CanWNT's Priestman misses opener after staffers caught spying on New Zealand

Canadian coach Bev Priestman voluntarily withdrew from Thursday's Olympics women's soccer opener against New Zealand in Saint-Etienne, France, after two members of her team were caught flying drones over their opponent's practice session.

The incidents occurred Monday and last Friday. The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) said the members responsible for the drone have been sent home and that all Canada Soccer staff will undergo mandatory ethics training.

FIFA's Disciplinary Committee has since opened proceedings against Canada Soccer, Priestman, and the two COC members involved, Joseph Lombardi and Jasmine Mander.

"On behalf of our entire team, I first and foremost want to apologize to the players and staff at New Zealand Football and to the players on Team Canada. This does not represent the values that our team stands for," Priestman said.

"I am ultimately responsible for conduct in our program. Accordingly, to emphasize our team’s commitment to integrity, I have decided to voluntarily withdraw from coaching the match on Thursday. In the spirit of accountability, I do this with the interests of both teams in mind and to ensure everyone feels that the sportsmanship of this game is upheld."

Priestman denied directing anyone to use a drone to spy on New Zealand.

French police seized the drone and handed one of the members a suspended eight-month prison sentence, a local prosecutor confirmed in a statement obtained by CBC's Devin Heroux.

The New Zealand Olympic Committee initially reported the incident to police and lodged a complaint with the International Olympic Committee's integrity unit and FIFA.

COC CEO David Shoemaker told Heroux and reporters that New Zealand has requested Canada receive no FIFA points in the event of a win Thursday. He said he was also unaware of any further calls to disqualify the team.

The COC said Canada Soccer has been "transparent and cooperative" during the investigation. The committee added it may take further action. Canada Soccer said it will conduct its own independent review and make the results public.

"It's ultimately compromised, I think, the integrity of our match," New Zealand interim head coach Michael Mayne told The Canadian Press' Gregory Strong. "We're controlling what we can control. It's an overwhelming feeling of disappointment, and I know the players are feeling the same."

In September 2021, Honduras halted a training session in Toronto ahead of a men's World Cup qualifier after spotting a drone overhead. John Herdman, then coach of Canada's men's team, downplayed the incident, saying, "There's a lot of people in Canada that fly drones."