Vancouver Whitecaps lose one of their best players to Messi’s Inter Miami
The Vancouver Whitecaps have lost one of their best players as Fafà Picault has signed a contract to play with Inter Miami for the 2025 MLS season.
Following a season where the 33-year-old winger put up nine goals and five assists through 29 games with the Whitecaps, Ficault will now team up with Lionel Messi next season on the East Coast.
Ficault was among Vancouver’s best players last season, finishing third in goals behind only Ryan Gauld and Brian White. He was also third in total minutes played on the Whitecaps last season.
MLS insider Tom Bogert reported the transaction on social media earlier today.
Sources: Inter Miami sign free agent winger Fafa Picault.
Picault, 33, had 9g/5a in 1,675 mins for Vancouver last season.
Family reasons a big driving factor for Picault. There were advanced talks with Austin, but Picault is off to Miami. pic.twitter.com/g2B2yVpreq
— Tom Bogert (@tombogert) December 29, 2024
This ends weeks of speculation that had linked Picault to potentially signing with Austin FC. The Texas club was seen as the favourite to land Picault in free agency and Miami apparently won out on the sweepstakes due to ‘family reasons’ for the veteran MLS winger.
This is hardly the first time that Picault has changed MLS teams throughout his career. He is a veteran of 220 MLS appearances, having gotten his start in the league back in 2017 with the Philadelphia Union. He has since played with FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo FC, and Nashville SC before he joined the Whitecaps for the 2024 season.
Though he was born in New York City and has a previous history of playing for the American National Team, he has most recently represented Haiti on the international stage as his parents are Haitian immigrants.
There will be no reunion match between Picault and the Whitecaps next season as Miami is not scheduled to play any regular season games with Vancouver.