‘Significant number’ of Vancouver Whitecaps players, staff ill after game in Mexico

Ali Ahmed of Canada's Vancouver Whitecaps sits on the pitch after losing 0-5 against Mexico's Cruz Azul during the CONCACAF Champions Cup final soccer match in Mexico City, Sunday, June 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Several Vancouver Whitecaps players and staff are dealing with a gastrointestinal illness after visiting Mexico for the CONCACAF Champions Cup final.

Sporting director and CEO Axel Schuster said about half of the 75 people who returned to Vancouver on the team’s charter plane after Sunday’s game have reported symptoms.

“Not only have we lost the game, also we have picked up some sort of a virus and are dealing with that right now,” he told reporters Thursday.

The Major League Soccer team flew to Mexico City last Friday to face LIGA MX side Cruz Azul in Sunday’s final.

Cruz Azul trounced the ‘Caps 5-0 to hoist the Champions Cup, snapping Vancouver’s 15-game (7-0-8) unbeaten streak across all competitions.

Schuster said it is “unlikely” any of Vancouver’s players experienced symptoms during the game.

Several people connected to the club, including Schuster and some players who left Mexico to report to their national teams, did not take the charter flight back to Vancouver. All of those individuals were “absolutely fine,” Schuster said.

“That is a little hint that it might have been something that happened after the game,” he said. ”But we don’t know yet.”

The Whitecaps cancelled a planned training session Wednesday and held a modified individual session Thursday for players who had been cleared by medical staff. The session was closed to media.

The club said in a statement that it is working with local health authorities and an infectious disease expert regarding the illness.

“We wanted to make it very clear from the very beginning to the league that we are not making anything up, that this is a real problem that we are dealing with,” Schuster said.

The club added that each player has been given an “individualized program” by medical and performance staff to support their continued preparation and recovery.

It’s unclear whether the Whitecaps (9-1-5) will still host their MLS regional rivals, the Seattle Sounders (7-5-5), as scheduled on Sunday.

The team has been in constant contact with the league about the situation and a decision will be made when they know which players could be available come Sunday, Schuster said.

“If we have enough healthy and fit players available, we want to play it, of course,” he said. ”No one ever wants not to play a game if he thinks he has a group together that is ready to compete in this game.”

If the healthy and safety of players is at risk, the league can cancel the game, he added.

Nine ‘Caps players were already scheduled to miss Sunday’s game after they were called up to their national teams, including Ali Ahmed, Sam Adekugbe and Jayden Nelson, who are all training with the Canadian men ahead of the inaugural Canadian Shield tournament.

This report by Gemma Karstens-Smith of The Canadian Press was first published June 5, 2025.