CAS rejects Canada appeal over 'dronegate scandal'

By SABC Sport
31st July 2024

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has dismissed an appeal from Olympic women's football defending champions Canada for a six-point deduction to be reduced or waived.

The punishment was handed down by FIFA's disciplinary committee in the wake of the "dronegate" scandal, which also saw head coach Bev Priestman handed a one-year ban amid suspicions Canadian staff had used drones to spy on opponents at the Paris Olympics and on previous occasions.

The decision means Canada must win Wednesday night's match against Colombia to reach the knockout phase and defend their Tokyo 2020 title.

Canada Soccer announced on Friday that Priestman had been removed from her role for the remainder of the Olympics following claims a drone was used to spy on New Zealand training sessions.

Assistant coach Jasmine Mander and Joseph Lombardi, an unaccredited analyst with Canada Soccer, were also sent home.

On Saturday, FIFA published the outcome of disciplinary proceedings against the Canadian Soccer Association (CSA), Priestman, Lombardi and Mander, confirming that the trio have been suspended from taking part in any football-related activity for one year.

Additionally, Canada have been handed an automatic deduction of six points from their Olympic campaign and a fine of 200,000 CHF.

In a statement, FIFA said: "CSA was found responsible for failing to respect the applicable FIFA regulations in connection with its failure to ensure the compliance of its participating officials of the OFT with the prohibition on flying drones over any training sites.

"The officials were each found responsible for offensive behaviour and violation of the principles of fair play in connection with the CSA's Women's representative team's drones usage in the scope of the OFT.

"CSA and its officials have been notified of the terms of the FIFA Appeal Committee's decision today.

"In accordance with the relevant provisions of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (FDC), they have ten days in which to request a motivated decision, which, if requested, would subsequently be published on legal.fifa.com.

"The decision remains subject to a potential appeal before the Court of Arbitration for Sport."