Every year we get to about this time and you start to see comments to the effect of “training camp is X number of days away and the team hasn’t made any significant signings!” The fact that this is the case literally every single year doesn’t seem to deter the discourse. So, I thought I would throw together a quick analysis of when signings usually happen, thus putting an end to this discourse once and for all!
Below is a chart of pre-season Whitecaps signings since 2019, excluding the off-season between 2020 and 2021. That season was heavily effected by Covid-19 and as such isn’t very representative. Next to each signing is the data the player was acquired (or at least the date their acquisition was announced) and how many days that had been since the previous season’s MLS final. I haven’t included players acquired through various drafts or through a draft and trade move (like Tristan Blackmon) since those happen on scheduled dates.
| Player | Date | Off-season day |
| Fafa Picault | 11/01 | 32 |
| Bjorn Utvik | 30/01 | 51 |
| Joe Bendik | 17/02 | 70 |
| Belal Halbouni | 05/02 | 58 |
| Damir Kreilach | 29/12 | 19 |
| Sergio Cordova | 20/02 | 106 |
| Mathias Laborda | 09/01 | 64 |
| Yohei Takaoka | 17/02 | 103 |
| Sebastian Berhalter | 04/02 | 54 |
| Lucas Cavallini | 16/12 | 35 |
| Janio Bikel | 28/02 | 66 |
| Leonard Owusu | 21/01 | 36 |
| Cristain Dajome | 17/01 | 32 |
| Cristian Guiterrez | 16/01 | 31 |
| David Milkinkovic | 27/01 | 42 |
| In-Beom Hwang | 30/01 | 52 |
| Jasser Khmiri | 01/02 | 55 |
| Jon Erice | 22/01 | 44 |
| Lucas Venuto | 25/01 | 47 |
| Maxime Crepeau | 09/12 | 1 |
| Scott Sutter | 30/1 | 52 |
| Fredy Montero | 15/02 | 69 |
| Derek Cornelius | 18/01 | 40 |
| Joaquin Ardaiz | 08/02 | 62 |
| Erik Godoy | 08/02 | 62 |
| Andy Rose | 27/01 | 49 |
| Lass Bangoura | 23/01 | 45 |
| Zac MacMath | 17/12 | 8 |
| PC | 04/01 | 26 |
The average day the Whitecaps acquires a player ahead of an MLS season is 48 days after the previous season’s MLS Cup Final. So, in the case of the upcoming season, you should start watching out for signings around January 25th.
Why is it like this?
It all has to do with European transfer windows. The MLS primary transfer window (i.e. the window between seasons) lines up with the European secondary window (the in-season transfer window). Players tend to hold out for a move to Europe, which is still the epicentre of world soccer. Only when it becomes clear that isn’t going to happen for them do you see players start taking an MLS move into consideration. Furthermore, clubs in Europe generally don’t want to let their useful players go mid-season. This is why bigger moves tend to happen during the summer.
You’ll notice most of the moves that happened earlier tend to be intra-MLS moves, either trades or free-agent signings. These can happen much faster because those players already have work permits and sometimes even MLS contracts. If you only look at players coming from outside of MLS the average off-season day jumps to day 54 (January 31st for the 2025 season). If you further discount players coming from outside MLS who were domestic players the average day jumps up to 57 (February 3rd for the 2025 season).
What is more concerning about no signings is that we still have not appointed a new Head Coach just 6 weeks before the season opener.
So, he’s going to have no say on the players brought in, and we will then have our traditional slow start to the season with the excuse that our new coach does not yet know the players he has been given to work with.
I think they need a guy who is a reliable danger man in Canadian Championship games, can stretch opponents late in games, might score a goal purely through being really fast in MLS, and is perfect for an off-budget senior minimum slot on the roster…
I guess Schuster (as well as the rest of the GMs in MLS) didn’t value Johnson as highly as you do.
how you managed to work out these details is a mystery– you have a digging and curious mind
i do think there will be 1 signing coming soon as the Team heads to pre-season in Spain next week, i believe – Axel kind of hinted at that possibility– and he also said, 2 upgrades will be in the attacking area where we really lack depth– lets get some trickiness and speed to match up with White and Gauld
the head coach should be known in the next 10 days IMO- i think the Caps wanted Bradley Carneell, but he took the Philadelphia job– that leave either a euro free agent or ex- MLS coaches, Jim Curtin or Givanni Savarese (still leaning towards Curtin)
Like the idea of more trickiness and speed ( not to forget accuracy ) up front, and I agree with you, they may be looking in that direction, at least I hope so. As to coaching, I think we may be headed for an upgrade there too. Vanni was a great motivator and PR man, but perhaps lacked a bit on the tactical side, as a number of people have suggested.
Another thought, with respect to investors. You mentioned earlier in the week your hope regarding attracting some local investors to buy the team. I share that sentiment, but wonder, should we perhaps expand it to include all of Western Canada, as there is a fair bit of soccer interest out in the prairies and we have had a number of players join the team from out there. Perhaps the marketing department could put together some attractive travel and hotel packages ( even for the rest of B.C. ) and get more fans out here to fill that stadium.