The champions of Concacaf will be in Langley on Wednesday night, as Canadian Premier League side Vancouver FC host Mexico's Cruz Azul to begin their Concacaf Champions Cup campaign.
Willoughby Stadium will play host to men's continental soccer for the first time, as VFC make their debut on the international stage (kickoff at 7 p.m. PT/10 p.m. ET, live on OneSoccer).
It'll be a trial by fire for Vancouver, whose first taste of Concacaf action comes against the most successful club in the competition's history. Cruz Azul have won seven titles (tied with Club América for the most) over the 60-year history of this tournament, including the 2025 trophy. Canadian fans may remember Cruz Azul's rout of the Vancouver Whitecaps in that final last June; now, it's another Vancouver-area side looking for better fortune.
That is, of course, much easier said than done for a Vancouver team who haven't played a competitive match since October. One hundred places in the latest Concacaf Club Rankings separate Cruz Azul (2nd) from Vancouver FC (102nd).
The last time we saw Vancouver FC on the pitch, they were closing out the 2025 CPL season with a six-game unbeaten run. Although they still finished at the bottom of the standings, the club's form improved significantly after Martin Nash took over as interim head coach in July.
Of course, the highlight of the campaign was VFC's run in the TELUS Canadian Championship; they knocked off three fellow CPL sides (including both 2025 CPL finalists Atlético Ottawa and Cavalry FC), en route to a local derby final against the Whitecaps. The MLS club were convincing winners in that final, but Vancouver's attack still impressed against a star-studded opponent in a 4-2 defeat.
Qualifying for that CanChamp final was what booked VFC's ticket to this Concacaf match; because the Whitecaps qualified via their place in the MLS table, Vancouver FC took the spot from the Canadian Championship.
Since the end of that 2025 campaign, Vancouver have been toiling away to prepare for their first Concacaf matchup. The first order of business was appointing Martin Nash to the permanent head coach role, as well as locking down the team's core.
Marquee attackers like Thierno Bah and Nicolas Mezquida remain in place — the latter on a new contract — as are 10 other members of last year's squad. Bah and Mezquida, VFC's two standouts in the CanChamp final, will be focal points in Concacaf, particularly the latter; Mezquida played in this tournament several times with the Whitecaps, and is familiar with Mexican opposition.
Joining them are a host of new faces, like CPL veteran defender Tom Field, and New Zealand international Luis Toomey in attack.
At the opposite end of the pitch is a well-seasoned Cruz Azul side, who arrive in Canada in solid form. Through the first four weeks of the Liga MX Clausura season, they're 3-0-1, sitting second in the table. They clawed out a dramatic away win last Friday, beating Juárez 4-3 — a match where striker Gabriel Fernández was sent off in the 83rd minute, and things got more uncomfortable than expected after they'd been ahead 3-0 in the first half.
Cruz Azul finished third in the most recent Apertura season, and were eliminated by Tigres in the playoff semifinal — a 2-2 aggregate tie, where Tigres went through as the higher-seeded team.
A few of La Máquina's better-known stars have moved on since the end of 2025; prolific striker Ángel Sepulveda was sold to Chivas, while Polish midfielder Mateusz Bogusz went to the Houston Dynamo just last week. Now, reports are coming from Mexico that full-back Jorge Sánchez is on the move.
Still, this is a team with plenty of talent and experience. The squad has a combined 89 international caps for Mexico, not counting Sánchez's 55. Club vice-captain Carlos Rodríguez leads the way with 65 appearances for El Tri, followed by captain Érik Lira with 17.
It's unclear just how many of Cruz Azul's first-team stars will take the field in Langley. The official roster submitted to Concacaf features most key players, except for goalkeeper Mier and defender Jesús Orozco. Reports from Mexico suggest that coach Nicolás Larcamón will make some changes to his team — it's common for Liga MX sides to field younger squads in the early Concacaf rounds — but not wholesale changes.
One to watch will be striker Gabriel Fernández; the Uruguayan forward was sent off against Juárez and thus is suspended for the next Liga MX match, which might make him more likely to start against Vancouver.
Vancouver FC's first test of the 2026 season will be, by far, their toughest ever. It'll be an uphill battle just to avoid a heavy defeat.
They've defied the odds in knockout football before, though. Maybe — just maybe — they can create just one magical moment under the lights in Langley.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Vancouver FC: Irving; Doner, Campagna, Field, Gee; Amissi, Norman Jr., Mezquida, Bah; Toomey, Campbell
Cruz Azul: Ochoa; Rodarte, Lira, Piovi; Campos, Montaño, Jiménez, Márquez; Paradela, Fernández, Rotondi
KEY QUOTES
“We know that they're going to have quality on the ball. We know that they're in their season right now, so fitness-wise they're going to be sharp. They're going to be able to push for that full 90, so we have to be very disciplined in what we do, and anything that we do, we have to do together. We can't have 11 guys going out there trying to put on a show, trying to prove a point about themselves. We need to be focused on what we can do as a team to combat what Cruz Azul does." — Vancouver FC goalkeeper Callum Irving
