The Rise FC Kicks Off Their First Ever Season on April 16

As someone whose rec-league soccer team who sets a new record every season (for losing an unheralded amount of games), it was more than exciting to learn last summer that a new football club would be launching in our fair city. And judging from the amount of hype leading up to that team’s inaugural match next week, I’m not the only one thrilled to see both the beautiful sport and female athletes get their moment in the spotlight.

On April 16, the brand-new Rise FC will take the field at BC Place against Calgary for their first-ever match in the also-brand-new Northern Super League. It’s a historic event, one that has Rise president Sinead King “excited and terrified,” she joked in a call today.

Though the team will play the rest of their season at Swanguard Stadium, the debut of the team is a big deal, and deserves a big venue to match—so BC Place it is. Kick-off can’t come soon enough: the pre-season has been going for two months and the players are just itching to get out there, says King. “Everybody’s ready to see what the other teams look like and have a competitive match.”

Vancouver was the very first team to sign with the Northern Super League, a fact that King things speaks to the sport’s history in Vancouver. “Christine Sinclair holds the record for most goals ever, and has long been a hometown hero. We’ve got the Whitecaps, the 86ers have so much nostalgia, we hosted the 2015 Women’s World Cup… it’s a city that’s rich in soccer.” She sees the city as the home of women’s soccer in Canada, in fact, so “this feels like it’s full circle.”

The league’s rule is that only seven of your 25 players can be international, which gives Canadian players a chance to play pro in their home country for the first time. “Previously, we were the only top-10 FIFA ranked team without a pro league. If you were a young girl wanting to play professionally, you’d have to go abroad,” says King.

It’s not like this is the first time in history that women have been good at sports. “Women who play sports are like, ‘well, we’ve been playing the whole time,'” laughs King. But there’s now confidence from investors that there’s money to be made from it, thanks to the success of other leagues like the WNBA or the PWHL. The broadcast deals and sponsorships that Rise has scored already prove that women’s soccer has a chance to be just as big, and help women’s sport in general continue to prove its worth. Soccer or otherwise, women’s sports leagues are all talking to each other and sharing information, says King. “We want to do this right and be transparent and work together to be successful. This isn’t a moment… it’s a movement, and it’s worth investing in.”

Tickets to the season opener April 16 at BC Place and season tickets are available now at vanrisefc.com