Rise will continue to play over the next two months; the Whitecaps themselves are on hiatus from league action while the World Cup is on but will return to training in the latter half of June.
The whole operation is moving to two different St. George’s facilities, a school source confirmed: into the space at Thunderbird Arena normally used by the school’s hockey academy — which was formerly used by the Whitecaps — and also to the school itself.
The teams will train at the school’s grass fields and will also make use of the school’s fitness facilities while also converting a number of classrooms into office space. The team and players will also have access to the school’s kitchens and dining areas.
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The Thunderbird Arena spaces will also be converted into changing rooms, treatment spaces and office space as well.
With the school year winding down — and the hockey team off the ice at UBC — accommodating the Whitecaps is apparently very manageable for St. George’s. The school has hosted a number of top flight international teams before: when Wrexham played their pre-season friendly in Vancouver in 2024, they were based at Saints; the school has also been a regular training venue for teams playing in the Canada Sevens.
At the NSDC, the Canadians will take over all of the Whitecaps’ spaces, including the training rooms, changing areas and dining halls.
Canada’s first group stage game is in Toronto on June 12 vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina (the Bosnians will be based in Utah at Real Salt Lake’s facilities). Canada’s second (June 18 vs. Qatar) and third (June 24 vs. Switzerland) will both be back in Vancouver.
The Canadians will be staying at the Hilton Bayshore downtown while in Vancouver but will travel by coach out to training and to B.C. Place for their two matches. If Canada wins group B, they’ll play at B.C. Place for a round of 32 match on July 2; if they win that match they’ll stay in Vancouver for their round of 16 match on July 2.
If Canada finishes second in the group, they’ll play in Los Angeles for the round of 32; win that game and they’re on to Houston. If the Canadians finish third and are one of the eight best-placed of the 12 third-placed teams, they’ll play their round of 32 match either in Massachusetts or the Bay Area.
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