Bev Priestman fired as Canada women’s soccer coach after review of Olympic drone scandal
Associated PressNOV 2024
Using a drone to surveil another team during a closed practice is cheating and undermines the integrity of the game. The drone incident represents a past pattern of unacceptable culture and insufficient oversight that requires urgent reform within the national teams, necessitating immediate leadership changes to restore integrity to the program.
Priestman's sacking is unfair, as the review found no evidence that Canadian players had viewed footage from the drone. The investigation's limited scope in examining past tournaments and administrators shows that Priestman has been made a scapegoat to cover up for a systematic, years-long spying operation.