Justin Trudeau’s epiphany. The unpopular, 23rd Prime Minister finally realized Jan. 6 that the Liberals cannot be re-elected with him at the helm and he vowed to leave office when his party chooses a new leader.
What does that mean politically and economically for Canada?
Joining host Bob Mackin: Mario Canseco, president of Research Co,, and Timothy Renshaw, publisher of the Substack Shipping News.
The runner-up in the Surrey-Guildford riding said Jan. 9 that he would file a B.C. Supreme Court petition aimed at invalidating the election of Garry Begg as the NDP MLA.
Conservative Honveer Singh Randhawa had a 103-vote edge after the polls closed on the Oct. 19 provincial election night. The seat flipped to Begg by 27 votes after mail-in ballots were tallied, forcing a judicial recount. When that ended Nov. 8, Begg was declared the winner by 22 votes. He was appointed Solicitor General in Premier David Eby’s new cabinet.
John Rustad (left) and Honveer Singh Randhawa (IG)
Begg’s win gave the NDP a bare, 47-seat majority in the new, 93-seat Legislature scheduled to open Feb. 18. That left the Conservatives in opposition with 44 seats.
Randhawa, however, said that the party has found 45 voting irregularities. Of that, 21 were mail-in votes from a Fraser Health-licensed addiction and substance abuse recovery house across the street from the Guildford Park Secondary School polling station.
“Justice must prevail and the democracy must be protected,” said Randhawa, who is a lawyer.
The Conservatives released redacted statutory declarations from two residents of Argyll Lodge who swore that they were unaware the election was occurring, shocked to learn that there was a polling station across the street and given mail-in ballots that they did not order.
“I was rushed into marking the ballot,” said one of the affidavits. “I do not know who I have voted for, I marked the ballot where they pointed it and I was led to believe that I had no choice but to mark the ballot otherwise I feared that I would be kicked out of the house.”
Said the other affidavit: “I did not know which box was for which party. I just marked the box as instructed. I did not believe I had a choice to not mark a box as instructed.”
B.C.’s Election Act states that an individual must not assist more than one voter, except for an election official or for an individual to assist more than one member of the individual’s family. It also states that it is illegal for someone to intimidate another person to cast a ballot.
Randhawa’s investigation found that an Argyll manager, Baljit Kandola, has the same name as someone who donated $1,400 to the NDP in May 2023.
Conservative leader John Rustad originally accepted the election results. He said on Jan. 9 that the new found evidence prompted the complaint to Elections BC and for Randhawa to prepare a petition to court within the 90-day period after a contravention.
“People have the right to be able to vote by mail ballot,” Rustad said. “The issue is whether or not they’re capable of doing that, whether or not there was an individual who participated in many people voting by mail.”
Begg was not immediately available for comment. On X, formerly Twitter, Deputy Premier and Attorney General Niki Sharma downplayed the complaint.
“Our elections are independent with safeguards to ensure they are free and fair. John Rustad is free to raise his concerns with Elections BC. That’s his right,” Sharma wrote. “We are focused on addressing the issues facing the people of our province like the threat of tariffs from the U.S.”
Even if the Conservatives are successful and the NDP loses the seat, the NDP announced a Dec. 13 alliance with the two-member Green caucus. The third party vowed to prop-up the NDP on any confidence and budget votes.
Ending months of speculation as his party plummeted in public opinion polls, Justin Trudeau announced in a hastily called news conference on Jan. 6 that he would prorogue Parliament until March 24 and step down as Prime Minister of Canada once a new Liberal Party leader is chosen.
It began, by the Rideau Cottage porch, after the Ottawa wind swept away some of Trudeau’s speaking notes.
It was not as surprising nor as dramatic as Feb. 29, 1984, when father Pierre Trudeau famously announced his resignation as 15th Prime Minister after a walk in the snow.
The Jan. 6 announcement came, coincidentally, the same day that the U.S. Congress certified Donald Trump’s presidential win. Trump, who threatened tariffs on Canadian goods entering the U.S., will return to power in the Oval Office on Jan. 20.
Below is a transcript of what Trudeau said during the news conference, Canada’s first major news milestone of 2025.
