Pacific Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Greater Victoria, British Columbia. The club competes in the Canadian Premier League (CPL), playing home matches at Starlight Stadium located in Langford.
Pacific FC were the second club to win a CPL title which they did in 2021. As a result of the win, they qualified for and played in the 2022 CONCACAF League.
History On May 5, 2018, "Port City FC" was one of four groups accepted by the Canadian Soccer Association for professional club membership, along with groups that would become Cavalry FC, HFX Wanderers, and York9. Port City was the only one of the four that was not identified with a specific city, and represented an as-of-yet undetermined location in British Columbia. The group was expected to launch a team in either Greater Victoria or Surrey, British Columbia. Former professional player Rob Friend, who grew up in British Columbia, was pictured as a representative of the region. On June 1, the Canadian Premier League granted the Port City ownership group a club on Vancouver Island.
Pacific FC was officially unveiled on July 20 as the seventh team to join the Canadian Premier League. As well as confirming its place in the league for the 2019 launch season, the club also revealed its crest, colours and branding. Former Denmark international Michael Silberbauer was announced as the first head coach on August 20.
They played their first competitive game on April 28, 2019, defeating visitors HFX Wanderers 1–0 with Hendrik Starostzik scoring the only goal and Mark Village keeping a clean sheet. The club parted ways with Silberbauer on October 18, 2019, and announced then-assistant coach James Merriman as interim head coach. Former Norway international Pa-Modou Kah was named permanent head coach before the 2020 season.
On August 26, 2021, they were matched against Major League Soccer opposition for the first time, being drawn against provincial opponents Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the quarterfinals of the Canadian Championship. Although underdogs, they defeated the Whitecaps 4–3, becoming the second CPL club to eliminate an MLS club in the competition.
On December 5, Pacific FC won its first Canadian Premier League title after defeating defending champions Forge FC 1–0 in the 2021 CPL Final at Tim Hortons Field. In doing so they became the second team to have been crowned Canadian Premier League champions. Head coach Pa-Modou Kah resigned during the offseason and was replaced by assistant coach James Merriman.
In 2022, Pacific participated in CONCACAF League for the first time. They won their preliminary round matchup but were eliminated in the round of 16 by Herediano of Costa Rica. In the CPL, Pacific recorded their highest point total to date (46 points) but were eliminated in the semifinals of the league playoffs.
In September 2025, SixFive Sports & Entertainment – owners of Pacific FC – announced that they were exploring a sale of the team. On May 26, 2026, Pacific parted ways with James Merriman following a 17-match winless streak. Merriman had served as head coach since 2022 and the been with the club since the inaugural 2019 season. The winless streak continued into the summer, reaching 27 matches and more than 365 days by August 15, 2026.
Stadium
The club plays its home games at Starlight Stadium. The city of Langford planned to increase the capacity from 1,718 to 8,000, but a utility pole located on the north side of the stadium has prevented any upgrades on that side. By extending the existing south stand and adding seating behind both goals as well as new standing room on the north side, the capacity was increased to 6,200 for the 2019 season.
Crest and colours
The club's branding is designed to represent Vancouver Island. The team's crest is the shape of a Douglas fir, a tree native to Vancouver Island, split into two segments, with the right side forming the shape of the island. The tree is bordered by the ocean and includes a single chevron to represent a wave of the ocean and a 'V' that can stand for Victoria, victory and Vancouver Island.
The secondary logo is a roundel with a trident, meant to represent the strength and courage of the island, as well as the weather attributed to the Pacific Ocean. The logo also includes the motto of the coat of arms of the city of Victoria, which is the Latin phrase Semper Liber ().
The official club colours are purple, teal, and white (branded by the club as "starfish purple", "lagoon blue", and "lighthouse white"). These colours symbolize the native Pisaster ochraceus sea star, the Pacific Ocean, and the region's lighthouses.
Kit history
Home and away kits.
Home
Away
Kit suppliers and sponsors +PeriodKit manufacturerChest sponsorSleeve sponsor2019–2022MacronVolkswagenNone2023–2024TelusCIBC2025None 2026–presentHummelMoneris
Club culture Supporters The first supporters group to show support for a Vancouver Island team to join the Canadian Premier League was the Lake Side Buoys, an existing group who followed the Victoria Highlanders of USL League Two. A second supporters group, called Torcida Oranizada Pacific (TOP) has also emerged.
