Layoffs, leadership changes and becoming a selling club: Inside the last six months at Vancouver FC and their hopes to get it right
Vancouver FC is in flux.
Ownership says the club is re-calibrating following mixed results across their first few seasons. And there’s little doubt the fledgling club, which rushed to join the Canadian Premier League (CPL) in 2023 at the league’s request, has had its fair share of challenges.
But the last six months have seen staff layoffs, outsourcing, changes in leadership, instability on the pitch and, although early, waning crowds at Willoughby Community Park. The situation, in many ways, is a far cry from the momentum Vancouver FC seemed to be gaining following a strong off-season in 2024.
So, what has changed?
The following report includes information from conversations with multiple sources across the league, who have been granted anonymity to protect relationships, and members of SixFive Sports and Entertainment, which owns both Vancouver FC and Pacific FC, including interviews with managing partners Rob Friend and Dean Shillington. Friend is also the president of Vancouver FC.
The simple answer is that — from their business operations to their footballing philosophy — almost everything has changed or been under review at Vancouver FC as they pivot to try and get things right.
Staff changes, new leadership
Although they had successes in 2024, be it their internationally recognized cherry blossom kit or participation in CPL On Tour in Kelowna, last year didn’t go according to plan for Vancouver FC as they failed to make the playoffs.
So, with Cavalry FC yet to hoist the North Star Cup, the club went about recruiting new leadership in the form of Bill Cooper, who was announced as Vancouver FC’s chief commercial officer on October 19.
Cooper, whose experience includes time with Rugby Canada, ESPN, and the Invictus Games, began work immediately, with special interest over the club’s commercial strategy, including partnership and sponsorship initiatives.
Mark Rogers, Vancouver FC’s inaugural managing director, officially left in December.
There have been several other departures in recent months: the club terminated its public relations and communications coordinator at the conclusion of the 2024 CPL season. But the real blow came in April as four staff members — which made up the club’s marketing and business operations team — were laid off only two weeks into the campaign.
An earlier report said the staff had been let go due to performance. Sources, however, confirmed the firings were due to the club’s financial situation and struggles to penetrate a saturated sports market.
When asked about the fired staff, Shillington said it reflected the club’s desire to go in another direction.
“When it comes to staff, there were three staff recently that we outsourced,” he told HFX Football Post. “The reality is, with us re-calibrating our marketing strategy, we’ve just decided to go and outsource certain elements of it to try and reach out to new experts.”
“(Communication) is the piece we want to continue to improve on. The changes you’re referring to really reflect that; it’s not that we feel we’ve done anything wrong, we’re trying a number of different strategies. We just need to re-calibrate that element of how we are going to get known in the community.”
The club’s head equipment and facilities manager, Cortlin Tonn, also recently departed Vancouver FC but that’s a good news story as he left to join a higher level with the New York Red Bulls in MLS. Still, said sources, the large turnover of staff and cost cutting are having an impact.
Doubling down on Langley
Both Shillington and Friend acknowledged their market’s challenges given the busy sports landscape. But they said they remain committed to making it work in Langley.
Financially, said Friend, SixFive Sports and Entertainment is going to continue to invest in Canadian football.
“We thought Langley was going to be a niche market that was underserved. We built, we think, a fantastic stadium. It’s very intimate,” he said.
“SixFive, we’ve put a lot of investment into this project, into both projects, upwards of $30-million. We’re going to continue to invest. We’re committed to growing the game in Canada. That’s why, myself as a former player, in the early days, convinced Dean to come into this project. I knew this was going to be a long-term project.”
Shillington added more money was going to be pumped into the club, not less, over the foreseeable future.
“With Vancouver, you’re going to see in the weeks and months ahead, we’re actually doing the opposite (of cost cutting). We’re investing and doubling down on this project because we believe heavily in what we’re doing and what’s going to be happening as we get the momentum of the World Cup,” he said
They pointed to the hiring of Cooper as part of their plan to get it right. And there’s also been changes to Willoughby as the club added a new video board at the end of last season, in addition to various activities like beer gardens, pre-game concerts and half-time entertainment.