Justin Trudeau statement:
Every morning I’ve woken up as Prime Minister, I’ve been inspired by the resilience, the generosity and the determination of Canadians, it is the driving force of every single day I have the privilege of serving in this office. That is why, since 2015 I have fought for this country, for you to strengthen and grow the middle class. Why we rallied to support each other through the pandemic, to advance reconciliation, to defend free trade on this continent, to stand strong with Ukraine and our democracy and to fight climate change and get our economy ready for the future. We are at a critical moment in the world.
My friends, as you all know, I’m a fighter. Every bone in my body has always told me to fight because I care deeply about Canadians. I care deeply about this country, and I will always be motivated by what is in the best interest of Canadians. And the fact is, despite best efforts to work through it, Parliament has been paralyzed for months after what has been the longest session of a minority Parliament in Canadian history. That’s why this morning, I advise the Governor General that we need a new session of parliament. She has granted this request, and the House will now be prorogued until March 24.
Justin Trudeau on Jan. 6, 2025 (CPAC/YouTube)
Over the holidays, I’ve also had a chance to reflect, and have had long talks with my family about our future throughout the course of my career, any success I have personally achieved has been because of their support and with their encouragement. So last night, over dinner, I told my kids about the decision that I’m sharing with you today, I intend to resign as party leader as prime minister, after the party selects its next leader through a robust nationwide competitive process. Last night, I asked the president of the Liberal Party to begin that process. This country deserves a real choice in the next election, and it has become clear to me that if I am having to fight internal battles, I cannot be the best option in that election.
The Liberal Party of Canada is an important institution in the history of our great country and democracy. A new prime minister and leader of the Liberal Party will carry its values and ideals into that next election, I’m excited to see the process unfold in the months ahead. We were elected for the third time in 2021 to strengthen the economy post pandemic and advance Canada’s interests in a complicated world, and that is exactly the job that I and we will continue to do for Canadians. Merci beaucoup.
Reporter (translated from French):
You wanted to have an election with Pierre Poilievre as your opponent. There have been internal battles for a while. Why are you giving up now? What made you change your mind?
Justin Trudeau:
As you all know, I am a fighter, and I am not someone who backs away from a fight, particularly in a fight is as important as this one is, but I have always been driven by my love for Canada, by my desire to serve Canadians and by what is in the best interests of Canadians, and Canadians deserve a real choice in the next election, and it has become obvious to me with The internal battles that I cannot be the one to carry the Liberal standard into the next election.
Reporter (translated from French):
You’ve been in power for nearly 10 years, Canada has changed with your government. If there’s one accomplishment that you’re most proud of, I know there are several, but perhaps the thing you are most proud of. And maybe one regret?
Justin Trudeau:
We got elected in 2015 to fight for the middle class, and that’s exactly what we’ve done over the past years. We’ve reduced their taxes, we increased the benefits to families, we made sure the economy was focused on working for everyone, and not just a few. And that has changed. That has dropped poverty rates in Canada that has brought more people into the workforce, that has moved us forward on reconciliation, in a way that has deeply improved the opportunities and success of Canadians despite the incredibly difficult times the world is going through Right now, there’s lots more work to be done, and I know that this party and this country and Canadians will keep doing it. If I have one regret, particularly as we approach this election. Well, there are probably many regrets that I will think of, but I do wish that we’ve been able to change the way we elect our governments in this country, so that people could simply choose a second choice or a third choice on the same ballot, so that parties would spend more time trying to be people’s second or third choices, and people would have been looking for things they have in common, instead of trying to polarize and divide Canadians against each other, I think in this time, figuring out how to pull together and find common ground remains something that is really important for democracies, but I could not change unilaterally without support of other parties our electoral system that wouldn’t have been responsible
Reporter:
Prime Minister, up until three weeks ago, you were intending to stay. And it seems that the event three weeks ago of Ms. Freeland coming out and saying you were firing her as your finance minister was the catalyst that brought us here today. So can you explain your side of what happened there?
Justin Trudeau:
Chrystia has been by my side for close to 10 years now. She has been an incredible political party. Partner through just about everything we have done as a government and as a party over the past decade, I had really hoped that she would agree to continue as my deputy prime minister and take on one of the most important files that not just this government but this country is facing, but she chose otherwise in regards to what actually happened. I am not someone who’s in the habit of sharing private conversations.
Reporter:
You spoke about the Liberal Party as an institution and the internal battles right now, but I’m wondering if you feel that another leader will have more success than you will at beating Pierre Poilievre in the next campaign.
