“We are all committed to giving our all.

This is your team, and it’s our honour to represent you.”

Yesterday I went to my first MLS game and it was amazing. I honestly didn’t think I would like it that much, but I did. How much do I know about football? Almost nothing, other than my dad’s incessant explanations every time he’s watching soccer on TV. He’s a huge fan and I never got into it. But he gave me a quick run-down on how the sport worked before the game yesterday and I headed off to experience the Vancouver Whitecaps vs Seattle Sounders game. He covered quite a lot in very little time and that was impressive.

The game was all sold out and my friend and I had been trying to get tickets for weeks. It wasn’t until 2 days before the game that we finally managed to snag a pair of tickets—and really good ones at that! Look at our sweet view!

2nd row! And this angle was really good imo.

What made the game for me? Firstly, we realized that the Whitecaps are actually pretty good. I guess that would explain why the game that we went to was the 7th sold out game they had this season. Secondly, the Southsiders. For those of you who don’t know, the Southsiders are a group of Whitecaps fans. Honestly if I had to describe them I’d call them a group that jumped straight out of Tumblr (where crazy dedicated fans live). They have a whole section to themselves during games and I can see why.

Southsiders whipping out Vision Vancouver’s rainbow flag at the beginning of the game.

They have synchronized cheering and dancing, as well as lots of props (flags etc.) that they whip out to applaud on the Whitecaps. Watching the Southsiders was half the fun! We got seats that were pretty close to them and would constantly peek over to see what new antics they had going on. They kept spirits and the mood up the entire game. That’s two hours of jumping, cheering, and shouting!

This was how close we were to the Southsiders!

If you’re going I’d definitely recommending finding a spot where you can see them. But if you’re a new fan I’d recommend you take some time before you get tickets to seat in the Southsider’s section. You won’t be able to add to their cheering and will look out of place. Also sitting in the Southsiders section means that you’re not sitting at all. You’re standing the whole game. Families with small children will have to beware!

The game itself was lots of fun. It was a match for the Cascadia Cup, which is fought between Seattle, Portland and Vancouver. There were so many intense moments I was literally on the edge of my seat with my fingers tugging at my hair. It was great fun to shout at the referees with the rest of the crowd (the refs basically gave the Sounders a point…) and people were friendly overall. The game ended in a tie 2-2. Now my friend and I are hoping to get tickets for upcoming games… decent pairs of seats for the July 5th game are already sold out. So if anyone has price-friendly tickets in a good spot give me a shout!

– Karen