The men's national team will play a pair of friendlies in Europe in September, Canada Soccer revealed on Monday, though the opponents for the matches have not yet been finalized.
The games will take place on Sept. 23 and 27, at a yet-to-be-announced location. The men will play a third match in November against another unnamed opponent, which will complete the team's preparations for the World Cup in Qatar, which runs from Nov. 21 to Dec. 18.
The men's team, which has not played in a World Cup since 1986, has been drawn in a group with No. 2 Belgium, 15th-ranked Croatia, and Morocco, which is 22nd in the current FIFA rankings, for the tournament. Canada is currently sitting in the 43rd spot.
Canada Soccer also announced that negotiations with both the senior men's and women's teams are "ongoing" with respect to contracts and compensation for players.
Things came to a head between the men's team and Canada Soccer when the players refused to play a scheduled friendly against Panama in early June. The announcement came just hours before the match was set to take place in Vancouver, leaving fans in a lurch.
At the time, the players said they wanted more transparency from Canada Soccer, changes in the organization's leadership, and World Cup compensation that includes 40 per cent of prize money and a "comprehensive friends and family package" for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
On Monday, Canada Soccer said it had sent a revised proposal to representatives for players from both teams on June 23.
Curiously, the Canada Soccer statement only referred to "lawyers representing the CANWNT have replied acknowledging receipt of the proposal."
