Posted on 02/11/2023 9:45:23 AM PST by nickcarraway
The Canadian women's national soccer team is on strike due to pay equity problems and budget cuts.
Star forwards Christine Sinclair and Janine Beckie confirmed the news to Rick Westhead of TSN on Friday:
The players also released a statement:
"With the biggest tournament in women's football history less than six months away, our preparation for the World Cup and the future success of the women's national team program are being compromised by Canada Soccer's continued inability to support its national teams," the statement read, in part. "Despite our strong track record of success and history-making achievements for more than a decade, we continue to be told there is not enough money to adequately fund our program and our youth teams."
The players are also calling for sweeping change in Canadian soccer leadership:
"If Canada Soccer is not willing or able to support our team, new leadership should be found. We are committed to do whatever it takes to create public awareness of this crisis and to force Canada Soccer to start to support the national teams properly."
Canada is currently scheduled to participate in the SheBelieves Cup, a four-team tournament featuring the United States, Brazil and Japan. Canada is scheduled to play host United States on Thursday at Orlando, Florida's Exploria Stadium.
✨ Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content Canada has also qualified for the 2023 Women's World Cup, with its first match set for July 21 against Nigeria in Melbourne, Australia.
The players have made it clear, however, that the team will do "whatever it takes" to raise awareness of the situation, and that means a strike before two major tournaments.
"If Canada Soccer is not willing or able to support our team, new leadership should be found," the players wrote. "We are committed to do whatever it takes to create public awareness of this crisis and to force Canada Soccer to start to support the national teams properly."
As noted by Westhead, the Canadian men's soccer team has released a statement in support of the women's team, saying that national team budgets are "cloaked in secrecy" among other claims.
The Canadian women's team, which won Olympic gold two years ago, is ranked No. 6 in the world.
Will anybody notice ?
Soccer as an extortion racket—clever!
Does anybody want to watch them enough to pay for it?
Can’t wait for America’s “All Natural, All Men’s female teams” to beat every women’s teams in the olympics
I would be ok if they wanted more money so long as they played in bikinis. They also have to maintain a very high level of self hygiene because nobody wants to see a hairy beast. Then and only then shall we look at the wages heh.
Both of their fans will.
I bet if they took a contract for 50% of tickets sales and ad revenue, they’d be taking a huge pay cut.
Do they have bikinis in Canada? It’s cold there.
This won’t move the needle off zero on my “give a damn” meter.
Nah, they will probably all drop over suddenly after they have 5 more Turdeau mandated fake vaxes.
Canada is not known for its beautiful women.
Yes we do heh.
Umm, you haven’t spent much time then up here? Lots of great looking women. I’ll admit some eastern bloc maybe better for percentages, but there is a lot of Nordic influence here.
Visit Montreal.
As soon as they gain an equal audience, and can beat the Men’s team.
Those women aren’t soccer playing dykes…
Canadian Woman…get away from me-hee…..
Maybe we should cancel all women sports and let them all - men, women and trans compete against each other.
That would be fair!
Then they could get pay the same as men!
Same pay for same work!
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