Vancouver Whitecaps FC hosts Inter Miami CF in CCC semifinals | OneFootball

MIAMI — The 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup continues Thursday with Vancouver Whitecaps FC hosting Inter Miami CF in the first leg of their semifinal series at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Vancouver Whitecaps jugará por segunda vez las semifinales después de haber sido eliminado en 2017 por Tigres UNAL 4-1 en el marcador global, para el Inter Miami FC será su primera aparición en las semifinales.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC began its campaign in Round One, overcoming Deportivo Saprissa with a 3-2 aggregate. The reigning Canadian Championship winners drew 3-3 on aggregate against CF Monterrey in the Round of 16, advancing on away goals, before repeating the same result against Pumas UNAM in the quarterfinals.

Brian White leads the Canadian club with three goals scored. He also played a part in an own goal from Pumas UNAM off a corner kick opportunity. White is tied with five other players for third in the top scorer race, including Tigres UANL’s Nicolás Ibáñez and Inter Miami’s Luis Suárez, who are still alive in the competition.

Inter Miami CF met Sporting KC in Round One, winning the series 4-1 on aggregate. The Herons overcame Concacaf Caribbean Cup winners Cavalier FC with a 4-nil aggregate score in the Round of 16 before a 3-2 comeback win on aggregate in the quarterfinals against Los Angeles FC.

Lionel Messi leads the club with five goals in the current campaign and is second in the top scorer brace, one behind Cruz Azul’s Ángel Sepúlveda. Messi holds the club’s record with seven CCC goals all-time.

The winner on aggregate will advance to the Final. Away goals serve as the primary tiebreaker. If necessary, extra time and a penalty shootout will decide the winner.

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·      An unprecedented semifinal awaits in the Concacaf Champions Cup, as Vancouver Whitecaps FC and Inter Miami CF prepare to face off for the very first time in the tournament’s history.

·      These two sides have only met once before, during MLS Matchday 15 of the 2024 regular season. Inter Miami emerged victorious with a 2-1 win at BC Place in Vancouver on May 25, 2024. Robert Taylor (38’) and Leonardo Campana (54’) scored for the Herons, while Ryan Gauld pulled one back for the hosts with a 72nd-minute penalty.

·      Inter Miami will become the 14th MLS club to reach the semifinals of the Concacaf Champions Cup. Should they advance to the final, they would be the 7th MLS side to do so. The semifinal opener will mark Miami’s 11th match in the competition—ranking them 5th among MLS clubs who have needed the most games to reach this stage, trailing only FC Dallas (15), New York Red Bulls (17), Seattle Sounders (29), and Columbus Crew (29).

·      For Vancouver Whitecaps, this marks a return to the semifinals eight years after their last appearance. In 2017, the Canadian side fell to Tigres UANL. In the first leg, played on March 14 at the Estadio Universitario in Monterrey, Vancouver lost 2-0, with an own goal from Costa Rican defender Kendall Waston (66’) and a strike from Eduardo Vargas (87’). The second leg, held on April 5 at BC Place, saw Vancouver take the lead through Brek Shea (3’), but Tigres came back with goals from André-Pierre Gignac (63’) and Damián Álvarez (84’) to reach the final.

·      With this run, the Whitecaps now match Toronto FC for the most semifinal appearances by a Canadian club (two each). The upcoming tie will be the first semifinal in tournament history to feature a Canadian club facing a U.S. club.