In 1979, the team from the "Village of Vancouver" (a reference to ABC TV sportscaster Jim McKay's observation that "Vancouver must be like the deserted village right now", with so many people watching the game on TV) beat the powerhouse New York Cosmos in one of the most thrilling playoff series in NASL history to advance to the 1979 Soccer Bowl.

Saturday, September 8, 1979, they triumphed against the Tampa Bay Rowdies at the Giants Stadium before a crowd of 50,699 (66,843 tickets had been sold for the game).

The Whitecaps attendance at Empire Stadium grew to an average of 28,000 per game with playoff matches reaching the 32,000 capacity.

The seven-person ownership group was led by Herb Capozzi and included several businesspeople from the Lower Mainland.

[6] The team announced their name, the Whitecaps, in February 1974 and signed their first player, former West Bromwich Albion striker and Vancouver native Glen Johnson.