“It’s not like we’re missing the formula,” said Friend, adding the club has visited countless schools and done other community initiatives to increase interest.
“Across the league, we’re having weekly conversations with the Halifaxs, with the Derek Martins, asking: ‘What are you doing?’ We’re trying a lot of the same things. I think the reality is a lot of it comes down to our market.”
Vancouver FC averaged roughly 3,000 fans per match at Willoughby last year but is down to just over 1,300 through their first four home matches. Of those 1,300, it’s unclear how many are paying customers versus complimentary tickets. Weather has also certainly been a factor. But the wider CPL community is worried by the significant attendance drop in a fragile market that seemed to be finding its feet last year.
Shillington, however, preached patience.
“We’re not that different from last year. It’s not a great sample size yet,” he said.
A new footballing philosophy
Arguably the biggest change to Vancouver FC is on the sporting side as the club has gone all in on youth development.
Many of the players recruited in 2024 were older B.C.-born players who had gone away to pursue a professional career and came back to join Vancouver FC. However, said sources, many of the players had fractured relationships with head coach Afshin Ghotbi, something Ghotbi himself brought up with media, and failed to qualify for the playoffs despite a veteran core. Many players wanted to leave, and did so, this past off-season.
But where Vancouver FC found success was with its young players, including Grady McDonnell, who was the CPL’s youngest-ever signing at 15-years old, James Cameron and T.J. Tahid.
The sales of McDonnell and Cameron this off-season represented both a huge cash injection — sources said the combined earnings equaled $650,000 plus add-ons for the club, not to mention potential sell-on fees — and a new standard to chase.
“I’m a big believer of this league being a selling league,” said Friend.
“I really think the CPL is positioned very nicely within the MLS markets and the European markets to be a league that develops players and sells players. I know for a fact — because I get a lot of calls from big clubs and big leagues — there’s interest in our players, interest in Canadian players.”
“The fans, the bums in seats, come from winning. But honestly, in this market, I still think it’s a relevancy issue versus wins and losses right now. To my point on the field, how do we create a really exciting, young, dynamic team that we’re moving players on every year? That, to me, is the definition of success.”
Vancouver FC recruited several new youthful talents this year, including Emrick Fotsing, who Friend said will be the next one of his players to make a big move. Tahid, he said, is also continuing to garner interest.
But playing promising players doesn’t necessarily equate success on the pitch as Vancouver FC currently sits second with U-21 minutes played (1,520) but has only five points through five matches played.
The question is can you sell potential to fans?
“What’s our value proposition?” asked Friend. “We’ve really tried to get that traction to come watch the next superstar. Like Grady (McDonnell) is going to play for the Canadian Men’s National Team. Guarantee it. You have the opportunity to watch the next up and coming stars. Ultimately, we’ll get to the point where we’re going to have both: a championship team while being the youngest, most exciting team in this country.”
'We're on a 20 year journey'
There’s little doubt the past several months have seen a lot of change at Vancouver FC. Sources noted the combination of staffing changes, outsourcing and shift in recruitment strategy, have robbed much of the club’s institutional knowledge.
Attendance, albeit early, isn’t faring much better this season.
But Friend and Shillington said they aren’t panicked by the hurdles coming their way. They are continuing to work towards finding the right strategies to make Vancouver FC thrive in Langley. It will, they noted, take time, as some of their new leaders like Cooper acclimate themselves to the realities of the CPL.
“(Cooper’s) still relatively new in the role with Vancouver FC but you know, sometimes, ideas, philosophies and strategies need to shift, and I think that’s really it. We’re doubling down on this market and seeing what sticks,” said Friend.
Shillington shared Friend’s perspective.
“We always say we’re on a 20 year journey,” he said. “I think everything you’ve seen over the past six months is just us deciding we want to be even better and we want to re-calibrate our business. We’ve made adjustments with how we’ve gone to market, we’ve made adjustments recently to our marketing strategy and how we want to recommit ourselves to the community.”
It remains to be seen if those adjustments will help the Eagles take flight and attract a larger audience in the Vancouver-area. Failure to do so is not something Canadian football, the CPL or Vancouver FC can afford.
Cover Photo Credit: Sarah Parker / Canadian Premier League
