How Whitecaps, Inter Miami stack up ahead of MLS Cup final

A long Major League Soccer regular season and dramatic playoffs will culminate in Saturday’s MLS Cup final when the Vancouver Whitecaps and Inter Miami will battle it out for the right to hoist the Philip F. Anschutz Trophy.

It’s the first trip to the MLS Cup final for both teams and the biggest game in Whitecaps history since defeating the Tampa Bay Rowdies before 50,699 fans at Giants Stadium in the 1979 Soccer Bowl to finish off the North American Soccer League season. 

Here’s what you need to know about Saturday’s tilt (2:30 p.m. ET) at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 

Round 1 of the MLS playoffs was a best-of-three series, but Saturday’s MLS Cup is a single elimination game, just like the conference semifinals and final. If the game is tied after 90 minutes of regulation time, two 15-minute periods of extra time (not sudden death) will be played. If the game is still tied, penalty kicks will decide the winner. 

Miami (19-7-8) finished third in the Eastern Conference during the regular season. Vancouver (18-7-9) was second in the Western Conference but finished two points behind Miami in the overall standings, which is why the Herons are hosting Saturday’s match. 

The Whitecaps defeated FC Dallas 2-0 in their best-of-three series to begin their playoff run and then followed that up with a dramatic penalty shootout decision at home over LAFC. Vancouver secured its spot in the final with an impressive 3-1 road win over San Diego FC, which finished first in the West during the regular season. 

Miami’s passage to the final was booked via a 2-1 series win vs. Nashville FC, a 4-0 triumph over FC Cincinnati and a 5-1 victory against New York City FC. 

Vancouver’s ongoing battle for respect 

Prior to the start of the season, the MLS website convened a special panel of league experts (featuring writers, TV commentators and former players) who offered their predictions for the campaign. Eight of the nine panellists predicted the Whitecaps would fail to make the playoffs — one even said Vancouver would finish in last place in the Western Conference.   

But the Whitecaps had the last laugh by finishing second in the West while also setting club records for points (63), wins (18) and goals scored (66) in a single MLS season. Vancouver also led the league in goal differential (plus-28) and finished tied for the fewest losses (seven).  

A victory on Saturday would serve as a big wakeup call for a lot of fans, pundits and critics who historically have overlooked Vancouver and allow the Whitecaps to finally earn the respect they richly deserve.  

Miami and Messi’s chance for redemption  

Lionel Messi and Inter Miami looked destined to win the 2024 MLS Cup. 

The Argentinian ace was sensational in his first MLS season, scoring 20 goals (finishing second in the Golden Boot race) and winning the league’s MVP award. His strong performances on the pitch paced Inter Miami to its first Supporters’ Shield trophy (regular season championship) with a league-record 74 points.  

But Messi and his teammates choked in the playoffs, losing to eighth-seeded Atlanta United in the best-of-three first round series. Miami dusted itself off and got back on the horse after being knocked off it by finishing third overall in the league table this year. And Messi? He responded by becoming the first player in MLS history to win consecutive MVP awards after scoring a league-leading 29 goals.  

The Herons haven’t forgotten last season’s playoff disappointment and are now just 90 minutes away from making amends by winning the MLS Cup in front of their fans. 

Not just Messi vs. Müller  

One can understand why a lot of the focus on Saturday’s game is on Messi and Thomas Müller. They are both World Cup winners, legends for their national teams and winners of dozens of domestic and European titles at club level. They’re considered among the very best to ever play the game. 

They’ve gone head-to-head 11 times for club and country, with Müller’s side coming out on top on eight occasions, including in the 2014 FIFA World Cup final in Brazil when Germany beat Argentina 1-0 in extra time. Müller has scored seven goals in those 11 games, compared to Messi’s three. 

While the Messi vs. Müller narrative is an interesting one, it shouldn’t distract from the fact that both Vancouver and Miami are well-balanced teams with plenty of quality and depth at every position. Both players have very strong supporting casts around them. 

“It’s not about Messi against Thomas Müller; it’s Miami against the Whitecaps. Maybe they rely a little bit more on him than (the Whitecaps do on Müller.) We are such a good group,” the German said after the win over San Diego. 

• This is the first trip to the MLS Cup for both Vancouver and Miami. The Whitecaps have been in MLS since 2011. Miami entered the league in 2018. 

• The host team has won seven of the past eight MLS Cups. 

• The MLS Cup final has gone to penalties on six occasions, most recently in 2022 when LAFC emerged victorious. 

• Vancouver was 8-4-5 on the road during the regular season. Miami was 11-3-3 at home. 

• The Whitecaps are trying to secure ‘a double,’ having won their fourth consecutive Canadian Championship by defeating the CPL’s Vancouver FC in the final at BC Place on Oct. 1. 

• Only one other Canadian team has won the MLS Cup: Toronto FC in 2017. 

Vancouver player to watch 

Thomas Müller grabs the majority of headlines in Vancouver, but the Whitecaps are anything but a one-man unit. Leading the team’s potent attack is American forward Brian White, who scored a team-high 16 goals during the regular season — his third consecutive season for Vancouver bagging at least 15 goals. The 29-year-old missed the early portion of the playoffs due to injury but has made up for lost time by starting in each of the Whitecaps’ last two games, including netting a brace in their win over San Diego FC in the Western Conference final.  

The obvious choice would be Lionel Messi. But while the Argentinian icon should play a prominent role in Saturday’s game, his countryman Tadeo Allende has arguably been the MVP of the playoffs. The 26-year-old midfielder, who is on loan from Spanish club Celta Vigo, has scored eight goals during the post-season (the most of any player) while chipping in two assists. Allende has seven goals in his last three playoff games, including a hat trick in Miami’s 5-1 win over New York City FC in the Eastern Conference final. 

Vancouver vs. Miami: A brief history  

Saturday will be the fourth all-time meeting between Vancouver and Miami. 

Miami earned a 2-1 road win during the 2024 MLS regular season in the first-ever match between the two clubs. But the Whitecaps exacted a measure of revenge when they posted back-to-back victories over Miami in April in the semifinals of this year’s Concacaf Champions Cup. 

After winning 2-0 at home in the first leg, Vancouver marked its first visit to Chase Stadium with a 3-1 victory thanks to goals from Sebastian Berhalter (who also had two assists), White and Pedro Vite.