Justin Trudeau:
Pierre Poilievre’s vision for this country is not the right one for Canadians. Stopping the fight against climate change doesn’t make sense, backing off on the values and strength and diversity that Canada has always, always worked to pull itself together on, is not the right path for the country, attacking journalists, the CBC, institutions. That’s not what Canadians need in this moment, we need an ambitious, optimistic view of the future, and Pierre Poilievre is not offering that. I look forward to the fight as progressives across this country stand up for the kind of vision for a better country that Canadians have always carried despite the tremendous pressures around the world to think smaller, to veer towards the higher right and to be less ambitious for what we can be and do as a country When the world really needs Canada.
Reporter:
That’s not an answer, though, yes or no. Is there another leader that could beat him?
Justin Trudeau:
Absolutely.
Reporter (translated from French):
In December, 2008 Stephen Harper prorogued Parliament to avoid a vote of non-confidence that he knew that he would lose because the three opposition parties would vote against him. It’s the exact same situation that you find yourself in today, Stephen Dion at the time, had said, and I quote, that this was an affront to democracy. I’d like to know why what was bad for Conservatives of Stephen Harper should be good for the Liberals of Justin Trudeau?
Justin Trudeau:
In 2008, the Governor General correctly concluded that because the very last times in the previous weeks that the confidence of the house had been tested, it had passed that confidence test, Stephen Harper continued to have the confidence of the house, and it actually would bear out, because as soon as they came back from the prorogation, Stephen Harper won a confidence vote once again. So a political document or political speeches doesn’t carry the kind of weight that winning a confidence vote means, but this prorogation will take us only into March, and there will be confidence votes in March, in the passing of supply that will allow parliament to weigh in on confidence in a way that is entirely In keeping with all the principles of democracy and the workings of our strong institutions.
The Parliamentary Press Gallery and anyone who’s been watching politics closely over the past months, will know that Parliament has been entirely seized by obstruction and filibustering and a total lack of productivity over the past few months. We are right now the longest serving minority government in history, and it’s time for a reset. It’s time for the temperature to come down, for the people to have a fresh start in Parliament, to be able to navigate through these complex times, both domestically and internationally, and the reset that we have. Have is actually two parts. One is the prorogation, but the other part is recognizing that removing me from the equation as the leader who will fight the next election for the Liberal Party should also decrease the level of polarization that we’re seeing right now in the house and in Canadian politics, and allow people to actually focus on serving Canadians in this house and work the way Canadians deserve.
Reporter:
As you just said, there’s going to be confidence votes in March, opposition parties have said they are prepared to bring down your government. What kind of chances do you think you are leaving to your successor, given that there will only be mere weeks for them to introduce themselves to Canadians before heading into an election,
Justin Trudeau:
I have a tremendous amount of confidence in both Canadians and in parliamentarians interest in serving Canadians in the right way. There, we’re in a minority government right now, and there hasn’t been an active leadership in a minority government in more than 50 years in this country, and there is always going to be the challenge a leadership race, while a Parliament would face confidence votes in in in the course of delivering supply to the government. So this is something that we’re going to navigate through, but I truly feel that removing the contention around my own continued leadership is an opportunity to bring the temperature down. Have a government that will focus on the complex issues that are coming forward in the coming months, while the party gets to have a full national process that brings from right across the country and makes a determination about the best person to carry the progressive Liberal standard into the next election.
Reporter:
Can you clarify whether ministers who would like to campaign for your job will have to step out of cabinet, and how can the Liberal government be in a position to protect Canadian businesses and Canadians from the threat of tariffs from incoming President Donald Trump, when members of the government are going to be focused on who is going to be taking your job?
Justin Trudeau:
The government will still, and the Cabinet will still be very much focused on doing the job that Canadians elected us to do in 2021 which is fight for their interests, stand up for their well being and make sure that they are good and that Canadians are protected and strong. There will be a leadership process and the rules will unfold over the coming weeks, but I can assure you that the tools and the need to stand up for Canadians, to protect Canadians in their interests, and continue to fight for the economy. Is something that everyone in this government will be singularly focused on.
Resolutions. They’re a New Year’s tradition. Such as eating or drinking less and exercising more.
Kirk LaPointe (KirkLaPointe.ca)
Bob Mackin’s guest is veteran editor Kirk LaPointe, whose latest column for Glacier Media is headlined: “Improving democracy should be a New Year’s resolution for us all.”
Listen to the interview for a five-point plan to empower the people.
