Canada’s controversial soccer sponsorship extended despite $40m players lawsuit

With less than six months to go before co-hosting this summer’s World Cup, Canada Soccer has extended a controversial commercial partnership with Canadian Soccer Business (CSB).

A new 11-year deal - covering sponsorship and broadcast rights - was announced this week, running through 2037. The original 10-year deal was mired in controversy after players went on strike and filed a $40 million lawsuit, alleging that they had not received adequate funding from the CSB agreement.

In 2023 a Canadian parliamentary inquiry into Canada Soccer found that the federation had only received around $3 million per year from the. The Canadian Soccer Players’ Association, which represents the national women’s team, filed the lawsuit and claimed that the deal had undervalued Canadian soccer.

As a result of the protests, Canada’s men’s team also boycotted a friendly game against Panama in 2022. They asked for a greater share of World Cup prize money, better perks for upcoming tournaments and greater clarity on the terms of the initial CSB deal.

“We want to know who signed this deal that has hand cuffed our association,” a 2022 statement from the players read. “Why have Canada Soccer given up autonomy of the greatest opportunity to grow our program in years?”

Four years on, Canada Soccer has re-signed with CSB, which has been re-branded as Canadian Soccer Media and Entertainment (CSME). The new deal reportedly offers better conditions and improved pay for both men’s and women’s teams, coming at a time when Canadian soccer is increasingly visible and successful. The failure to move away from CSB as a commercial partner will undoubtedly cause some frustrations but Canada Soccer’s chief executive, Kevin Blue, is convinced that the new deal will benefit players and Canadian soccer more broadly.

“We are pleased to have amended this partnership into a new structure that is significantly more favourable to Canada Soccer, creating a clear pathway for commercial and financial success – especially in future years as opportunity in our sport continues to increase,” Blue said. “We are eager to move forward in a new era of alignment with CSME and continue to be sharply focused on growing all parts of our sport at this critical time.”

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