Canada’s Olympic spying scandal: Everything you need to know

MARSEILLE, France — The Olympics can be a whirlwind, with one event rolling right into the next. But the rapid investigation — and severe punishment — of Canada’s women’s soccer team for spying on an opponent’s closed practice session has remained a dominant, if complex, storyline.

Here’s everything you need to know about the situation.

What’s the basic timeline of this?

On Monday, July 22, New Zealand’s women’s soccer team reported to French police that a drone had been flying over their practice sessions in Saint-Étienne. French authorities were able to trace the drone back to Joseph Lombardi, a staff member of Canada Soccer. Canada and New Zealand were set to play each other on Thursday.

On Wednesday, July 24, the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) said it had sent home Lombardi and the assistant coach to whom he reported, Jasmine Mander. Head coach Beverly Priestman released a statement that while she did not «direct» the staffers who operated the drone, she was «voluntarily» removing herself from coaching in the game and apologized to New Zealand for behavior that she said «does not represent the values that our team stands for.» Canada Soccer announced an investigation into the incident. FIFA announced it was opening disciplinary hearings.

On Thursday, July 25, Canada beat New Zealand 2-1. Assistant coach Andy Spence led the team.

On Friday, July 26, Canada Soccer’s chief executive, David Blue, told reporters that based on preliminary conversations, the federation believed this was not an isolated incident but rather the latest example of a «systemic culture.» He also said Priestman would not coach at all during the Paris Olympics.

On Saturday, July 27, FIFA announced that Priestman and the two staff members «were each found responsible for offensive behavior and violation of the principles of fair play.» All three were banned from working in soccer for one year and the Canadian team was penalized six points at these Olympics, making it very difficult for them to qualify for the knockout rounds.

What do we know about that ‘systemic’ culture that Canada Soccer referenced?

The extent — and duration — of Canada engaging in this kind of behavior is at the heart of what the federation is trying uncover, Blue said, but news reports indicate it is an extensive pattern.

ESPN reported that U.S. Soccer has been aware of Canada’s teams (both men and women) attempting to view their closed practices for years. TSN, among other outlets, has reported on numerous previous incidents involving a variety of opponents, including instances of spying at CONCACAF Nations League matches, World Cup qualifiers, this past summer’s Copa América tournament and the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 — when Canada’s women’s team won the gold medal.

David Shoemaker, chief executive of the COC, said, «It makes me ill, it makes me sick to my stomach to think there could be something that calls into question … one of my favorite Olympic moments in history.»

What are the Canadian players saying?

Blue, the Canada Soccer executive, has been adamant that no Canadian players ever saw any footage obtained in France. Vanessa Gilles, a defender on the team, told reporters after the New Zealand game that «there was a lot of emotion, frustration and humiliation because as an athlete, it didn’t reflect our values ​​and what we want to represent as athletes at the Olympic Games.» She added, «We are not cheaters.»

When asked what she had heard about how Canadians back home were reacting, forward Adriana Leon told reporters that she was staying off social media because, «I don’t want to think about it.»

Team captain Jessie Fleming told the media, «This tournament moves so quickly and we just don’t have time to dwell on our feelings too much.»

What about former players?

A number of former players have spoken out on social media or elsewhere to defend their accomplishments as being legitimate. Christine Sinclair, generally considered to be the greatest player in Canadian soccer history, referenced the Tokyo gold medal in a statement on Instagram, writing: «It’s unfortunate that the players of our National Team have had to play through condemnable actions by some of their staff as they attempt to defend our gold medal. Actions players have no control over.»

Sinclair added that «having been a national team player for 23 years, we were never shown or discussed drone footage in team or individual meetings I’ve been present for.»

Stephanie Labbé, a former goalkeeper who was part of the gold medal team in 2021, wrote on social media that her success in saving penalties in Tokyo was due to intense studying of her opponents and making «educated guesses» during two critical shootouts. «Do not confuse great goalkeeping with cheating,» she wrote.

If this was a pattern, does that mean other coaches could be implicated?

Yes. Canada’s men’s team «attempted drone usage» during the Copa America this year, according to Blue, although he added that new coach Jesse Marsch only became aware of it afterward and «denounced it as a practice to his staff.» Still, that incident is part of Canada Soccer’s larger investigation.

More significantly, John Herdman — who coached Canada’s women’s team from 2011 to 2018 and its men’s team between 2018 and 2023 — was in a position of authority for many of the alleged instances of spying. (The links between Herdman and Priestman also run deep: Herdman was Priestman’s youth futsal coach in England — where both were born — and Priestman went on to coach Canada’s U17 and U20 national teams when Herdman was senior team coach.)

Herdman, who now coaches Toronto FC, said he would cooperate with any investigation, adding in a statement that «I’m highly confident that in my time as a head coach at an Olympic Games or World Cup we’ve never been involved in any of those activities.»

It is worth noting, however, that a vast majority of the alleged instances of spying took place during games that were neither in the Olympics nor the World Cup.

Could there be other penalties for Canada or its staff?

It’s unlikely there will be further sanctions against Canada at the Paris Games, but FIFA could consider more discipline in the future if an investigation turns up new evidence.

It also seems unlikely, but not impossible, that previous medals — including the gold the women’s team won in Tokyo in 2021 — would be at risk. However, the International Olympic Committee did not respond to ESPN’s request for comment on the matter.

Who are Lombardi and Mander, the two staffers sent home?

Lombardi, 43, is a technical coach/analyst who worked on Canada’s staff at six FIFA youth tournaments from 2012 to 2022. He also was part of the staff at the Women’s World Cup in 2023.

Mander, 29, is an assistant coach who was part of Priestman’s staff at the 2021 Olympics and the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

Are there any pending criminal charges related to the incident?

The usage of drones and potential invasions of privacy are serious issues in France, and law enforcement immediately became involved in the situation. Without naming the person, a French court announced on July 24 that a 43-year-old Canadian man had been given an eight-month suspended sentence for filming two of New Zealand’s closed training sessions with an aerial device.

What happens next?

Most immediately, Canada plays its second group stage game against France on Sunday night. With the six-point penalty applied, it enters the match with minus-3 points. It still has a small hope of making the knockout rounds because two of the third-place finishers in the three-group, 12-team tournament will qualify for the quarterfinals.

It is also possible that Canada could successfully appeal its point penalty and have it reduced. The Court of Arbitration for Sport, which has jurisdiction, operates an ad hoc court at each Olympics in order to hear time-sensitive cases like this one.

For Priestman, Mander and Lombardi, it may be possible to appeal their FIFA-issued suspensions. In the absence of a change, however, the three are prohibited from taking part «in any football-related activity for a period of one year.»