Vancouver’s FIFA World Cup 26 hotel room shortage worsened after Cadillac Fairview Corp. Ltd. (CF) decided to demolish instead of renovate the former Four Seasons Hotel.
The Pacific Centre owner confirmed Jan. 3 that it wants to replace the 25-storey tower and redevelop the former Nordstrom store. City of Vancouver’s website shows CF applied Dec. 3 to deconstruct the 1976-built tower, which closed in early 2020 when the Four Seasons lease expired. .
A section of the city’s FIFA bid book, obtained by theBreaker.news under a freedom of information adjudication, shows the 372-room Four Seasons was one of four downtown hotels designated for team use.
Four Seasons Hotel’s former tower in Vancouver (Mackin)
The Sutton Place, Shangri-La and Fairmont Pacific Rim are the others.
The Four Seasons was the closest, at 1 kilometre, to B.C. Place Stadium.
Vancouver was removed in March 2018 from the original U.S./Canada/Mexico 2026 bid to FIFA after the B.C. NDP government rebuffed FIFA demands.
Two months later, Vancouver’s Four Seasons announced it would close in 2020.
CF sued Four Seasons in October 2017, accusing the hotelier of breaching the lease by failing to furnish and equip the hotel “in accordance with the standard of a typical first-class luxury hotel.”
After the Four Seasons vacated, CF applied to renovate the tower’s interior and exterior in 2022, the same year that FIFA named Vancouver one of 16 co-hosts for the June 11-July 19, 2026 tournament.
Vancouver was already facing a hotel room shortage, with inventory falling from 15,242 rooms in 2002 to 13,290 in 2022. A report by MNP for Destination Vancouver said the rest of Metro Vancouver had an additional 10,002 rooms in 2022. MNP’s projection from 2023 to 2050 said demand for rooms would start to exceed supply in 2026.
Adding to the accommodation scarcity is the May 2024 provincial short-term rental restriction.
Hosts must be licensed by their municipality and are limited to renting a room in their principal residence, plus one additional unit, secondary suite or laneway suite on their property. Platforms, including Airbnb, VRBO and Expedia, must share data with the province.
Save the dates: Throne Speech Feb. 18 and budget March 4.
The new 93-seat parliament will sit a total 43 days through May 29 and return for another 24 days between Oct. 6 and Nov. 27.
Bob Mackin
When new Lt. Gov. Wendy Lisogar-Cocchia assumes the throne on Feb. 18, it will end a 278-day break since May 16, 2024.
Despite the provincial election on Oct. 19 and NDP cabinet swearing-in on Nov. 18, Premier David Eby did not stay true to his vow to “hit the ground running” to fix public safety, housing, affordability and healthcare concerns.
Premier David Eby takes the oath of office on Nov. 18 (BC Gov/YouTube)
There was talk of a single-day sitting before Christmas to elect a speaker. Instead, the bare-majority, 47-member NDP caucus did a Dec. 13 deal to gain support of the two-seat Green caucus against the 44-seat Conservative opposition.
How does B.C. compare with other jurisdictions?
In Ottawa, the House of Commons ended its fall session Dec. 17 and returns Jan. 27.
The 119th U.S. Congress convenes Jan. 3 to elect a speaker.
Washington State’s legislature returns Jan. 13, the second Monday in January. The state constitution requires 105 days in odd-numbered years (like 2025) and 60 days in even-numbered years.
The United Kingdom House of Commons, the model for B.C.’s Westminster legislature, went on Christmas recess Dec. 19 and resumes with Question Period on Jan. 6.
The countdown is on to the second inauguration of Donald Trump on Jan. 20. Will he follow through on his threat to slap 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods exported to the U.S.?
There is another highly consequential countdown, but it is receiving less attention. For now.
Bob Mackin
As of New Year’s Day 2025, only 526 days remain until the 48-nation, FIFA World Cup 26 kicks off in Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium on June 11, 2026.
British Columbia and FIFA flags in 2015 outside the Westin Bayshore host hotel (Mackin)
The next day, action gets underway in Toronto and Los Angeles.
The biggest single-sport tournament in history will last 39 days.
Seventy-two of the 104 matches will be played in the U.S., including the final on July 19 in New Jersey’s Meadowlands. The Miami-headquartered FIFA 26 organization boasts sponsorship from Saudi Arabia and Qatar state firms and Chinese computer and dairy companies.
Cities in Mexico and Canada are scheduled to host 13 matches each.
