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CTV News
21 minutes ago
- CTV News
Thomas Muller set to make Vancouver Whitecaps debut vs. Houston Dynamo
New Vancouver Whitecaps player Thomas Muller poses with his jersey during a news conference in Vancouver, on Thursday, Aug. 14, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck VANCOUVER — German soccer legend Thomas Muller will step onto the field as a Vancouver Whitecap for the first time this weekend. Whitecaps head coach Jesper Sorensen confirmed after training on Friday that the team's latest acquisition will be on the roster when Vancouver hosts the Houston Dynamo on Sunday. 'He will be in the squad and he will be on the pitch. For how long, we're going to find out,' Soresen said. 'Everyone's excited, everyone wants to go. But we also have to be aware that we have to do the right thing.' Muller, 35, trained with the 'Caps (13-6-6) for the first time on Friday, more than a week after signing with the Major League Soccer club. Rain poured down throughout the session, giving him a true taste of Vancouver. 'There's a good energy in the team. You can feel it on the pitch that the group is together, they enjoy to improve,' Muller said after training. 'Normal group of very good football players enjoying training sessions. Even if the Vancouver weather kicks in today.' The attacking midfielder comes to Vancouver following 17 seasons with Bayern Munich in the German Bundesliga. He scored 250 goals across all competitions, helping the club to 33 titles, including 13 league championships. Muller has also excelled in international play, winning the 2014 World Cup with Germany and taking home the Golden Boot from the 2010 World Cup after notching five goals and three assists. Having that level of a player in training is 'exciting,' said Whitecaps midfielder Ali Ahmed. 'Someone like him, with his background and experience, he's a serial winner, just knows how to play the game. One of the best to play the game, one of the best clubs in the world,' he said. 'For him to come here to Vancouver, great for the club. And not even the club, but some of the younger players and even more experienced players playing with a player of his profile.' Muller joins a 'Caps team that has hovered near the top of the Major League Soccer standings all year. While the club currently sits second in the Western Conference, injuries have slowly whittled away the starting lineup. Defenders Sam Adekugbe (Achilles) and Ranko Veselinovic (knee) are both out for the rest of the season with injuries, while captain Ryan Gauld continues to recover from the sprain knee cap he suffered back on March 8. Striker Brian White left the first leg of Vancouver's Canadian Championship semifinal series on Wednesday with hamstring tightness. Whether he'll be fit to play on Sunday remains to be seen, Sorensen said. Ahmed could return to the lineup, though, after missing nearly two months with the sprained ankle he suffered while playing for Canada in the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The 24-year-old Toronto native said he would 'hopefully' play on Sunday. The Whitecaps are coming off a 2-2 draw against Canadian Premier League side Forge FC in Canadian Championship play on Wednesday. The Dynamo (7-11-7) haven't played since last Saturday when they fought their way back to earn a 2-2 draw against Austin FC. With just nine games to go in their regular-season schedule, though, Houston remains four points below the playoff bar. The Whitecaps expect the Dynamo to come in hungry and motivated, Ahmed said. 'They're a good team. They're fighting to get into the playoffs this year,' he said. 'We know it won't be an easy game. We know everything surrounding that game. But I think we're all still very much locked in on winning and picking up three points.' HOUSTON DYNAMO (7-11-7) AT VANCOUVER WHITECAPS (13-6-6) Sunday, B.C. Place HISTORY BOOKS: The Whitecaps hold an 11-9-6 in all-time meetings with the Dynamo. The most recent matchup saw Vancouver take a 3-0 victory in Houston back on July 16. NEW DIGITS: Vancouver midfielder Ralph Priso will be sporting a new number on Sunday. The Canadian gave up his No. 13 to Muller and will instead wear No. 6. To thank him, Muller gifted Priso some traditional Bavarian lederhosen. HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: Playing at B.C. Place has been a strength for the 'Caps this season. Vancouver is 7-2-2 at home and already has more home wins than all of last season (6-7-4). This report by Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press, was first published Aug. 15, 2025.
