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Son Heung-min, LAFC visit Vancouver to resume march toward MLS Cup title

Published: 21 Nov. 2025, 15:44

Son Heung-min acknowledges fans after his team's 1-0 win over Ghana in a friendly football match at Seoul World Cup Stadium in Seoul on Nov. 18. [YONHAP]

Having completed his final international duty of the year for Korea, Son Heung-min will rejoin Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) this weekend as they resume their march toward their second MLS Cup title.

LAFC will visit Vancouver Whitecaps FC for the single-elimination showdown in the Western Conference semifinals of the MLS Cup Playoffs at BC Place in Vancouver at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.

LAFC, seeded third in the conference, eliminated Austin FC in the opening round, while No. 2 seed Vancouver sent FC Dallas home in the first round.

LAFC knocked off Vancouver in the past two postseasons and will look to lift the MLS Cup trophy for the first time since 2022. Vancouver will look for their first-ever trip to the Western Conference final.

The two sides had a 2-2 draw on May 11 and Vancouver prevailed 1-0 on June 29. Both matches were played before Son joined LAFC in August and instantly turned them into a strong title contender.

The South Korean superstar developed a deadly chemistry with Denis Bouanga, with the two combining to score an MLS-record 17 straight goals in one stretch. LAFC had the second-most goals in their conference with 65.

Vancouver scored one more goal than LAFC and also conceded the fewest goals in West with 38. Having never faced the Son-Bouanga duo, Vancouver will need a healthy Tristan Blackmon, the 2025 MLS Defender of the Year who has been sidelined since mid-September with a knee injury.

The Whitecaps have their own dynamic duo in the midfield, with the German legend Thomas Muller, who left Bayern Munich in the same summer transfer window that saw Son move to LAFC, and the 2025 MLS Best XI member Sebastian Berhalter.

After Korea's 1-0 win over Ghana in Seoul on Tuesday, Son revealed that LAFC had asked him to rejoin them early — likely after the 2-0 win over Bolivia last Friday — but he wanted to stay with the national team through the entire match window.

Son Heung-min of the Los Angles Football Club plays the Colorado Rapids in the first half at Dick's Sporting Goods Park on Oct. 18 in Commerce City, Colorado. [GETTY IMAGES/YONHAP]

"I decided to stay here because I always cherish the opportunity to represent the country and I think it should be my No. 1 priority," Son said. "Now that we've won two matches here, I want to reward my club with a good performance."

Son, who captained Tottenham Hotspur to the UEFA Europa League title in May this year for his first club trophy, said he would love to add another in America.

"As a football player, I would absolutely love to win a trophy. If a moment ever comes when I no longer have the desire to win, then that's when I should stop playing football," Son said. "I play football because I want to be a winner. There's no reason to hide that desire."

Yonhap