Canada Soccer, women’s team reach interim funding agreement

Canada Soccer has reached an interim funding agreement with its women’s national team players amid a dispute over equal pay.

Canada Soccer and the Women’s National Team Players agree on interim funding agreement 🍁

— Canada Soccer (@CanadaSoccerEN) March 2, 2023

“Canada Soccer has announced that a deal in principle has been reached with the Women’s National Team Players on an interim funding agreement for 2022,” the Canada Soccer Association (CSA) said in a statement.

In February, Canada’s women called off a planned strike because of the governing body’s threats of legal action, but they protested during the recent SheBelieves Cup by wearing T-shirts with the phrase “enough is enough” before their matches.

“This is about respect, this is about dignity, and this is about equalizing the competitive environment in a world that is fundamentally unequal,” Canada Soccer’s general secretary Earl Cochrane said.

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“We have been consistent and public about the need to have fairness and equal pay be pillars of any new agreements with our players, and we are delivering on that today.”

A few days ago, Canada Soccer president Nick Bontis resigned in a move welcomed by the Canadian Soccer Players’ Association (CSPA) and Canadian Men’s National Soccer Team Players’ Association (CMNSTPA) as “one necessary step” in ensuring the future success of the national teams.

In a joint statement, the CSPA and CMNSTPA asked Canada Soccer for “transparent and comprehensive access” to financial records in light of recent funding cuts.

BREAKING: Canada Soccer has reached a deal in principle with the WNT players on an interim funding agreement for 2022. The terms of the interim agreement mirror a similar deal with the Men’s National Team Players that includes per-game incentives and results-based compensation. pic.twitter.com/ur3W1aAcoh

— CPL News ⚽️🇨🇦 (@canplnews) March 2, 2023

The CSA spent $11m (£6.72m) on the men’s programme in 2021 and $5.1m (£3.11m) on the women’s programme.

The women’s players said the “disgusting” discrepancy between the programmes became apparent at last year’s men’s World Cup.