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Whitecaps to host playoff match in Vancouver for first time in six years

Adam Laskaris
Adam Laskaris
|
Oct 8 2023, 2:13 pm
Whitecaps to host playoff match in Vancouver for first time in six years
Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

The Vancouver Whitecaps will be playing in front of their home crowd this postseason.

For the first time in six years, the Whitecaps will have a home playoff date at BC Place.

Having already qualified for the postseason earlier in the week for the sixth time since they’ve joined MLS, Vancouver got more good news on Saturday when they mathematically guaranteed at least one home playoff date for the 2023 postseason. The Whitecaps clinched the home playoff match by virtue of a 0-0 tie in a Saturday night road game against the Seattle Sounders.

Vancouver hasn’t hosted an MLS playoff game since the first leg of the Western Conference semifinals on October 29, 2017, when they drew 0-0 against the Sounders before falling 2-0 in Seattle on the return leg.

Currently sitting in fifth place in the MLS Western Conference with one game remaining in their schedule, Vancouver has secured a spot in at least the Round 1 best-of-three series, a new feature in the league’s revamped playoff format. In the format, the higher of the two seeds hosts the first game and a possible winner-take-all third game, while the lower seed hosts the second game in the series.

With just one game remaining in the regular season (October 21 at home to LAFC), the Whitecaps could still finish as high as third or as low as sixth in the West.

Taking inspiration from leagues like MLB, NFL, NHL, and NBA, MLS expanded their playoff field to 18 teams this season, with the eighth and nine seeds in each conference starting things off with a single-elimination wild card match and the winner advancing through to Round 1.

Round 1 will take place from October 28 through November 12. Fans interested in getting tickets for Vancouver’s playoff contests are able to sign up through the team’s ticket presale, which will notify those interested via text or email with more information once tickets are available for purchase.

Adam LaskarisAdam Laskaris
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