Vancouver Whitecaps defeat Toronto FC, capture Canadian title

Vancouver Whitecaps FC won the club’s fourth Canadian Championship title after beating Toronto FC on penalties Wednesday night.

The match required penalties after the Canadian rivals remained deadlocked at 0-0 through 90 minutes, where the Whitecaps kept their cool, converting four of five attempts from the spot.

Vancouver’s 22-year-old Canadian goalkeeper Isaac Boehmer was the star of the night.

Despite Toronto being the better team through the 90 minutes of play, outshooting the ‘Caps by more than double and holding 65 per cent of the possession, Boehmer stood tall and kept his team in the game.

The Penticton, B.C., native made seven saves in regular time, most notably denying Toronto star Federico Bernardeschi from the spot in the 38th minute.

He followed that up with another penalty stop in the shootout, diving to his right to stone Kosi Thompson in the third round of spot kicks, which proved to be the pivotal moment in the end.

Usually the backup in Major League Soccer (MLS) play, Boehmer started all five matches for Vancouver during their Canadian Championship run, earning three clean sheets along the way, including in the final.

These performances were good enough for Boehmer to rake in the hardware, winning the George Gross award as tournament MVP, as well as the Best Young Canadian Player award.

Vancouver head coach Vanni Sartini was full of praise for his goalkeeper after the game, going as far to put Canada men’s national team head coach Jesse Marsch on alert.

“I hope that Jesse was watching the game, because I don’t think there’s many Canadian goalkeepers better than him,” Sartini told reporters in his post-match press conference. 

The win gives Vancouver its third consecutive Canadian Championship triumph, equalling a record set by TFC between 2016 and 2018.

Toronto head coach John Herdman was disappointed in the result after his team’s strong performance, but credited the Whitecaps’ ability to hold on.

“Proud of the lads, but at the same time just gutted, absolutely gutted,” Herdman said post-game. “I thought the trophy was close to Toronto tonight.

“Fair play to Vancouver, I thought they were very resilient, young Boehmer did a hell of a job tonight, took his moment,” the TFC manager said. 

Meanwhile, Whitecaps fan Adam Warren is still buzzing about the result, and hoping his team can continue its success in domestic competition in future years.

“Three in a row is really historic and obviously they have a chance to get four and continue to show they really are the kings of the north,” Warren said.

In addition to the trophy, Vancouver also received a spot in the 2025 CONCACAF Champions Cup, where they’ll be able to test themselves against the best teams across North America.