The Third Sub Episode 242: Whitecaps make history and reach CCC final while continuing strong MLS start

The Third Sub

Welcome back to another episode of the Third Sub Podcast!

In this episode, Alex and Sam are back, as usual, this time to chat Vancouver Whitecaps, Vancouver Rise, Vancouver FC and Pacific FC.

To begin, they dive into the latest out of the Whitecaps, who have continued their red-hot start to the 2025 season over the past few weeks.

First, in the Concacaf Champions Cup, they managed to defeat Inter Miami 5-1 on aggregate across two legs in the semi-finals of that tournament, allowing them to reach the final for the first time. Now, they'll play a Cruz Azul team that has been in excellent form in this competition, of which they're one of the winningest teams historically, in what should be a fantastic final between two fun teams to watch.

Meanwhile, in MLS play, the Whitecaps are also continuing to cruise, as they still sit atop MLS's Supporters Shield standings, having continued to pick up big results in league play despite juggling their CCC responsibilities.

Now, things don't get any easier for the Whitecaps, who have three MLS matches and one Canadian Championship clash to deal with before the CCC final, but based on how they've been playing, they'll just try to keep the good times rolling as they get set to tackle a crucial three-week period.

Elsewhere, the BC Canadian Premier League teams have been off to mixed starts to their campaigns, with Vancouver FC now finding their feet in league play after a slow start, while Pacific is looking to recover after a strong start turned into a mini-slump.

So far, Vancouver has the edge between these two teams, especially after defeating Pacific in the preliminary round of the Canadian Championship, something they hope gives them momentum going forward, but Pacific will be pleased they bounced back from that VFC loss with a big home win vs. York United days later.

Lastly, the Vancouver Rise have continued their start to their inaugural campaign, sitting second in the NSL standings through four matches. Despite that, they've got plenty to work on, especially offensively, although they'll be pleased with how organized they've been defensively, giving them a good base to build on as they look to find more goals going forward.

Make sure to check out The Third Sub Podcast on Twitter, @thirdsubpod, as well as on Instagram, @the3rdsub_.