Tim Hortons and Scotiabank have pulled out of all of Hockey Canada’s men’s hockey programming sponsorships for the 2022-23 season — citing “deep disappointment.”
The move extends to world junior championships as well.
In a statement sent to Global News, Tim Hortons stated that they have “officially informed” Hockey Canada about the decision this week.
“We’ve communicated to Hockey Canada on many occasions that the organization needs to take strong and definitive action before it can regain the faith and trust of Canadians,” it reads. “We’re deeply disappointed in the lack of progress that Hockey Canada has made to date.”
Tim Hortons added that they will continue to fund Canada’s women’s and para hockey teams, as well as youth hockey.
Scotiabank said in a statement sent to Global News that their own pause of sponsorship funding to Hockey Canada, announced in June, “remains in effect.”
“Principally, this means a continued pause of our support for men’s hockey throughout the entire 2022/2023 season including the upcoming World Junior Championship,” the bank said, adding that they are “disappointed with the lack of progress to date.”
“From Hockey Canada, we expect a tangible commitment to transparency with Canadians, strong leadership, accountability with their stakeholders and the hockey community, and improved safety both on and off the ice,” the statement reads. “Ultimately our position hasn’t wavered: the time for change is long overdue.”
The announcements come after Hockey Canada faced pushbacks from two of its provincial counterparts — Hockey Quebec and the Ontario Hockey Federation.
Hockey Quebec said on Wednesday that it would be withholding a portion of its registration fees from Hockey Canada. The Ontario Hockey Federation also confirmed to Global News that it intends to withhold its funds from Hockey Canada. The federation said it made a formal request to Hockey Canada “to not collect the $3.00 Participant Assessment Fee for the 2022-2023 season.”
Hockey Canada has been under scrutiny since May of this year over its handling of sexual abuse allegations dating back to 2018.
As a response, the federal government froze Hockey Canada’s federal funding in June and several companies also paused their sponsorship.
In July, Halifax police said they were investigating another alleged sexual assault which involved members of the 2002-03 world junior hockey championship team.
It was also revealed in July that Hockey Canada used its National Equity Funds, which is maintained by membership fees collected across Canada, to settle sexual assault claims, Global News previously reported.
On Monday, the Globe and Mail reported that Hockey Canada was putting fees towards a second fund “for matters including but not limited to sexual abuse.”
After MPs pressed Hockey Canada officials for more answers in a committee meeting on Tuesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday that Hockey Canada is failing to understand how it contributed to the “serious” situation gripping the organization.
“It boggles the mind that Hockey Canada is continuing to dig in its heels,” said Trudeau.
“Parents across the country are losing faith or have lost faith in Hockey Canada, certainly politicians here in Ottawa have lost faith in Hockey Canada,” he said.
— with files from Global’s Rachel Gilmore and The Canadian Press
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