The supporters culture continues to grow from sideline to sideline in the south end of BC Place at Whitecaps FC home matches. It’s a teeming mass of flag waving, ground stomping and song singing that carries stadium wide. In the mass of activity in the south end you will find a brand new group in the west corner, or curve: Curva Collective.
From anywhere in the stadium, the large Curva Collective banner on the railing of Section 203/204 is hard to miss. Up close, there is another presence which is hard to miss: one of the group's capos (the chant leader), Zachary. Near Zachary you’re likely to hear a loud drum being played by Massimo. These two individuals are long time Whitecaps FC supporters who have been part of starting up this new group.
While these two fans are prominent in the group they are not the leaders. Decisions are reached as their name suggests: they all work together as a collective to come to a group consensus. This ties into the vision the group has for itself, as stated by Massimo.
“We’re open to growth, but it needs to be people who support our ideal that it’s the play on the pitch that comes first, and we support that play.”
They are seeking not only to work as a collective, but also to display their support using a wide collection of soccer supporting traditions. Zachary said that one way to observe this is their chant selection, which he describes as “a wealth of different songs that can work very well with supporting the ‘Caps.” He added that they “don’t want to be pigeonholed as a group that only supports in one style.” A visual example of this was the D.C. United match, where Curva displayed a flag for the country and province of each player on the team. When asked what the Collective wants for their future, Massimo said: “The ultimate goal of the Collective is to be the best supporters we can be in the hopes that it spreads all across the grounds.”
Those wishing to learn more about Curva Collective can contact them through Twitter @CurvaCollective, by email CurvaCollective@gmail.com or by getting tickets down in Section 203/204 to join in.
