And while he has yet to release the findings, Soccer Canada CEO and Secretary General Kevin Blue lifted the veil slightly Friday on what promises to be a bigger Pandora’s box.
“Our first review of the independent investigator’s findings reveals that the Paris drone incident was a symptom of a past pattern of unacceptable culture and insufficient supervision within national teams,” Blue said in a brief press release.
“While we are considering how best to respond to the findings, we also want to act decisively. To this end, we will publish key findings and next steps within a week.”
The statement follows earlier indications from Soccer Canada that suggested the Olympic scandal was not an isolated misstep.
On July 31, Soccer Canada announced that it had retained the services of Sonia Regenbogen of the law firm Mathews, Dinsdale & Clark to handle the review of the Olympic incident “and, subsequently, any related matters d ‘a historical nature’.
Canadian women’s team coach Bev Priestman, her assistant Jasmine Mander and analyst Joseph Lombardi are under one-year suspension by FIFA following a complaint filed by the Olympic Committee New Zealander to the International Olympic Committee’s integrity unit, alleging drones flew over two training sessions leading up to the tournament.
Priestman is still being paid by Soccer Canada pending a decision from FIFA. But its future is uncertain.
Canada’s women’s team managed to qualify for the elimination round of the Olympics despite being stripped of six points for the spying scandal, which also landed Soccer Canada with a fine of 200,000 Swiss francs (317 660 dollars).
The Canadians, currently sixth in the world and the reigning Olympic champions, were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Germany in a penalty shootout.
Canada
