GANGUE-RUZIC: Despite heartbreaking MLS Cup final loss, breakout 2025 is just the start for the Whitecaps
While they never actually led at any point of the 2025 MLS Cup final, there was a brief moment when the Vancouver Whitecaps felt like they had won the game.
When Emmanuel Sabbi fired a dangerous low shot towards goal in the 62nd minute, time froze for an instant.
Just two minutes after Ali Ahmed had scored an equalizer to make the game 1-1, Sabbi seemed to have the game at his feet, dancing past a couple of defenders before firing a dangerous low shot towards goal.
All of a sudden, the Whitecaps’ wild dreams of lifting an MLS Cup didn’t seem far-fetched, as Sabbi’s strike looked destined to find the bottom corner of the goal, marking the 10th time that he found the back of the net in 2025.
There was just something about his strike that looked right. For those who have watched the sport, it was one of those shots that forces you to rise in anticipation, something that almost 20,000 fans in attendance at BC Place for the Whitecaps’ watch party did.
And as Sabbi’s strike cannoned into the post, those fans were ready to crescendo into a rapture of noise. All that was left was for the ball to roll into the back of the net, and the game was surely over.
Instead, what were supposed to be roars of elation quickly turned into gasps of disbelief, as Sabbi’s shot then inexplicably rolled across the goal line, before hitting the other post and rolling out. Then, for good measure, Sabbi’s attempt to slide in and collect his own rebound caromed off his leg and, in almost comedic fashion, back off the post.
Brian White’s reaction told the whole story. A player who knows how to score - he had a team-leading 24 goals across all competitions this year - was left to instinctively raise his hands to celebrate what his eyes told him was a goal, before clutching his face in shock when the ball somehow stayed out.
Vancouver sports!
— Alexandre Gangué-Ruzic (@AlexGangueRuzic) December 6, 2025
Triple post to stay alive in the Conference semi-finals vs LAFC
Triple post denies victory in the MLS Cup final vs Inter Miami
This one will sting for the Whitecaps. #VWFC
pic.twitter.com/9DyfVniW8A
Little did White and the Whitecaps know that’d be the one and only shot they had at winning this game, too. Literally. Just as they’d benefitted from a ‘triple doink’ just weeks ago against LAFC in the Western Conference semi-finals, it’d be a ‘triple doink’ that would sink their hopes in the MLS Cup final.
Chaos in the final minutes of extra time! 🤯
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) November 23, 2025
Audi MLS Cup Playoffs pic.twitter.com/FESFMO1dSI
By the time Rodrigo De Paul slotted home Inter Miami’s 2-1 goal in the 71st minute, as he got on the end of a great Lionel Messi pass and struck a dagger through the heart of the Whitecaps after a surprise Andrés Cubas mistake in midfield, the Whitecaps hadn’t mustered up any other shots since the Sabbi attempt.
Messi --> De Paul
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) December 6, 2025
That Argentine connection always delivers in the biggest moments. 🇦🇷@InterMiamiCF // MLS Cup pres. by Audi pic.twitter.com/AC90SmP1MF
Given that they’d also failed to generate a shot attempt before Miami took the lead just eight minutes into the game on an Édier Ocampo own goal, that meant that Sabbi’s sequence was the only shot they generated where this game was still tied, as they otherwise got all of their shots in the 70+ minutes that the hosts led. 
Yet, that’s why that Sabbi sequence will live on in the minds of fans for a long time. At that stage of the game, the Whitecaps were flying and had just completely flipped the game on its head with Ahmed’s goal, which was more than deserved for a side that had arguably dominated most of the proceedings by that stage.
Because of that, it felt like if they were to then take the lead, it was hard to see a world where they didn’t win the game, as they were absolutely wearing out a Miami side that was running out of gas and showing their age.
Instead, they handed Miami a lifeline, and for a team with as much quality and experience in their ranks, they were never going to let that opportunity go to waste. This was a Miami team led by Lionel Messi, after all, and he wasn’t going to play a third game against the Whitecaps without leaving a mark, which he did in the form of two assists (his first-ever goal contributions against the Whitecaps, one should remember).
TADEO ALLENDE MAKES IT 3-1!! IT'S OVER!!!@InterMiamiCF // MLS Cup pres. by Audi pic.twitter.com/6MxaR6C2NA
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) December 6, 2025
On a day when his longtime teammates, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, played their last games of professional football, it was always going to be written in the stars for this Miami side to claim their first MLS Cup behind some Messi magic, especially given his history against Vancouver.
🎊 INTER MIAMI LIFT THE TROPHY 🎊@InterMiamiCF // MLS Cup pres. by Audi pic.twitter.com/IvRrsT5L9d
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) December 6, 2025
While that ended up being the case, though, that ignores how close the Whitecaps were to flipping the script, and that’s what will hurt most about this defeat - this was a lot different than the Whitecaps’ experience in the Concacaf Champions Cup final, for example, where they lost 5-0 to Cruz Azul and were never in that game.
This time, they were very much in this match, helping produce one of the more thrilling MLS Cup finals in recent memory - even if the ending wasn’t the one the Whitecaps would’ve wanted.
At the same time, how they played will offer a bit of solace to these Whitecaps as they pick up the pieces and move forward. Ultimately, they’re not the first team to come up against Lionel Messi on this sort of stage and to fall short, but they can at least say that they went out swinging.