That is, coincidentally, 25% of the matches.
Trump is tying his unreasonable 25% tariff threat to reasonable concerns about illegal aliens and fentanyl flowing into the U.S. from 2026’s junior partners.
The tournament requires border security agencies of the three countries to co-operate. Also, their militaries and police agencies will need to collaborate to keep everyone safe in the 16 host cities and everywhere in between.
The overall security cost has not been announced. The operations and capital cost sticker shock is already apparent in places like Toronto and Vancouver, where taxpayers are told to expect bills of $380 million and $581 million, respectively.
For Vancouver, the cost-per-match is as much as $83 million.
Meanwhile, the homeless and the addicted are not hard to find around B.C. Place Stadium — which will be put to a pre-2026 operational test during the June 14-July 6, 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
If Trump doesn’t back down, should Canada’s Justin Trudeau and Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum threaten to withdraw as co-hosts of the primarily American mega-event?
“…sanctions, boycott of the competition or otherwise and other adverse acts imposed by the government and other governmental authorities, blockage, embargo, labour dispute, strike or lockout.”
A broad definition that very well could cover an unnecessary trade war among neighbours.
Welcome to theBreaker.news summary of the year that was, in alphabetical order.
Part 2: N to Z.
N for Northern Lights
John Rustad (left), David Eby and Sonia Furstenau on Oct. 8 (CBC/YouTube)
Also known as the Aurora Borealis. British Columbians were treated to a dazzling show in the clear night skies on May 10 after a rare G4 solar storm. Skywatchers flocked to the Cleveland Dam, Burnaby Mountain and Porteau Cove. There was a sequel five months later, on Oct. 10. Both events more than compensated for the disappointment of the April 8 partial solar eclipse blocked by clouds.
Selina Robinson, B.C.’s most-prominent Jewish politician, said she didn’t leave the NDP, the NDP left her.
Pro-Hamas Samidoun and its supporters targeted Robinson for cancellation when she suggested pre-1948 Israel was a “crappy piece of land.” Eby bowed to pressure and removed Robinson from cabinet in February. Robinson, a Zionist and promoter of a two-state solution, resigned from the party in March, accusing ex-colleagues of antisemitism. She served the rest of her term in office as an independent and published a memoir in December.
Samidoun leader Charlotte Kates was arrested at the end of April, but not charged, for inciting hate during one of her group’s many anti-Israel protests. In October, the Canadian and U.S. governments declared Samidoun a terrorist entity.
R for railway
Stanley Park Miniature Railway (Facebook)
The beleaguered Stanley Park Miniature Railway’s Christmas train was abruptly cancelled after a driver was overcome by locomotive exhaust. The beloved train has become a metaphor for civic dysfunction.
S for Springsteen and Swift
New Jersey’s most-famous son ended his 2024 tour at Rogers Arena. Two weeks later, and across the street, Taylor Swift filled B.C. Place with a trio of sold out shows to end her record-breaking Eras Tour. Fans got their money’s worth. The Boss played for three hours and 20 minutes, Swift for five minutes longer on her last night.
T for trees
More than 8,000 fewer trees stand in Stanley Park, as loggers removed trees killed by the Hemlock looper moth or otherwise deemed a wildfire risk. The Stanley Park Preservation Society lost a court bid to stop the logging. Vancouver city hall admitted to the court that Sim’s council voted in secret to increase the budget by $11 million.
U for United Arab Emirates
New Westminster Mayor Patrick Johnstone’s junket to the United Nations 2023 climate conference in Dubai was deemed conflict of interest almost a year later, but the investigator recommended he receive education as his penalty.
V for Victoria
In January, the Stanley Cup came to Victoria for the annual Hockey Day in Canada broadcast. In August, the capital welcomed the Grey Cup for the Touchdown Pacific game between the B.C. Lions and Ottawa RedBlacks at Royal Athletic Park.
Sold out Royal Athletic Park in Victoria during Aug. 31, 2024’s Touchdown Pacific (Mackin)
W for weather
January’s cold snap ruined tree fruit crops in the Interior and was blamed for the Parkland oil refinery emergency. The fall parade of storms included the atmospheric river on election day and a bomb cyclone a month later.
X for x on the ballot
Cloverdale-Langley City gave the Conservative candidate a two-thirds majority over the Liberal on the same day that Chrystia Freeland quit as finance minister instead of delivering the fall budget update. It sparked a blizzard of calls for Justin Trudeau to resign ahead of the scheduled October 2025 election.
