The Halifax Wanderers announced Wednesday morning that Italian manager Vanni Sartini has been named the third head coach in club history.
Sartini, who will take on the role of both head coach and general manager at the Wanderers Grounds, arrives as a familiar face in the Canadian soccer sphere. As head coach of the Vancouver Whitecaps from mid-2021 to the end of 2024, Sartini won three consecutive Canadian Championship titles, and laid groundwork for the club’s 2025 run to the MLS Cup final.
The 49-year-old native of Florence, Italy was a popular figure in Vancouver, where he developed strong relationships with his players and the local supporters. A passionate, charismatic manager, Sartini is well known in North American soccer as a unique character.
After leaving the Whitecaps about a year ago, Sartini took what he calls a "pause" to evaluate his options. When the Wanderers came calling recently, though, he leapt on the opportunity.
"The way they approached me, the way they were so convinced that I could be instrumental to this new chapter for the club, has been really appealing to me," Sartini told CanPL.ca.
Sartini has been working in Canada since 2019, when he joined the Whitecaps as an assistant coach and eventually took over the club’s U-23 team. Prior to that, he had worked exclusively in his native Italy.
He has been in Canada for about six years now, and when the time came to look for a new challenge, it was clear to him he wanted to stay here.
"I love this country," Sartini said. "On a very personal note, this is the country that probably changed my life. In terms of status of coaching, in terms of career, I got to another level thanks to my years in Vancouver. We really like being here, me and my wife."
He added that staying in Canada was particularly attractive to him above moving to the United States in its current political climate.
Sartini continued: "I'm really happy to be still part of the Canadian system. And also I would say, not only selfishly because I had another good opportunity to coach in the CPL with a fantastic team, but also, Canadian soccer gave a lot to me, and I want to be able to give back. If I'm able to contribute to the development of the league, to the development of the game here in Canada, I'm going to be very happy here."
He took over the Whitecaps first team as an interim head coach in August 2021 and led them back to the MLS playoffs after a three-year drought. Sartini then led the ‘Caps to win the next three Voyageurs’ Cups and make the playoffs twice more.
In the course of those Canadian Championship runs, Sartini became familiar with the Canadian Premier League and its teams. He had an excellent record against CPL sides, never losing to one in nine meetings, although he points out that Cavalry and Pacific, in particular, caused him to sweat.
Looking at the CPL as an outsider, Sartini has been impressed with a style of play that he feels matches his own philosophies.
"The characteristic of this league, for me, is the intensity," he said. "Every time that we were playing against a CPL team, that would be Pacific, Cavalry, York, all the different teams we played, the intensity was always really high, and the rhythm was always really high. I think that's kind of the brand of the league, too."
One of the things that endeared Sartini most to the fans in Vancouver was his embrace of supporter culture, and his accessibility to the community. He would often be seen sporting a t-shirt from one of the club's supporters' groups, or chatting with fans around BC Place and in the city.
Moving on now to Halifax, where the Kitchen at the Wanderers Grounds is always jam-packed with passionate supporters, Sartini is excited to spark a similar relationship between himself and the city.
To him, it's fundamental to the job.
"Soccer is emotion, and without emotion, without the support of the fans, without the support of the community that is around you, it's almost meaningless to play soccer professionally," Sartini said. "I think that I will be engaged the same way with the Wanderers. The thing that comes naturally to me is that, unfortunately I'm approaching 50 years old now, I'm 49, but I'm still a fan.
"I love this game, and even though I really like all the intricacies and analytical, scientific part of the tactics and everything, the most beautiful thing is the fact that this game can bring a lot of emotion to a lot of people, and if you are lucky to be part of it, I think you need to embrace this part."
There's a lot for Sartini and the Wanderers to do over the coming months, beginning with decisions on eight contract options that need to come before the end of the year. Beyond that, he'll be hard at work recruiting players to build on the existing core in Halifax.
The Wanderers are in a good position, Sartini says, having made the playoffs two of the last three years, but they're still searching for that first postseason win.
He's aiming higher than that, though.
"Hopefully in my tenure here we will raise up trophies," he said. "That's basically the objective."