“It hurts,” Thomas Müller offered. “It hurts, but in the best way it could hurt.”
In the end, that was the story of their 2025 season, one that absolutely should be remembered as one of MLS’s best, even if these Whitecaps weren’t able to amass the silverware to show for it. In every competition they played, the Whitecaps were always there, finishing as runner-up in the Champions Cup, sitting just three points off the Philadelphia Union in the Supporters’ Shield race, finishing as Canadian Championship winners, and now sitting as runner-up in the MLS Cup playoffs. Not bad for a team that entered the season on sale and with wild rumours of relocation hanging over their heads.
There’s an alternate world where these Whitecaps won an unprecedented quadruple, but instead, they’ll live with that feeling of ‘what if?’ when looking back on the campaign as a whole.
And that’s not a bad thing. For so long, the story of the Whitecaps since they kicked off in MLS back in 2011 has mostly been pretty forgettable, as they never even really came close to sniffing what they accomplished this year, other than their success in the Canadian Championship (they had won three of those in a row heading into this year). Even at their best, they were a good team that flirted with being a great one, but never took that step towards elevating themselves to that elite level, often falling short in the biggest of games.
This year, though, they took that leap and won a lot of games that they would’ve only dreamed of winning in the past. Along the way, they reignited the fire in a city for which a passion for this sport burns deep, evoking the sort of support that hadn’t been there for decades, which couldn’t come at a better time given their off-field situation.
Because of that, it’s also hard to imagine this being it for this Whitecaps squad, either. While this Inter Miami match was the last time we’ll see this squad together - such is the reality of professional sports - they’ve set a foundation for a world where this sort of season is no longer seen as a pipe dream.
They might be in tough to reach three finals next year, for example, but there’s no reason why they can’t get their hands on one of the Champions Cup, Supporters’ Shield or MLS Cup trophies they came so close to getting this year, either.
When seeing the way they played in this last final, going toe-to-toe with an all-time great MLS side, that foundation is clear as day.
WE. ARE. LEVEL.
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) December 6, 2025
Ali Ahmed scores and it's tied. // MLS Cup pres. by Audi pic.twitter.com/Auh3sq7Dd5
Now, the big key is for the Whitecaps to build on this. As some will tell you, sometimes you need an experience like this to learn and grow from it, and perhaps this defeat could power the Whitecaps to rise above the adversity the next time the opportunity comes around.
Plus, things still look very good for this team going forward. This was head coach Jesper Sørensen’s first season in MLS, Thomas Müller only joined the club in August, most of the team are still on the right side of 30, and a good chunk of the squad is locked down for next year.
There will be some tough decisions to make in the offseason, as it’s hard to see Ali Ahmed or Sebastian Berhalter not leaving for Europe after excellent seasons, while Yohei Takaoka is out of contract and will certainly attract suitors, but that’s what happens when you have a season like this.
But it’s not as if the Whitecaps have proven to be incapable of anticipating changes like this, either.
This is the team that sold Pedro Vite this summer, in a move that many thought might derail their positive momentum, and they responded to that criticism by bringing in Müller and a young player that many are very bullish on in Kenji Cabrera. And you can’t forget the surprise Stuart Armstrong sale before the start of the season, either.
Therefore, no matter if Ahmed or Berhalter depart, or if there’s another player that ends up leaving after receiving an offer too good to refuse, the Whitecaps are set up to replace them, both internally and externally, thanks to the work they’ve done to improve their recruitment and youth development over recent years.
Yet, as a final parting thought from this final, that’s why there’s something that feels different about this loss. You could feel it when leaving BC Place, as fans seemed optimistic for the future of these Whitecaps, even if understandably heartbroken.
This isn’t a side that relied upon a flash in the pan moment to get here. Or one built on a foundation that could fall apart in an instant.
What a beautiful ride so far with my team and the @WhitecapsFC family ❤️⚽️👍🏼#comebackstronger #vwfc #mls #esmuellert #mlscup #tm13 #thankfulforyoursupport pic.twitter.com/e5dAcOzYH1
— Thomas Müller (@esmuellert_) December 7, 2025
These Whitecaps have been methodically constructed over the last few years, as they’ve navigated some wild ups and downs to get to where they are, so it’s hard to imagine them fading away just because they lost a final.
So while the Whitecaps are still chasing their next 1979 Soccer Bowl moment, they’ll feel it’s coming, and perhaps soon.
Anyways, the good news is that they won’t have long to wait for their next opportunity to get going - the next Concacaf Champions Cup campaign kicks off in February, after all, and the Whitecaps have some unfinished business there to deal with.
Until then, the noise will continue to swirl around the team as they navigate a tricky situation off the pitch, but as they continue to battle with a complicated lease situation at BC Place and the challenge of potentially building a new stadium, they’ll know they’ve got a good thing going on the pitch, as they showed in the final.
“We are a strong group,” Sørensen said. “Obviously, we will cry, but I think what is important is that it is proud tears. The tears have to be proud, because I know that we have excited (fans), we have created something around us that people want to see and watch.”
“I think the behaviour of our players throughout the season, both on and off the pitch, has been masterful, and that’s important. You can be a champion on the pitch, but you also have to be a champion outside the pitch.”
“I think this group, with their discipline, with their team-first mentality and with everything they’ve done throughout the season, it’s been a joy to be part of and to be their coach.”
