A cool announcement from the Canadian Soccer Association late yesterday, posted to their website but not – so far as I know – directly distributed to the media.
We now know the five members of the CSA Nominations Committee, who will recommend candidates for the six appointed members of the new CSA board, which will take over in May.
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]Quick backgrounder: The new, reformed CSA board structure consists of an elected president and vice-president, six elected regional representatives, and six appointed “experts.” These will be people with specific professional soccer, business and/or marketing backgrounds, who will apply their expertise and connections to improve neglected aspects of Canadian soccer.
Fund-raising, sponsorship, advertising, growth and development of the game – minor, fwibbly stuff like that.
The committee consists of two CSA directors – who are not allowed to run for CSA board positions in the spring, so this will be their exit act – and three outsiders.
The quick brush-strokes, to be filled out next week ….
Directors:
- Jeannette Kuc (Saskatchewan) – Won some praise during the CSA reform movement.
- Greg Anderson (British Columbia) – Listed as the CSA’s “Director: Professional,” has flown largely under the radar thus far.
Outsiders:
- Grant MacDonald (Nova Scotia) – A director at Events Nova Scotia, he is described on his Linkedin page as “a senior executive, strategist and relationship manager with experience in public and private sectors.”
- J.D. Miller (Quebec) – A banking and mergers consultant from Montreal who helped set up “B2ten,” described by the Wall Street Journal as “a reclusive group of business leaders that provides a select group of Olympic hopefuls with special assistance.”
- Paul Varian (Ontario) – Chief administrative officer at Oakville Soccer Club, has been working hard with Jason deVos to rethink and recreate the structure of amateur soccer clubs in Canada.
On first glance, this looks – good.
Good geographic mix, good range of background and experience, clear and obvious good connections.
Makes it all the more baffling why the CSA isn’t talking about this with reporters, but we’ve been promised that is about to change.
Much more soon.
Onward!