Why MLS may move Whitecaps to Las Vegas despite

LAS VEGAS — Major League Soccer may be the next skilled sports activities league to relocate a staff to Las Vegas, with an investment group led by Grant Gustavson in search of to buy the financially troubled Vancouver Whitecaps and move them to a new stadium close to the Las Vegas Strip.

Gustavson, 30, a Las Vegas resident and USC graduate with deep ties to the college’s athletic program, last week submitted a formal offer to the league to buy the staff, which has been up for sale for 16 months. But his plans have met with vital opposition in Vancouver, the staff’s home since 1974 when it performed in the North American Soccer League.

“We are a world-class football town,” David Eby, the premier of British Columbia, said in a video posted on social media. “Losing the Whitecaps is not an option.”

However, it’s arduous to see how the staff, an MLS Cup finalist a 12 months in the past and the second-best membership in MLS again this season, can afford to keep in Canada under the current circumstances. The Whitecaps have reportedly misplaced more than $300 million since becoming a member of MLS 15 years in the past and they’re forecast to lose as a lot as $45 million this season.

Additionally, they may have no place to play next season since their lease at BC Place, a 54,000-seat soccer stadium, expires at the end of the 12 months.

The staff’s current possession group is led by Greg Kerfoot, a Vancouver-based software program billionaire who purchased the staff in 2002, 9 years before the Whitecaps joined MLS. Kerfoot has expressed a need to keep the staff in Vancouver, but of the 40 or so potential suitors who have expressed curiosity in shopping for the membership, most have turned away after taking a look at the staff’s funds.

“Everybody’s like ‘this is a bad business model. We’re not interested’,” said a individual with information of the talks who shouldn’t be approved to talk about them publicly. “If somebody can find that white knight to keep the team in Vancouver, it’ll be great. But the sharks are circling when it comes to the other markets, and right now, Vegas is the one that submitted a formal proposal.”

The stadium deal in Vancouver is one of the most important obstacles in attempting to keep the staff there. Under the Whitecaps’ current settlement with BC Place, which is owned by the BC Pavilion Corp., a Crown company of the province, the staff has restricted access to income streams such as naming rights, receives just 12.5% of food and beverage income, and will get nothing from parking.

It doesn’t have precedence on scheduling either, which proved embarrassing in 2024 when the staff had to move a home playoff recreation to Portland, Ore., because a motocross event was going down at the stadium.

Efforts by the Whitecaps to construct a soccer-specific stadium of their own have been stymied by high land prices and a lack of public funding. MLS is in search of a formal stadium answer by end of the 12 months as it considers Gustavson’s offer.

“Major League Soccer remains focused on working with the Whitecaps and local stakeholders to determine whether a sustainable long-term path for the club can be achieved,” league spokesperson Dan Courtemanche said. “The Whitecaps’ ownership group has played a significant role in growing the game in Vancouver and across Canada. However, stadium economics, scheduling restrictions, and a lack of government and corporate support have created ongoing structural challenges that make it difficult to establish a viable path forward for the club.”

MLS would favor the staff stay in Vancouver and commissioner Don Garber has spoken with Eby, Vancouver mayor Ken Sim and other authorities officers in the search for a answer. One purpose for that is the league is reportedly contemplating increasing to 32 groups following the World Cup, so retaining the Whitecaps in Vancouver would make Gustavson and Las Vegas prime candidates for an enlargement franchise.

A press release from Gustavson’s publicist touted Las Vegas, its growing base of soccer followers and the privately financed nature of the investment model, but it notably didn’t identify the Whitecaps, suggesting the group could be open to an enlargement staff.

”We have a accountability to make sure the long-term health of the league and its golf equipment and we are going to consider all choices, including curiosity that has been expressed in the membership from other markets and investor teams,” Courtemanche said.

Fans cheer during the Whitecaps match against the Rapids at BC Place on April 25 in Vancouver, British Columbia.

(Elizabeth Ruiz Ruiz / Getty Images)

The Whitecaps aren’t the only top MLS staff up for sale — nor the only one whose future revolves around Las Vegas. The San José Earthquakes, who have the league’s best document, have been in search of a purchaser since last spring. San Francisco businessman John Fisher, who has owned the soccer staff since 2007, also owns baseball’s Athletics, that are scheduled to start play in Las Vegas in 2028. Selling the Quakes, that are valued at about $600 million, will help Fisher finance the $1.7-billion ballpark he’s building on the Las Vegas Strip.

The Quakes are unlikely to be bought before the Whitecaps’ future is decided. But a source with information of the negotiations involving both groups, who shouldn’t be permitted to talk about the main points publicly, said the staff is anticipated to stay in San José.

“Somebody is going to buy the team, and they’re gonna keep the team there,” the individual said. “Versus Vancouver [where] somebody’s gonna buy the team, and it’s a little up in the air.”

Since 2008 the WNBA and NFL have both seen groups relocate to Las Vegas while the Athletics left Oakland before last season and are taking part in in Sacramento while their new stadium in Las Vegas is being constructed.