The Vancouver Rise FC was awarded the Best of BC award by Sport BC on Thursday (March 5).
The organization’s 58th annual awards, hosted by the CBC’s Scott Russell, honoured B.C.’s best in amateur sport, including athletes, coaches, teams and officials for outstanding performances in 2025.
The Best of BC award is supported by the province and is given to a team or person who has represented B.C. internationally or nationally in a professional or amateur sport, according to Sport BC.
The Vancouver Rise FC won the Northern Super Leagues (NSL) Diana Matheson Cup in the league’s inaugural 2025 season.
“Congratulations to all the finalists of the 2025 Athlete of the Year Awards. This is the moment we celebrate your positive contribution to sport and community,” says Anne Kang, Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport. “Your commitment inspires those around you and demonstrates the importance of sport in bringing people together to build a stronger, more inclusive future for everyone.”
The Vancouver Rise FC are part of Canada’s first professional women’s soccer league, the Northern Super League, which had its first season in 2025. The other clubs are Calgary Wild FC, Halifax Tides FC, Montréal Roses, Ottawa Rapid FC and AFC Toronto.
The defending champions, the Vancouver Rise FC, kick off their second season with the first home match against AFC Toronto.
The last time the two teams faced off was in the Northern Super League championship match, which Rise FC won 2-1.
The full list of Sport BC award-winners is posted on sportbc.com.
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-With files from Tom Zillich