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Canada women's football team players go on strike over pay issues and budget cuts

The reigning Olympic champions were supposed to take part in the SheBelieves Cup in Florida, competing against the likes of Brazil, USA and Japan, in less than a week's time.

By Sreejith C R | Feb 11, 2023 | 2 Min Read

The ongoing dispute between Canada Soccer and its men’s and women’s teams boiled over on Friday with the women going on a strike over pay issues and budget cuts. Members of the women’s team say they are feeling “outraged” and “deeply disrespected” by Canada Soccer after receiving news of “Significant Cuts” to the program for 2023. The reigning Olympic champions were supposed to take part in the SheBelieves Cup in Florida, competing against the likes of Brazil, USA and Japan, in less than a week’s time. The team captain Christian Sinclair and forward Janine Beckie appeared on TSN to say they will not take part in any team activities, including playing, until the dispute is resolved.

The time is now, we are taking job action. pic.twitter.com/QbVbhTcdDU

— CanadianSoccerPlayers (@PlayersCanadian) February 10, 2023

We will not be training: Beckie

Sinclair said: “Some of us trained today with our shirts inside out, but the fact we haven’t heard from the CSA since we put in our demands, they haven’t even had the courtesy to reach out to us to schedule an emergency call, as a team we’ve decided to take job action. From this moment on we will not be participating in any Canadian Soccer Association activities until this is resolved, whether that’s training, whether that’s games. That’s very hard to say as an athlete who wants to compete, who wants to represent Canada but enough is enough at this point.”

Forward Beckie added: “At this point we will not be training, we will not be attending meetings. Any scheduled activity with the national team in the near future we will not take part in. If we get to next Thursday evening and this is not resolved, we will not be taking the field against the United States in the SheBelieves Cup. This is the men and women’s team together taking action against a federation which has mistreated us for far too long and we have been far too nice for far too long.”

Canadian men’s national soccer team statement in solidarity with women says Canada Soccer budgets are “cloaked in secrecy.”
Men demanding CS sponsors stop using player images in marketing and ask Sport Minister Pascale St-Onge to remove CS leaders if player demands aren’t met. pic.twitter.com/WGYpYhqWAT

— Rick Westhead (@rwesthead) February 10, 2023

Canada Soccer said in a statement: “Pay equity for our Women’s National Team is at the core of our ongoing player negotiations. Canada Soccer will not agree to any deal without it. That is why, after months of negotiations with our Women’s National Team Players and their legal counsel, Canada Soccer already issued a mutually-agreed to retroactive payment.”