German soccer star Muller set for debut with Whitecaps

VANCOUVER - Thomas Muller will come off the bench to make his debut for the Vancouver Whitecaps on Sunday. 

Muller was not in the starting lineup for Vancouver's game against the Houston Dynamo, but head coach Jesper Sorensen said earlier in the week that the 35-year-old attacking midfielder would play.

Hundreds of fans lined Terry Fox Plaza outside of B.C. Place, awaiting the German soccer star's arrival ahead of the Major League Soccer match. 

Many in the crowd were clad in crisp new Whitecaps jerseys emblazoned with Muller's No. 13, while others wore the kit of his former club, Bayern Munich. 

At least two people wore lederhosen, a nod to the World Cup winner's Bavarian roots, and several German flags lined the barriers.

Muller signed with the Whitecaps earlier this month following 17 seasons with Bayern Munich in the German Bundesliga where he scored 250 goals across all competitions and helped the club to 33 titles, including 13 league championships. 

He's also excelled in international play, winning the 2014 World Cup with Germany and taking home the Golden Boot from the 2010 World Cup after notching five goals and three assists. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 17, 2025.