Canada Soccer: Priestman won't return as head coach after drone scandal

Head coach Bev Priestman and assistant coach Jasmine Mander "directed, approved, and condoned" the use of drones to illegally film New Zealand's team practices ahead of the Canadian women's national team's opening game at the Paris Olympics, according to a summary of an independent investigation released by Canada Soccer on Tuesday.

Canada Soccer adds Priestman and Mander "will not be returning" after they serve one-year suspensions that were issued by FIFA last summer.

"The search for a new head coach for the women's national team will commence shortly," the statement reads.

The investigation also found that players didn't view drone footage.

Assistant coach Joey Lombardi was caught by French authorities in July after he attempted to fly a drone over New Zealand's practice on two occasions. Lombardi didn't cooperate with the investigation conducted by Toronto lawyer Sonia Regenbogen, and it's understood that he resigned from his role, according to TSN's Rick Westhead

Canada Soccer apologized for the incident at the time and Priestman said she wouldn't be on the sidelines for the New Zealand game, which Canada won 2-1. Priestman and the other coaches were sent home from Paris.

FIFA later banned the three for one year and docked Canada six points. Canada still made it out of the group stage, but was eliminated in the quarterfinals.

"The drone issue at the Paris Olympics was a disappointing revelation," Canada Soccer CEO Kevin Blue said.

"The findings of the independent investigator reveal that the incident itself was a symptom of a difficult and unacceptable past culture within the national teams.

"Quite simply, while players on the national teams performed admirably, cultural standards and management of the programs dating back several years fell short of expectations."

Canada Soccer added that it's "in the process of taking disciplinary steps" against individuals and that those actions "will be private."

Former Canada women's coach John Herdman, who's now in charge of Toronto FC, was unable to be interviewed during the investigation due to "scheduling issues."

However, potential violations of Canada Soccer's code of conduct and ethics involving Herdman were uncovered during the probe.

"It's something that Sonia and John's representatives worked on, and I don't really have visibility into the specific situations as to why," Blue told TSN. "There was evidence gathered from witness statements and documentary review, as far as I understand, in the absence of a direct interview."

Herdman denied last summer ever spying on opponents when he was in charge of the Canadian women's team from 2011 to 2018.

The report says there's no evidence of drones being used during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics when Priestman's Canada team won its first gold medal in the women's soccer tournament.

Another finding is that the investigation could not substantiate allegations of drone use by the Canada's men's team at this year's Copa America. The executive summary states that a drone suspected of filming a training session at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex did not contain any actual footage. The men's team claimed a staff member was operating the drone above an empty pitch "for the purposes of a motivational and promotional video."

Men's coach Jesse Marsch seemed to express sympathy for Priestman in a text he sent to her while the drone scandal was erupting in Paris. "We went through it as well," he wrote, referring to the alleged incident involving the men's team in Orlando.