At the latest since the Olympic gold, Canada's national soccer team is one of the favorites for the soccer World Cup for women. But their own association puts obstacles in the way of coach Bev Priestman's team. The players go on strike - and are forced to play.
World champions against Olympic champions, the best of the best will face off on the soccer field this Thursday. Canada vs. USA is the match in the traditional She Believes Cup for women's national teams - and although it's a duel, the footballers have teamed up beforehand. Because it's about more than sport.
The Canadians actually wanted to refuse, captain Christine Sinclair and her team had already gone on strike - against their own association. It's about outstanding payments, unequal treatment, canceled funds for preparation for the upcoming World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in the summer. Faced with legal repercussions that could reportedly cost them millions of dollars personally, they continued to train. "Canada Soccer was not willing to jeopardize the She Believes Cup," the federation said, noting that Ontario labor law does not legally allow players to go on strike without 17 days notice.
No strike, but clear protest: the players had turned their clothes inside out to hide the logo of the Canadian association CSA. "We're exhausted and we're at our wits' end. This is probably the most important fight we've had as national team players and we're determined to win it," Sinclair said on Instagram. Coach Bev Priestman said: "It's very challenging." The players are not only concerned with themselves, but also with the rights and opportunities of future generations, and she is proud of that, says the Englishwoman, who has been coaching the team since 2020.
The allegations weigh heavily: Canada is one of the favorites at the World Cup, they are reigning Olympic champions, after winning bronze twice in a row in the previous games, they managed the big coup in Tokyo. But the association does not appreciate the top performance. Instead, the women complain that they were not paid at all in 2022, the association defends itself with the statement that there are "retroactive payments". There are reports that Canada's men received nearly €7.7 million in support in 2021, and women around 3.5 million. The values for the last year are still pending.
In addition, the funds for the team are reduced. The association has canceled a large part of the budget for this year, and staff and players are also to be cut. While there was still a preparatory camp with 28 players before the Olympic Games, this was reduced to 20 people for the preparation for the World Cup. Eleven against eleven in training? Mathematically impossible. The duration of the training camp was also shortened.
This causes trouble, especially in comparison with the means for the men. In 2022, under the leadership of former women's coach John Herdman, they qualified for a world championship for the first time in 36 years. They were celebrated for it - and obviously greatly rewarded. International player Janine Beckie said she was there in Qatar and was amazed at the resources at the team's disposal. The men's team received about twice as many staff as the women's team. "If that's the case with the men, then we expect to get everything Bev (Coach Priestman, editor's note) asks for at our World Cup in a few months," said the 28-year-old. Incidentally, it didn't help the men: Davies and Co. were eliminated in the group stage with zero points.
"It's pretty disgusting that we have to ask to be treated equally," Beckie said. "It's a struggle that women around the world have to fight every day. But honestly, we're fed up and it's something that doesn't disappoint me anymore, it just makes me angry because it's 2023." Their stance is unmistakable: "We won the damn Olympics and we're going to go to the World Cup with a team that can win them, so we expect to be as prepared as we can to win a World Cup."
Of course, there is also the issue of payment. According to the players, this was not the case last year, but for the future they are looking for similar bonuses as for the men. The players, including Bayern professional Alphonso Davies, agree: they want to "support the women wholeheartedly". You are also familiar with quarrels with the association, last summer they went on strike - also five months before the start of the World Cup. In a statement, the men said they were "deeply disappointed". Nobody knows how the Canadian association uses funds. This casts a bad light on the association, which will host the upcoming men's World Cup in 2026 together with the USA and Mexico.
There is also support from US women. You know how a fight against your own association sucks, but also how it can be conducted successfully. Last year, the women world champions, who are also significantly more successful than their male colleagues, won the fight for equality. US star Megan Rapinoe stressed that she was stunned why the Canadian federation treated its players like this after winning a major international title: "We are talking about the Olympic champions here." The US team assured the Canadians that they would be willing to help and advise them despite the rivalry. "There are just things that are so much more important than what's happening on the field, like basic human rights and respect and what they deserve," Rapinoe said.
The She Believes Cup is one of the most important invitational tournaments in women's football. This year, Canada, Brazil and Japan are taking part alongside the host USA. The event is an important signpost on the way to the World Cup. This takes place from July 20th to August 20th in Australia and New Zealand. Until then, there should be more "tiring and emotional" weeks for the Canadians.
