Former Canada coach said she feared for her safety after Olympic drone-spying scandal

WELLINGTON — Bev Priestman says she didn’t leave her house in Canada for a month in the wake of the Paris Olympic drone-spying scandal.

“For me I didn’t feel safe, that’s being brutally honest,” said the former Canada women’s coach. “It was very difficult for my family and I have to live with that. I have to wear that.”

She did not elaborate on her concerns other than citing “an absolute media frenzy.”

“You’ve got people knocking on your door and everything. And I’ve got a little boy. Without going into too much detail, it was very difficult. For my family, and that’s the most important thing for me, we knew we had to get out of that country and be a family and focus on us.”

Priestman is back in football, having taken charge of the Wellington Phoenix FC women’s team in New Zealand.

“I can’t wait to get to work,” Priestman told a news conference Wednesday. “Today’s a good day.”

Priestman declined to speak on what happened in Paris but said she had taken the 12-month hiatus “to reflect, to learn, to grow.

“It’s been very difficult and I’m just excited to put my head down, work hard and get back to work and do what I love every day.”

Asked if she had any regrets, she replied: “I think everybody involved will certainly have regrets, for sure.”

“What I will say is I’m a pretty optimistic person and I think there’s been days in the last 12 months (where) that optimism has been very difficult. But again it feels like Christmas Day to me to come back. I know I have to earn the trust — of everybody. And I’ll be working hard to do that.”

Asked what she had learned from the scandal with Canada, Priestman cited “certain values that I hold.”

“And unfortunately things around me have clouded my judgment in that moment,” she added.

Priestman, assistant coach Jasmine Mander and analyst Joey Lombardi were all handed one-year suspensions by FIFA in the wake of New Zealand’s Olympic Committee filing a complaint with the International Olympic Committee’s integrity unit, alleging drones were flown over a pair of pre-tournament practice sessions. All three are no longer with Canada Soccer.

The first six months of her ban involved “just getting through the day,” Priestman said. She started looking to the future around Christmas.

Priestman said she looks forward to the day-to-day challenge of club coaching after her time in the international arena.

The two-year appointment coincides with the expiration of Priestman’s one-year FIFA ban arising from the drone incident.

The 39-year-old Priestman has ties to the Wellington club through her wife Emma Humphries, a former New Zealand international who is the club’s academy director. Priestman also headed up coach development in Wellington some 16 years ago.

Wellington finished ninth in Australia’s 12-team A-League last season at 7-13-3.

Priestman spent five years with Canada Soccer in a variety of coaching roles before returning in June 2018 to her native England, where she served as coach of England’s women’s under-18 side and assistant coach with the senior English women.

Priestman succeeded Kenneth Heiner-Moller as Canada women’s coach in November 2020 and was a nominee for FIFA Women’s Best Coach in 2021 and 2022.

In her first go-round with Canada Soccer, Priestman served as director of its developmental EXCEL program and had stints as coach of the under-15, under-17 and under-20 women’s sides. She was also an assistant coach to John Herdman while he was in charge of the women’s team.

Before that, she spent 4 1/2 years with New Zealand Football, serving as head of football development before leaving in June 2013 to join Herdman in Canada.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 30, 2025

The Canadian Press