Valour FC fans react to club suspending operations

It’s a sad day for Winnipeg soccer, as Canadian Premier League team Valour FC announced that they’re suspending operations. And soccer fans in town are disappointed with the news.

“We’ve gone to games every season with our kids, my husband and I, and it was a great experience because the fans made it a good experience. The people behind the team didn’t put enough effort, it was a big space and experiences weren’t there, advertising wasn’t there, it was always us seeking out because we love soccer,” said Lisa Wilson, a Valour fan since 2019.

Calvin Yong, whose daughter plays youth soccer, says, “We have baseball, hockey, football, and so on, so with the Soccer it was kind of nice rounding it out, and even with basketball coming through. They’re not the only program, even U of W Women’s lost theirs, so it’s a hard time for soccer.”

The club, which was owned by the Winnipeg Football Club, made the announcement on Friday.

“After extensive work with the Canadian Premier League and a thorough review of every available option, Valour FC has made the difficult decision to suspend operations effective immediately. Without continued financial backing or a viable long-term investment model, there was no sustainable path forward for the club,” said President and CEO Wade Miller in a statement to CityNews.

Some fans say the impact will hurt the most for young players, who are losing a pro team to look up to.

“Saddened, and disappointed that a pro team [left] because when you’re a kid playing the game, you know as an amateur, you look up to the pro or even the semi-pro athletes,” said Gordon Smith, whose granddaughter plays youth soccer.

Michael Gregoire, who has two kids that play youth soccer, says, “It’s a massive loss for youth soccer in Winnipeg, and partly because players can only strive to what they’ve seen happen before them.  So when you take your kids to a game that’s at a professional level, they learn a lot through that in terms of the physicality in particular, which you don’t learn naturally until you see the real thing.”

Adding, “It’s disappointing, I really wanted to have a good Canadian league to thrive, and it’s unfortunate this team couldn’t make it.”

Wilsson says, “I just want to say to the players, I’m sorry that we’re losing you guys, we’ll look for you wherever you are and we will always be Valour fans forever.”