Sunday afternoon鈥檚 soccer game at the new Willoughby Stadium holds a special meaning for the players and staff of Vancouver Football Club, as they hit the pitch in what they鈥檙e calling their firefighters appreciation match.

It means a whole lot to the VFC team to give back to the community in this ways and recognize the community heroes, said head coach Afshin Ghotbi.

But it also means a great deal to their assistant coach, Niall Thompson, who serves as a firefighter in Burnaby, and has for 20 years.

While playing soceer in Europe in the early 1990s, he remembers scribbling out his goals on a piece of paper. He aspired to become a pro soccer player and become a firefighter 鈥� both of which this officer has since achieved.

He described his job as a firefighter being difficult at times, but quickly qualified it is also 鈥渙ne of the most rewarding feelings you can get to help somebody. I want to be able to help people when I come to the firehall, and I want to help with the young, aspiring pros within the football world and the Vancouver FC,鈥� he shared.

Local firefighters and fire apparatus are expected to be onhand for the game, as well, and Thompson noted that 10 per cent of every ticket sold to Sunday鈥檚 game will be donated to the BC Burn Fund.

Ghotbi said he鈥檚 also excited to be playing at home again, at the new Willoughby Stadium (next to 91原创 Events Centre), with defenceman Rocco Romeo rejoining the team 鈥� back on the pitch after a three-game suspension 鈥� just in time to take on his former teammates with Valour.

鈥淲hat I love about the facility is that the landscape that it sits on, the ambience about the stadium,鈥� he explained. 鈥淭he proximity of all the seats to the pitch and to the players. The players and their fans, the distance allows them to have this intimate connection, and that creates 鈥� in my opinion 鈥� a very exciting spectacle. So, I love the facility. I love the support of the fan.鈥�

He described their first game in the venue as quite magical, May 7, when they tied 1-1 against the Calgary Cavalry FC.

鈥淚t was an experience I鈥檒l never forget, partly because it was the first time in history of our club to play at home in a stadium that never existed and was built with so much passion and love 鈥� so it was a very touching moment for myself and I think all the players, the staff, and all the fans. I鈥檓 hoping every game will be sold out and we will only improve our performances and our results and create a spectacle for Canadian football for years to come,鈥� Ghotbi said.

Sadly, he admitted, the second home game last Saturday did not see the results he wanted, when VFC took on the Atletico Ottawa at the Willougby Stadium, and lost 5-0.

He鈥檚 hoping the team will turn that around this Sunday, when they return to home pitch in 91原创 to take on Winnipeg鈥檚 Valour FC.

The game gets underway at 5 p.m.

In the meantime, the team was on the field practising in the warm spring weather this week, preparing for the match against Valour.

Ghotbi spoke to a bit of their practice routines earlier in the week, detailing some of their routines.

It鈥檚 included a 10 a.m. training session each day, and mid-week included a match against the second team, who don鈥檛 typically see time on the field during game day.

Twice a week, the players spend their afternoons power training in the gym.

鈥淲e try to keep them very active and give them the right education to develop not only individually but collectively as a team,鈥� Ghotbi said, noting there are also several video sessions a week where they come together and try to learn how to improve, while also receiving accolades for what was a done well.

The coach said he also tries to use tactical models from teams around the world, to show his players what can work: 鈥淚t gives them the perfect picture and something to aspire to.鈥�

Vancouver FC was founded in 2022 and kicked off its first Canadian Premier League season in 2023, based in 91原创. It鈥檚 part of the Canadian Premier League.

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