(Paris) The Canadian women’s soccer team formally contested the six-point ranking penalty imposed by FIFA in connection with the spying scandal involving the use of a drone at the Paris Olympics on Monday.
A verdict is expected to be delivered hours before Canada’s final group stage match on Wednesday against Colombia.
FIFA punished Canada on Saturday, banning coach Bev Priestman and two of her assistants for a year, after New Zealand’s training sessions were allegedly spied on using a drone.
The fast-track legal process initiated by the Canadian Soccer Association and its Olympic committee was formally filed Monday with the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
“Earlier today, the Canadian Olympic Committee and Canada Soccer appealed the automatic six-point deduction imposed by FIFA on the Canadian Soccer Association Women’s Team in Group A of the Paris 2024 Women’s Olympic Soccer Tournament,” the COC statement read.
This appeal is based on the disproportionate nature of the sanction, which we consider to be an unfair punishment of the athletes for actions that did not involve them, and which goes well beyond restoring fairness in the context of the game against New Zealand.
Excerpt from the Canadian Olympic Committee press release
“The appeal was submitted to the special tribunal of the Court of Arbitration for Sport, formed in Paris during the Olympic Games, which allows the case to be dealt with expeditiously during the Games. In order to preserve the integrity of the appeal process, we will wait until the end of the appeal process before issuing further comments,” it concluded.
CAS said a hearing will take place on Tuesday, and its three-judge panel will issue a decision around noon on Wednesday.
Canada will face Colombia in Nice on Wednesday night, and must know their fate before the start of the match.