A ruling by the FIFA Appeals Committee puts former Canada coach John Herdman at Ground Zero within Canada Soccer for spying on rival teams.
The ruling, which dismissed a Canadian appeal of FIFA's sanctions imposed on the Canadian women's team at the Paris Olympics for using a drone to spy on New Zealand, says Canada Soccer pointed the finger at Herdman on July 27.
According to the FIFA document, Canada Soccer suspects that the practice of using a drone for spying began with Herdman during his time as head coach of the women’s national team and was continued by current coach Bev Priestman.
Canada Soccer said the practice was not facilitated by the federation and it is now backing a full independent investigation to prevent its recurrence.
Priestman, since sent home from Paris in the wake of the scandal, was an assistant coach under Herdman.
Herdman took over the women's team in 2011 and switched to the Canadian men in January 2018. He quit Canada Soccer last August to take over Toronto FC of Major League Soccer.
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
