The dire situation of the Canadian Basketball Association (CBA) has just been confirmed by the head of the agency. “ We are in a real struggle ,” Mr. DeVos admitted. “ We don’t have enough revenue to allocate to programs. That includes everything from grassroots coaching training, referee development, investment in youth teams for men and women .”
“ Bankruptcy has been discussed, but it is not a strategy or something we are considering. It has been discussed more. But it is absolutely the last option that I can think of .”
Canadian women's team.
The Canadian federal government gave CBA $5 million in 2022, but they spent $4 million. Their budget was just $2.4 million at the end of 2022, a modest drop from $7.1 million a year earlier.
The situation prompted Canada's Sports Minister Pascale St-Onge last month to order an independent audit of the CBA because he suspected the organization of a "lack of financial transparency."
The Canadian Soccer Federation is also looking for funding. It is negotiating a 10-year deal with Canadian Soccer Business. The contract would see the CBA receive between $3 million and $4 million annually. But at this point, negotiations have yet to come to a conclusion.
The Canadian women's team is the most affected by the incident, with the 2023 World Cup less than a month away. According to captain Christine Sinclair, she and her teammates cannot focus on the tournament.
“ We are not at the point where we don’t have the money to get on the plane (to the World Cup), but time is running out to solve the problems ,” she stressed. “ We want funding from the federation so that the players don’t have to worry during the preparation period for the tournament .”
Sinclair's wish was echoed by CBA Secretary General DeVos: " I want the national teams to know that I am on their side. I need to make it clear to them that we cannot take money from other sources to provide compensation to them. I know the players understand that, but they also want to get what they feel they deserve ."
(Source: tienphong.vn)
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