The six-month countdown to the opening match of the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015™ will be underway when the Official Draw takes place at the Canadian Museum of History on Saturday 6 December at 5pm (UK time).
“The contingent of emcees and draw assistants represent the best of Canada and pay homage to the significance of the upcoming competition,” said Victor Montagliani, Chair of the National Organising Committee for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015. “We are honoured to welcome these great Canadians as leaders in Canadian and international sport.”
Kicking off the celebrations, emcees Catriona LeMay Doan and Chantal Petitclerc will give the worldwide audience a taste of the hospitality to be experienced when Canada hosts the best women’s football players next summer. Both LeMay Doan and Petitclerc have been named Canadian athletes of the year, with LeMay Doan an Olympic speed skating champion and Petitclerc a Paralympic wheelchair racing champion.
The four draw assistants will be Petitclerc, Olympic ice hockey champion Hayley Wickenheiser, and CONCACAF champions Jason deVos and Kara Lang. Like LeMay Doan and Petitclerc, Wickenheiser was also named a Canadian athlete of the year. As for football stars deVos and Lang, both were recognised in 2012 on Canada’s All-Time XI as part of the Canadian Soccer Association’s Centennial Celebrations.
SINCLAIR GUESTS, SINGER AVILA PERFORMS
Canada’s current captain and all-time leading scorer, Christine Sinclair will be joined by Sarah Stapley, a 12-year-old who, like many other young Canadians, hopes to emulate her idol one day and represent her country. Together they will welcome the world to Canada, a country that loves its sport and women’s football in particular.
Talia Laroche, 15 from West Ottawa Soccer Club, will have the honour of carrying out the Official Match Ball, the adidas conext15, accompanied by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police who will carry the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ Trophy.
Aside from revealing the destiny of the 24 finalists, the ceremony will also provide an intriguing sneak preview of what visitors can expect when they travel to Canada for the world finals. The Museum’s many treasures will be on display, while singer Eva Avila will be just one of the performers showcasing their talents on the stage.
SIX CITIES, SIX GROUPS
The ceremony is scheduled to last almost an hour, during which Canada will provide a taste of what awaits the participants and visitors coming from all over the world. This will come courtesy of cultural and artistic performances, appearances from national sporting legends, and speeches and videos presenting the competition and the host nation, as well as the latter’s passion for sport and women’s football in particular.
By the end of the ceremony, the 24 teams taking part will have been divided into six pools of four, and all of the fixtures as well as the schedule of group-stage matches will have been determined. The team going head-to-head with Canada in the opening match on 6 June in Edmonton will also be known.
Overseeing affairs in Ottawa will be FIFA Secretary General Jérôme Valcke and Tatjana Haenni, FIFA Deputy Director of the Competitions Division and Head of Women’s Football, who will both be assisted by the draw assistants deVos, Lang, Petitclerc and Wickenheiser.
“Next year’s competition will bring the world’s best players to Canada, and the worldwide coverage they receive will inspire young girls everywhere to get involved in football,” Haenni said during a FIFA site inspection in October.
Aside from Ottawa, five other cities – Vancouver, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Montréal and Moncton – will host matches next summer, but they will also be under the spotlight on Saturday, as each one is due to organise a local event that will run in tandem with the Final Draw. But it is in Ottawa, and on FIFA.com, which will broadcast the entire proceedings live, that the much-awaited tournament will begin to take shape.
“The Women’s World Cup represents the peak of international football,” Victor Montagliani, chairman of the National Organising Committee said. “The planet’s 24 best teams will provide us with all kinds of exciting moments during the 52 scheduled matches.”
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