Canada hit with six-point deduction over spying scandal

Fifa has made its decision on the drone spying scandal at the Paris Olympics and it’s big.

Canada have been deducted six points while three coaches have been banned for a year.

The Canadian soccer federation, Canada Soccer, has also been fined 200,000 Swiss francs ($383,855).

Head coach Beverley Priestman is among the coaches banned for a year.

Fifa found Priestman and her two assistants “were each found responsible for offensive behaviour and violation of the principles of fair play”.

Canada are the reigning Olympic women’s football champions after winning gold at Tokyo 2021. After the scandal, Canada defeated the Football Ferns 2-1 in their tournament opener on Friday morning.

The New Zealand Olympic Committee lodged a complaint after staff from the Canadian squad were found to have flown a drone over Football Ferns training ahead of their match on July 22.

A further incident was also found to have happened on July 19 while the New Zealand women’s football team was training in St Etienne. Team Canada immediately acknowledged responsibility for the drone and released an apologetic statement.

“The Canadian Olympic Committee stands for fair-play and we are shocked and disappointed. We offer our heartfelt apologies to New Zealand Football, to all the players affected, and to the New Zealand Olympic Committee,” the COC wrote in a statement.

The Canadians had already sent home two staff members, analyst Joseph Lombardi and assistant coach Jasmine Mander.

Priestman earlier acknowledged her responsibility for the affair.

“On behalf of our entire team, I first and foremost want to apologise 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,” Priestman said.

“I am ultimately responsible for conduct in our programme. Accordingly, to emphasise our team’s commitment to integrity, I have decided to voluntarily withdraw from coaching the match on Thursday. In the spirit of accountability, I do this with the interests of both teams in mind and to ensure everyone feels that the sportsmanship of this game is upheld.”

The Canadian Olympic Committee said their staff will undergo mandatory ethics training.

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission