Vancouver Rise aiming higher after winning first-ever NSL championship

Vancouver Rise FC celebrate after winning the 2025 inaugural NSL championship against AFC Toronto in Toronto, on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sammy Kogan

VANCOUVER — Even after being crowned champions, the Vancouver Rise believe there’s room for growth.

Expectations were high for the team heading into the Northern Super League’s inaugural season last spring, said star midfielder Quinn.

“We’ve always had a pressure about us,” they said. “I think even coming in last year, when people didn’t really know what our team makeup would look like, didn’t know what the other teams would look like, I still felt like we had that pressure upon us. Being in Vancouver, having support from the Whitecaps, I think that was also a huge thing.”

The Rise finished the regular season third in the six-team league standings with an 11-8-6 record, then beat the favoured AFC Toronto in November’s title match to hoist the Diana B. Matheson Cup.

The success has raised the stakes for season two, which kicks off Friday with Toronto visiting Vancouver for a championship rematch.

“I think there for sure is that little bit of pressure going into the second season. I think we put it upon ourselves, too,” Quinn said.

“We didn’t win the regular season. So that for us, I think, is a huge goal, that we want to be a more dominating and a more consistent presence. So we’re putting that pressure upon ourselves, but I think it’s with the right understanding that we have that collective goal.”

Season 1 wasn’t linear for the Rise.

The team started on a high, beating the Calgary Wild 1-0 in the NSL’s first-ever game on April 16, but struggled through the middle of the campaign, going five games without a win between May 24 and July 12. Vancouver rebounded with an eight-game unbeaten streak before getting thumped 7-0 by Toronto on Sept. 12.

“It was a wild year. I think it definitely had a bunch of highs and lows,” Quinn said. ”I don’t think anyone knew what to expect going into the first season, and what that would look like from a club level, from a playing level, from a travel perspective. Honestly, so many different things.

“But I think, as a league, we’ve taken a lot of things and are changing into year two. I think as a team, we’ve taken a lot of things and we’re going to change them going into our second season. And so I think it’s a really exciting time to reflect on what went well, what didn’t go well, and just have that flexibility of continuing to build this league.”

Fighting for a playoff spot late in the season is something the group can build on, said Rise head coach Anja Heiner-Moller.

“I think that bouncing back from that and managing that, that we just didn’t get those points easily, really served the team really well,” she said. ”And I think that’s a mentality that we can use this year for sure.”

Eighteen players from last season’s championship squad are back for the Rise this year.

The team lost standout forward Holly Ward to the NWSL’s Seattle Reign in a transfer last month, and former captain Samantha Chang signed with Toronto before suffering a knee injury that will sideline her for the entire 2026 season.

Vancouver’s returnees include striker Latifah Abdu, who came to Vancouver from the Montreal Roses midseason and finished the campaign with 11 goals, the third most in the league.

Having the 24-year-old Canadian forward for a full season will be a boon, said Heiner-Moller.

“She’s really an impressive player that is so good at getting in behind and also receiving in front of the defenders,” she said. “And she’s a goal scorer. I know she wants to score even more goals for us this year. So looking forward to that.”

The Rise have added five new players to the roster, including Mia Pante, a Canadian midfielder who comes to Vancouver on loan from Italian Serie A club AS Roma.

“Mia is coming from a high level in Italy,” Heiner-Moller said. ”Coming in, having those fast feet and offensive mentality is really great for the team. And then outside the field, really someone that is just enjoying being here. And we enjoy having her as well.”

This report by Gemma Karstens-Smith of The Canadian Press was first published April 23, 2026.