Las Vegas discussed as potential relocation option for MLS’ Vancouver Whitecaps

Las Vegas could again be in line to land a Major League Soccer team, this time via relocation.

Relocating the Vancouver Whitecaps franchise to Las Vegas was the top option discussed during a special committee meeting of team owners recently, a person with knowledge of the situation said Monday.

When reached for comment, MLS spokesman Dan Courtemanche confirmed that relocation of the Whitecaps was being considered, but attempting to keep the team in its current city was top of mind.

“The Whitecaps’ ownership group has played a significant role in growing the game in Vancouver and across Canada,” MLS spokesman Courtemanche said in an email. “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 remains focused on supporting Vancouver in identifying a sustainable long-term solution, and the league’s preference is to find a way that allows the Whitecaps to continue to play in Vancouver, Courtemanche said.

“At the same time, we have a responsibility to ensure the long-term health of the league and its clubs, and we will evaluate all options, including interest that has been expressed in the club from other markets and investor groups,” Courtemanche said.

MLS officials have had dialogue with a group interested in bringing the Vancouver team to Las Vegas, according to person with knowledge of the situation, who is not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

The Whitecaps are looking to land a new stadium in the Vancouver area as their lease at BC Place expires this year. But negotiations have dragged on for 16 months and other alternatives are being reviewed, the source said.

The Whitecaps are currently in second place in the Western Conference with an 8-1-0 record. The team entered the league in 2011 as an expansion team and advanced to the MLS Cup for the first time last season, losing to the Inter Miami CF 3-1.

They are led by former German league star Thomas Muller, who has four goals this season.

An MLS team has not relocated since 2005, when the San Jose franchise moved to Houston and became the Dynamo. San Jose was soon given an expansion franchise, which is owned by Athletics owner John Fisher. Last year, the Earthquakes announced that the Fisher-led ownership group announced the start of a process to sell a controlling interest in the club.

Las Vegas was on the cusp of landing an expansion MLS team in 2022 when billionaires Wes Edens and billionaire Naseef Sawiris entered into an exclusive negotiating agreement with MLS to bring the 30th team to Southern Nevada.

However, MLS changed course and awarded the team to San Diego, which is in its second season.

Edens is part owner of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks and co-CEO of Fortress Investment Group, which also, through an affiliate, owns high-speed passenger rail line Brightline. Brightline West has been planning the Las Vegas-to-Southern California high-speed passenger rail project.

Brightline West is working to build its Southern Nevada station on land off Las Vegas Boulevard and Blue Diamond Road. In 2021, Golden Knights owner Bill Foley said Edens’ group was considering constructing an MLS stadium next to the planned rail station. Edens or Sawiris never confirmed those plans.

Las Vegas has landed three other professional teams via relocation with the WNBA’s Aces in 2018, the NFL’s Raiders in 2020 and the MLB’s Athletics set to begin playing in Southern Nevada in 2028.