CTV News
22 minutes ago
- CTV News
Golden Hawks football back after storied 2024 season
CTV's Colton Weins has a preview of what's the come this season after last year's champion run. The Wilfrid Laurier University Golden Hawks football team hosted a controlled scrimmage with the York Lions on Friday, as they look ahead to the upcoming season. It's been about nine months since Laurier played in the national U Sports football championship and excitement was especially high. 'It's August again so Football season is right around the corner, so I just can't wait,' Jesulayomi Ojutalayo, fourth year wide receiver for the Golden Hawks, said. golden hawks 2025 Wilfrid Laurier and York University at a controlled scrimmage at University Stadium Aug. 15, 2025. (CTV News/Colton Wiens) The Golden Hawks' last season was one to remember. The team went undefeated through 11 games and came up just short in the national final. 'You have a nine month off season. And we have the shortest off season of all, having played in the Vanier Cup. And it's still a long time in the weight room, in the meeting rooms and no games. So the fact that training camps here, we're having a joint practice and scrimmage against York today and then our season opener at Guelph next Saturday, there's a lot of excitement around the program,' Michael Faulds, head coach of the Golden Hawks, said. Faulds has been telling players since January not to think of all of last years success, but instead that every season is new, with new players and in need of a new identity. 'So we know last year put a target on our back. So we're going to get everyone's best. But we've got a very mature group, a very talented group that knows we're going to have to earn everything,' Faulds said. One position with a lot of questions this season is who takes over for star quarterback Taylor Elgersma -- who's now with the NFL's Green Bay Packers. 'We've got five quarterbacks in house, all working really hard and like a lot of other positions, we're asking everyone to compete. We haven't solidified starters anywhere. But that's a good problem to have as coaches that you have a lot of guys competing, a lot of guys that want to dress and play,' Faulds said. Faulds doesn't expect anyone to fill Elgersma's shoes, but feels the depth of their roster will take a lot of pressure off whoever earns the job. 'Just be themselves, play mistake free football and try to win football games,' Faulds said. Despite not knowing their starter, leaders that are still in the lineup say the team's recent success has made a big impact on the program. 'I see definitely a culture change within the community, the guys have all bought into the process, which Coach Faulds has laid out for us. So, just trusting him every single day,' Ojutalayo said. 'I think recruits look at this as a destination where you can win a lot of football games, where you can be seen on the national stage, but it also means for recruits, which isn't easy for them to realize that you're probably going to have to be a developmental player before starting,' Faulds said. Ojutalayo is from Shelburne, Ont. He is in his fourth year of U Sports eligibility and in his fifth year of schooling at Laurier. He's graduating with a major in economics, and a minor in geography and leadership. It is also his pro draft year, and he spent the summer in Waterloo working for a window cleaning sales company. 'When I decided to leave home and committed to the Laurier Golden Hawks, I made a plan to myself that I'm going to do whatever it is to make sure I have the most development I can, and that includes staying in the summer,' Ojutalayo said. The Golden Hawks will start to solidify their starting lineup in the coming days and are set to kickoff the regular season on Aug. 23, against the Gryphons, at the University of Guelph.
National Post
38 minutes ago
- National Post
Surging Blue Jays crushing ratings game too with huge Sportsnet numbers
It's one of the toughest tickets in town for the live crowd as the Blue Jays have become one of the hottest stories in professional sports right now. Article content And as a result, the team with the best record in the American League is once again delivering a massive ratings bonanza for Sportsnet. Article content According to a source, the recently completed three-game series against the Chicago Cubs drew a stellar average of 1.26 million viewers on Sportsnet platforms. That's a huge number an any time of the season, but especially for three midweek games in the middle of August. Article content Article content The highest of the three was Tuesday's first game of the series against the Cubs, a game that drew an audience of 1.4 million viewers. That game would have grabbed a natural boost given the excitement associated with Sunday's dramatic win against the Los Angeles Dodgers in a series that also had two late-night starts which would have limited east coast viewership somewhat. Article content The momentum surrounding the team right now is starting to carry 2015 vibes as a likeable group of players who are rebounding from a last-place season in 2024. It also didn't hurt that popular broadcaster Buck Martinez is back in the booth and many of his long-time viewers were welcoming that return. Article content Article content 'The ratings are off the hook right now,' an industry insider said. 'And they're only going to continue to grow. Yes, it's the whole country tuning in, but it's pretty impressive.' So too is what the Jays are doing on the field. Entering Friday's opener of a three-game series against the Texas Rangers, the Jays carried an AL best record of 71-51 with a nice cushion of a five-game lead over the Boston Red Sox in the division. Article content Sportsnet wasn't able to reap the benefits of that momentum on Friday given it was the last Apple TV-plus game of the season. That MLB contractually driven reality isn't likely to dull the momentum much, however, given the Jays play of late. Article content Article content While the TV audiences are large and growing in momentum, this is nothing new for the Jays, who have long been the any of most MLB franchises for the engaged, coast-to-coast audience. Article content But with the NFL still in training camps, this is the time for the Jays to seize a captive and engaged audience, a reality for Sportsnet, especially during seasons in which the Jays are contenders. Article content As for the in-stadium crowds, the Jays are cashing in that department as well. Prior to Friday, the Jays had sold out 13 consecutive games at the Rogers Centre, where they have a 40-20 record this season for an AL-leading .667 win percentage. Article content
