Canada crisis! Olympic champions docked SIX points in Paris as FIFA bans Priestman
Bev Priestman coached Canada to Olympic women's soccer gold in Tokyo. Now she's been banned for a year over the drone spying scandal. The post Canada crisis! Olympic champions docked SIX points in Paris as FIFA bans Priestman appeared first on Outsports.
The drone spying scandal engulfing Canadian soccer continues, with the women’s team competing at the Paris 2024 Olympics docked points and their head coach handed a 12-month suspension.
FIFA handed down the punishments on Saturday, imposing a huge six-point deduction in Group A on the reigning Olympic champions and a fine of US $226,000.
Meanwhile, the team’s head coach Bev Priestman — who had already been removed from her duties at the Games by her federation — has now been banned from “any football-related activity for a period of one year” by the global game’s governing body.
JUST NOW
FIFA ruling just in on drone scandal. Canada deducted six points at Olympics. Fined CHF 200,000.
Priestman, Lombardi and Mander suspended from any football related activity for a year.
Full FIFA STATEMENT pic.twitter.com/tqSLVVTANy— Devin Heroux (@Devin_Heroux) July 27, 2024
Priestman, who guided The Canucks to gold in Tokyo three years ago, was suspended by Canada Soccer late Thursday after “additional information… regarding previous drone use” before the Olympics came to light. The Canadian Olympic Committee issued confirmation of her removal.
The 38-year-old had not been on the touchline in Saint-Etienne for the opening game of the Canadians’ title defense, a 2-1 victory over New Zealand whose formal complaint to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) initially brought attention to the matter.
Priestman and three players in the current Canada squad — Quinn, Kadeisha Buchanan and Kailen Sheridan — had all been part of the Team LGBTQ success story at Tokyo.
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The scandal first came to public attention on Tuesday, when the New Zealand Olympic Committee issued a statement saying it had formally complained to the IOC’s integrity unit over an incident in which a drone was spotted flying above its team training session the previous day.
“Team support members immediately reported the incident to police, leading to the drone operator, who has been identified as a support staff member of the wider Canadian Women’s football team, to be detained,” read the statement.
The NZOC said it was “deeply shocked and disappointed” and that Team Canada had issued a swift apology and was investigating the matter.
The Canadian Olympic Committee issued a statement of their own within 24 hours, revealing there had also been a previous drone incident at New Zealand practice Friday.
The COC said that as a result, it was immediately removing and sending home “unaccredited analyst” Joseph Lombardi and assistant coach Jasmine Lander.
“COC has accepted the decision of Head Coach Bev Priestman to remove herself from coaching the match against New Zealand on July 25,” the statement concluded.
Priestman also said: “On behalf of our entire team, I first and foremost want to apologize to the players and staff at New Zealand Football and to the players on Team Canada.
“This does not represent the values that our team stands for.”
Before being removed, Priestman had been due to return to her coaching duties for the Group A matches against hosts France on Sunday — also in Saint-Etienne — and Colombia in Nice next Wednesday.
However, it was then decided that assistant coach Andy Spence would replace her for the rest of the tournament.
Following the FIFA-imposed deduction, Canada are bottom of Group A on -3 points. They will almost certainly have to beat both France and Colombia to have any chance of reaching the quarterfinals.
On Thursday, TSN in Canada had reported more claims about the alleged use of drones by coaching staff and and contractors working with the men’s and women’s national teams of Canada Soccer.
The report quoted two anonymous sources who spoke about the filming of closed-door training sessions of Canada’s opponents. One of the sources claimed two Japan sessions were covertly filmed before the two teams drew their group-stage game at the Tokyo Olympics.
Priestman has been head coach of the Canadian senior women’s team since October 2020.
On her Instagram account, the former England assistant coach regularly shares pictures with her wife Emma Humphries — who is head coach of Canada’s Under-17 women’s team, and a former New Zealand international — and their young son, Jack.
Earlier in the week, New Zealand called up left-back Michaela Foster to their Olympic squad after captain Ali Riley was forced to pull out of the squad due to injury.
Foster, 25, who got engaged to fiancee Chelsea in 2022, is one of two out publicly gay players in the Football Ferns squad, the other being fellow defender Meikayla Moore.
As of Saturday, the total number of women’s soccer players (including alternates) on the Outsports’ Team LGBTQ roster for Paris 2024 stood at 46.
In Tokyo, there had been at least 42 out players in the Olympic women’s soccer competition by the end of the Games.
The post Canada crisis! Olympic champions docked SIX points in Paris as FIFA bans Priestman appeared first on Outsports.
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