For many people, it would seem that women’s soccer in Canada has always kind of been around but reached prominence at the 2012 Olympic Games. The fact is that the roots go back over a 100 years.
The Canadian Soccer Association known at that time as the Dominion Football Association came into existence for the first time in 1877. At its origin in Canada, soccer is not considered as an appropriate activity for women. They have few opportunities to play sports, with only activities considered "distinguished" as skating, horseback riding and canoeing constituting acceptable pastimes for Victorian society. In the late nineteenth century, tennis, badminton and golf was popular among women, but even something cycling remains marginal and sports considered too masculine, that is to say those that require running and that may cause physical contact, are clearly unacceptable. In the 1920s, women start playing team sports like basketball, baseball / softball and ice hockey. However, few play soccer as seemingly it is considered a traditional male sport by the majority of Canadians. In 1922, an English team, the Dick Kerr Ladies Football Club, travelled to Quebec as part of a tour of North America with hopes to play matches against other female teams. The Dominion Football Association, however, publicly states its opposition to the idea that women should play soccer and even forbids to all affiliated clubs (read male) to play matches against Dick Kerr Ladies. They follow the example set by the English Football Association which has banned the club from playing in its fields. This forces the visiting club to play games against men’s teams in the United States. Some women are playing soccer early in the twentieth century, with the first known instance of an organized female soccer game supposedly being held on August 5th 1918 in support of the auxiliary war service. In 1936, a section of The Free Press, a London newspaper in Ontario reports that "soccer has become a significant fall sport for young women studying undergraduate at the University of Western Ontario"; Moreover, girls also play soccer at Central Collegiate, a high school in the city. In 1950, McGill University forms a women's soccer team that plays against teams from McDonald College, Bishop's University and a number of local high schools. The fact remains that, globally, the number of women playing soccer during the first half of the twentieth century are still minimal and there remains a resistance to the idea that this sport can be appropriate for females. With the arrival of the 1960s, the situation is changing, and the popularity of soccer with young Canadians both male and female is growing. In 1972, Toronto, Ontario, boasts to have 14 girls’ teams, significantly less than the number of boys teams but still quite significant for the growth of the female game. Since then, soccer has become one of the most popular sports among young girls and women. In addition, the proportion of female practitioners is steadily increasing compared to the proportion of their male counterparts. In 1980, women accounted for less than 10% of the registered members in a soccer club in Canada, a percentage that exceeded 40% in 2013. Female international competitions Canada's women's soccer team in international competitions dates back to the late 1970s. In 1977, a team from the Greater Vancouver Women's Soccer League went to Hawaii for a two-week tour. The following year, it participated in a Women's World Soccer Tournament Invitational in Taiwan. In this international tournament, they beat several of the 13 participating teams. The first official Canadian women's national team is formed in 1986, but failed to qualify for the first Women’s World Cup held in 1991. Canada qualifies for the following World Cup in 1995 where the top 8 teams will automatically qualify for the 1996 Olympics held in Atlanta since it is thought that there will not be sufficient time to hold a separate qualifying tournament. Unfortunately, Canada fails to finish top 8 and are excluded from this initial Olympic competition. Canada has participated in every subsequent World Cup (1999, 2003, 2007, 2011 and 2015), finishing fourth at the World Cup 2003. Canada was the host for both the U20 and Senior World Cups in 2014 and 2015, respectively, which served to showcase women's soccer at the highest level. In 2008, the Canadian team qualified for the Olympics in Beijing, China, reaching the quarter finals. Sports fans in Canada are quite familiar with Canada’s success at the 2012 London Summer Olympics especially the final two games. In the semi-final against the heavily favoured US a game watched by millions of people and which put the team in the minds of the entire country, despite an outstanding performance of the team and its captain Christine Sinclair scoring three goals, the United States prevailed 4-3 in overtime in controversial fashion. Where this team really caught our attention was during the next game against the French three days later winning by a score of 1-0 to win the bronze medal. Reactions by Coach John Herdman and various players remain engraved in the history of Olympic sport in Canada. Four years later at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Canada had an almost perfect run that includes a historic win over Germany in the preliminary round, accumulating 5 wins and 1 loss. Once again however, the single defeat came in the semi-final against Germany who got their revenge. Despite this second disappointment in four years, Canada successfully beat Brazil 2-1 to win the bronze medal. Now we find ourselves in a low point of the competitive women's soccer cycle with the next big competition being 2019 World Cup to be held in France. We are have seen a number of mainstays of the 2012 and 2016 teams retiring and the inclusion of a new generation of young, talented players. See you all in 2019.
1 Comment
Mary Sproull Pomeroy
10/28/2021 08:57:31 am
In 1957 my soccer team won the Nova Scotia Ladies Soccer Championship. I believe this to be one of the earliest , if not the earliest, organized ladies soccer leagues in Canada.
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AuthorAfter many years of coaching at various levels and with different teams, I thought I would share some of my experiences and thoughts about coaching. Archives
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