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19h ago

Bev Priestman Returns to Coaching as Wellington Phoenix Women’s Head Coach

Her two-year deal begins days after her FIFA ban ended, reconnecting her with the club through her wife’s role as academy director.

Canada's head coach Bev Priestman gestures during the Women's World Cup Group B soccer match between Australia and Canada in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, July 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)
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Soccer Football - FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023 - Group B - Canada Training - Olympic Park, Melbourne, Australia - July 24, 2023 Canada coach Bev Priestman during training REUTERS/Hannah Mckay/File Photo
Bev Priestman, new head coach for the Wellington Phoenix women's football team, attends a press conference on her new appointment in Upper Hutt near Wellington on July 30, 2025. Former Canada women's football coach Bev Priestman will return from suspension with a club side in New Zealand, the country she was banned for spying on at the 2024 Olympics.

Overview

  • Bev Priestman has been named head coach of the Wellington Phoenix FC women’s team on a two-year contract.
  • Her appointment follows the expiration of a one-year FIFA suspension for using drones to spy on New Zealand’s women’s Olympic team.
  • FIFA imposed the ban after finding she and two staff deployed unauthorized drone surveillance at the 2024 Paris Olympics, and Canada Soccer dismissed her in November 2024.
  • Priestman led Canada to Olympic gold at Tokyo 2021 and has coached at multiple FIFA women’s World Cups and youth tournaments.
  • Her return is bolstered by personal ties to Wellington through her wife, Emma Humphries, who serves as the club’s academy director.