May 9 – Former Olympian Charmaine Crooks has been elected Canada Soccer president for one year with the promise she will unify the membership and bring the sport “back to its rightful place”.
Crooks (pictured), took over as interim president in February, and will now complete the term of Nick Bontis who stepped down following pressure over the fractured relationship between the federation and its players over pay.
At the time Canadian Soccer was cresting a new wave with the men’s national team having returned to the World Cup for the first time since 1986 and the women’s team still riding high on the back of winning Olympic gold at the 2020 Olympic Games.
Crooks, a five-time Olympian who earned silver in the 4×400 track relay at the 1984 Los Angeles Games, has been on the Canada Soccer board since 2012-13 and served as vice-president since January 2021.
“I heard consistently how trust, transparency and building better communication was one of the paths forward to ensure that we have a stable strong organization that all Canadians can be proud of,” said Crooks.
“I want to help bring people together to unite and to really modernize our organization to take it to the next level.”
Crooks will have her work cut out. While both the senior national teams have rebelled, on Thursday, she is expected to appear on Parliament Hill before the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage.
Canada’s sports minister Pascale St-Onge has suggested that the football governing body might be investigated and raised the prospect of auditing the organisation’s finances.
While the election was the big agenda item at the meeting, the federation also sanctioned the proposed ‘Project 8’ new women’s professional league to launch in 2025.
Franchises in Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver have already signed on. Project 8 said in a statement: “This is a historic [first] moment for women and girls at all levels of soccer in Canada, both on and off the field.”
“This has been a long and heartfelt journey, and we are excited about what is next for Canadians,” the statement continued. “Excited about the genuine pathways for women and girls in sports — whether that’s as players, coaches, referees or professionals.”
“We know there’s a lot of work ahead of us to establish a professional infrastructure and ecosystem, and the next few years will be crucial to our success, but today we secured our destination.”
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