Y for yoga mat, York candies and yellow Post-It notes
Those items were out of reach for London Drugs customers in April after the LockBit gang’s ransomware attack forced the retail chain to temporarily close. The B.C. government was also hit by a cyberattack, blamed on a foreign state or state-sponsored actor.
Z for zero Stanley Cups
The Vancouver Canucks reached the top of the NHL standings in January and sent coach Rick Tocchet with a club-record six players to All-Star Weekend in Toronto. But the championship drought continues after they fell one goal shy at home in Game 7 of round two against the eventual Stanley Cup runner-up Edmonton Oilers.
Florida Panther Sam Reinhart scored the Cup-winning goal in Edmonton. He brought Lord Stanley’s mug home on July 28 to West Vancouver and celebrated with Hollyburn Country Club and Capilano Golf and Country Club members.
The PNE is building one. It has doubled in price to $138 million. Pierre Karl Peladeau’s Freedom Mobile bought the naming rights for an undisclosed sum and it will be called the Freedom Mobile Arch when it opens to host FIFA World Cup 26 viewing parties.
2024 sign in Times Square, New York (Times Square/YouTube)
B for Bitcoin
Mayor Ken Sim wants Vancouver city hall to accept Bitcoin for tax payments and for city hall to invest in the cryptocurrency. It may never happen, but he did divert attention from two other Bs: budget and Broadway Plan. During the same period of 2023, his vow to end the elected park board distracted from the logging of Stanley Park.
C for Chip
Maverick athleisure and real estate billionaire Chip Wilson became the talk of the town when he erected a sign outside his mansion critical of his MLA — Premier David Eby. Judging by the Oct. 19 results, many voters around the province agree with Wilson.
D for Dobrovolny
Metro Vancouver commissioner Jerry Dobrovolny revealed the $3 billion cost overrun at the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant, now scheduled for a 2030 opening. Dobrovolny’s $711,500 pay and perks package from 2023 and his travel spending came under scrutiny. It sparked calls for an independent public inquiry and direct elections for Metro Vancouver directors.
E for Eby
The Premier hung on to power after the most-divisive and disinformation-riddled NDP campaign B.C. has ever seen. Eby’s party ended up with 47 seats, a slim majority, thanks to a 22-vote judicial recount in Surrey-Guildford. In December, new finance minister Brenda Bailey announced a $9.4 billion deficit.
F for Falcon
BC United leader Kevin Falcon pulled his party out of the election in a surprise Aug. 28 announcement. It eased fears of vote splitting and paved the way for John Rustad and his Conservatives to battle the NDP head-on.
North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant construction site on July 10, 2024 (Mackin)
G for Green
Leader Sonia Furstenau gambled and lost in Victoria-Beacon Hill, but the party remains with two MLAs — newcomers Jeremy Valeriote and Rob Botterell. Furstenau formally agreed to prop-up the NDP.
H for Horgan
Ex-premier John Horgan became Canada’s ambassador to Germany, but cancer returned. This time, it would not go away. He died at age 65 on Nov. 12 and was remembered with a Dec. 15 memorial at the home of his beloved Victoria Shamrocks, Colwood’s Q Centre.
John Rustad was one of two Conservative MLAs at the start of 2024. The party won 44 in the Oct. 19 election and might have won had Rustad performed better in the debate and had he been more discerning with candidate recruitment.
K for Kerfoot
Vancouver Whitecaps majority owner Greg Kerfoot hired Goldman Sachs to help sell the club. The reclusive Kerfoot rescued the USL version in 2002, but it has never been a threat to win a league championship since joining MLS in 2011. No guarantee the Whitecaps will remain in Vancouver, even though the club completes the Cascadia and Canadian trios.
The failure to beat the Lionel Messi-less Inter Miami on May 25 (and lacklustre compensation for disappointed ticket holders) epitomized the franchise, which said “addio” to popular coach Vanni Sartini, the Italian Ted Lasso, after the playoff loss to LAFC.
L for Lions
B.C.’s 70th anniversary season in 2024 did not go as planned for owner Amar Doman, who hosted the Toronto Argonauts and Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the Nov. 17 Grey Cup at B.C. Place. Quarterback Nathan Rourke returned from NFL tryouts mid-season. Afterward, Buck Pierce replaced Rick Campbell as coach.
