Bev Priestman is out as coach of the Canadian women’s soccer team in the wake of an independent report into the Olympic drone-spying scandal.
Canada Soccer says assistant coach Jasmine Mander and analyst Joseph Lombardi, who like Priestman are serving a one-year FIFA ban over the illegal use of a drone to film New Zealand at training, also will not be returning to the organization.
Lombardi has already resigned. Canada Soccer says it is currently determining the exact nature of Priestman’s and Mander’s departure.
Canada Soccer has also opened a case against former coach John Herdman under its disciplinary code, saying the review unearthed “potential violations” of the organization’s code of conduct and ethics by the former head coach of the men’s national team.
Herdman did not speak to Sonia Regenbogen, who authored the independent report. Canada Soccer said the two were unable to meet due to scheduling issues.
Canada Soccer only released a redacted version of Regenbogen’s summary of the report. But chief executive officer Kevin Blue says the drone incident in Paris “was a symptom of a past pattern of an unacceptable culture and insufficient oversight within the national teams.”
WATCH l Emails show how an analyst pushed back against spying:
Canadian soccer coaches were so ‘obsessed’ with obtaining information about their opponents that they would pressure employees to take part in spying activities, Radio-Canada has learned. Sources within Canada Soccer say the drone scandal at the Paris Olympics was not the first incident.
