Canada has launched a national registry of individuals who have been banned or suspended from sport for misconduct that includes criminal convictions for sexual assault, sexual maltreatment of minors and grooming.
The Canadian Safe Sport Program Public Registry, published by government-funded Sport Integrity Canada, is the first phase in what is planned to be a mandatory requirement for Canadian sports organizations to name individuals subject to sanctions for misconduct.
Included on the list is former Canada Soccer and Vancouver Whitecaps coach Bob Birarda, who pleaded guilty in 2022 to three counts of sexual assault and one count of sexual touching involving players under his care. Canada Soccer banned Birarda in 2022 after the conviction but, as previously reported by the Guardian, there was no public acknowledgment of the ban by the national organization nor BC Soccer, the sport’s provincial governing body where his crimes took place.
The Guardian can also reveal that BC Soccer is now subject to legal action by multiple former players who were coached by Birarda while he was working with players in the Vancouver area. The former players, who also provided evidence to police that led to Birarda’s criminal conviction and jail sentence, have made a financial claim against the organization, which has not filed a response and declined to comment when approached by the Guardian.
The former players have received what was described as a “lowball” counter offer from BC Soccer, according to an individual familiar with the case. BC Soccer’s 2024 financial report references “claims in respect of historical events” and that “the amount and likelihood of incurring a loss is not determinable”.
BC Soccer did not respond to a request for comment on the case. It is understood the organization is being represented by Vancouver law firm Alexander Holburn. Bruno De Vita, deputy chair of Fifa’s Ethics Committee and an arbitrator for the Court of Arbitration for Sport, is a partner at Alexander Holburn. DWF Group, representing the claimants, did not respond to a request for comment.
Signy Arnason, executive director of Safe Sport for Sport Integrity Canada, told the Guardian that while the newly launched registry is currently voluntary for national sports organizations, the launch was “just the beginning” in making the public aware of individuals who had been banned from sports for misconduct. Arnason previously told the Guardian that Birarda’s absence from any public registry was “a perfect example of a serious gap that needs to be fixed – no question”.
The Canadian Safe Sport program has been adopted by 93 national sports organizations and Arnason said 80 organzations had voluntarily provided information to the registry – including Canada Soccer, Athletics Canada, and Rugby Canada. Eight national sports organizations were still assessing requests for information and five organizations indicated they would not participate or had not responded to requests for data. No information from Hockey Canada, subject to much scrutiny over its handling of abuse within the sport, appears on the registry.
“This does need to be a mandatory model and we would encourage the federal government to make that requirement,” Arnason told the Guardian. “The Future of Sport in Canada Commission said in its report that it needs to be mandatory and that funding will not be provided to those who are not participating. We want to limit an individual’s opportunity to harm others within the system.”
Arnason said the globalization of sport made the public registry even more important because individuals can move from country to country without accountability. As an example, the registry includes George Barber, an athletics coach banned by Athletics Canada in 2015 after it learned the coach had a 2007 criminal conviction on charges of having sex with a student while he was employed at a US high school.
“We know that people move through the system,” Arnason said. “This registry is so critical for the international community. This is not just about Canada. It is about everyone examining how best to start to solve these really serious issues in a meaningful way.”