Rivalries Vancouver FC
Pacific first battled Vancouver FC during the opening match day of the 2023 season at Starlight Stadium with Pacific winning the contest 1-0 with a late winner by Manny Aparicio during the second meeting the teams met at Willoughby Community Park Stadium which lead to a thrilling 6–3 victory with the winner scored by Easton Ongaro.
Cavalry FC
Pacific FC met Cavalry FC for the first time in the Canadian Premier League in the final fixture of the 2019 Spring season, winning 3–1 at Westhills Stadium in an intense match which saw three players sent-off. Pacific FC and Cavalry FC's rivalry intensified during the 2021 season where they met eight times across three Canadian competitions (Canadian Premier League, CPL Playoffs, and the Canadian Championship). This rivalry is also fueled by a pre-existing cultural rivalry between each team's respective province: Alberta and British Columbia.
Honours +Pacific FC honoursTypeCompetitionTitlesSeasonsDomesticCanadian Premier League12021
+ Best results in other competitionsCompetitionResultSeasonCanadian Championship Semi-finals 2021, 2023, 2024CONCACAF League Round of 16 2022
Players and staff Roster
Staff
ExecutiveCoaching staff
Head coaches
CoachNationTenureRecordGWDLWin % Michael Silberbauer August 20, 2018 – October 18, 2019 James Merriman (interim) October 18, 2019 – January 14, 2020 Pa-Modou Kah January 14, 2020 – January 21, 2022 James Merriman January 21, 2022 – May 21, 2026 Yiannis Tsalatsidis (interim) May 21, 2026 – July 6, 2026 Terry Dunfield July 7, 2026 – present
Club captains
YearsNameNation 2019–2020 Marcel de Jong 2021–2022 Jamar Dixon 2023–present Josh Heard
Team records
Year-by-year SeasonLeaguePlayoffsCCContinentalAverage attendanceTop goalscorer(s)DivLeaguePldWDLGFGAGDPtsPPGPos.NameGoals2019 1 CPL 2887133546–11311.11 5th DNQ R1 Ineligible 3,102 Terran Campbell 112020 CPL 104241613+3141.40 4th DNQ DNQ N/A Marco Bustos 52021 CPL 2813694734+13451.61 3rd W SF 3,812 Terran Campbell 112022 CPL2813783633+3461.64 4th SF QF CONCACAF League R16 3,176 Alejandro Díaz 162023 CPL28117104235+7401.43 4th SF SF DNQ 3,241 Ayman Sellouf 72024 CPL2897122732–5341.21 5th Play-in SF DNQ 3,041 Dario Zanatta Ayman Sellouf 52025 CPL2858153059–29230.82 7th DNQ PR DNQ Alejandro Díaz Aly Ndom 6
1. Average attendance include statistics from league matches only. 2. Top goalscorer(s) includes all goals scored in league season, league playoffs, Canadian Championship, CONCACAF League, and other competitive continental matches.
International competition The following is a list of results for Pacific FC in international competitions. Pacific FC's scores are listed first.
YearTournamentRoundOpponentHomeAwayAgg.2022CONCACAF League Preliminary Round Waterhouse Round of 16 Herediano
Player records
Most career goals
#Pos.NameNationCareer at clubGoals scoredCPLInt'lTotal1ForwardAlejandro Diaz2020–20222623312ForwardTerran Campbell2019–20212320253ForwardJosh Heard2020–1522194ForwardMarco Bustos2020–20221401155MidfielderManny Aparicio2021–202391010 Note: Bold indicates active player
Most career assists
#Pos.NameNationCareer at clubGoals AssistedCPLInt'lTotal1MidfielderManny Aparicio2021–20231411162ForwardMarco Bustos2022–20221500153ForwardTerran Campbell2019–2021820104ForwardJosh Heard2020–6129ForwardAlejandro Diaz2020–20229009 Note: Bold indicates active player
Most career appearances
#Pos.NameNationCareer at clubGames playedCPLInt'lTotal1ForwardJosh Heard2020–1411341582MidfielderSean Young2020–20251431041573DefenderThomas Meilleur-Giguère2020–20241061041204DefenderKunle Dada-Luke2021–20241021141175DefenderKadin Chung2019–2021, 2025–10160107 Note: Bold indicates active player
References
External links