Thomas Müller has transformed Vancouver and now the Whitecaps are 90 minutes from MLS Cup

Vancouver has never seen anything like this. A club MLS -era record 53,957 fans packed BC Place on Saturday night, towel-waving and roaring through every twist of an unforgettable Western Conference Semifinal.

And when it was finally over-after 120 nerve-shredding minutes and a 4-3 shootout win over LAFC-the Vancouver Whitecaps had done it: They're heading to the MLS Cup Playoffs Western Conference Final for the first time in club history.

And no player has defined this rise more than Thomas Müller, the German legend who has become the most impactful signing Vancouver has ever made.

Müller's arrival changed everything

When Müller landed in Vancouver this past August after a 17-year career at Bayern Munich , the Whitecaps were already having a banner season. But the moment he put on the blue and white, the club leveled up. A World Cup winner. A Champions League winner.

One of the most decorated players of his generation. And right away, he backed it up with production-9 goals and 4 assists in 11 matches across all competitions-and an even bigger impact in mentality and leadership. Saturday night was another chapter in that story. Müller nearly scored in first-half stoppage time, rising to meet a Berhalter corner with a powerful header that Hugo Lloris barely punched off the line.

His presence alone forced LAFC to shift defensive attention, creating space for Mathías Laborda 's rebound finish that put Vancouver up 2-0 before the break. After the match, Müller summed up the night and this team's spirit simply: "Everything was what makes our sport so beautiful. We've seen it all tonight. Thank you, everybody, for your support."

A historic night at BC Place

This was the kind of game that lives in club folklore. LAFC threw everything they had at Vancouver -especially superstar Son Heung-Min , whose two late goals dragged the match into extra time. The Whitecaps even played the final minutes of regulation down a man after MLS Defender of the Year Tristan Blackmon was controversially sent off.

Yet Vancouver held on. They survived LAFC hitting the post, crossbar, and post again in a chaotic sequence in extra-time stoppage time. They absorbed wave after wave of pressure. And then they handed the moment to 26-year-old Mathías Laborda , who buried the decisive penalty to send BC Place into euphoria.

Shootout hero. Match winner. Western Conference Final , booked. The Whitecaps ' run under first-year head coach Jesper Sørensen is already one of the most remarkable seasons in MLS this year, and with Müller arriving midseason, the team has become must-watch soccer. "This group, this city... I'm so proud to be part of it," Müller said after the win. Vancouver fans feel the same.