Canada Soccer have announced the women’s national team roster for the 2021 SheBelieves Cup presented by Visa. This will mark Canada’s first participation at the four-team international tournament which will take place from February 18-24 at Exploria Stadium in Orlando, FL, USA during the February FIFA international window.
Included on the roster are Julia Grosso and Jayde Riviere, alumni from the Whitecaps FC Girls Elite REX program in partnership with BC Soccer. Also included is goalkeeper Rylee Foster, who spent time in the Whitecaps FC BMO Academy Centre in London, Ontario.
Canada will kick off the tournament when they face USA on February 18 at 7:00 local (4:00 PT), followed by Argentina on February 21 at 6:00 local (3:00 PT), and closing out the tournament against Brazil on February 24 at 4:00 local (1:00 PT). All three Canada matches will be broadcast live by One Soccer and the USA and Brazil matches as special presentations on CBC. Fans will also find extended coverage across Canada Soccer’s digital channels on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter featuring the social media hashtag #CANWNT.
“The SheBelieves Cup will provide a great opportunity for players to rise up and show that they can compete at this Olympic level”, said Bev Priestman, Canada Soccer’s women’s national team head coach. “The tournament will be used to assess the player pool and players’ readiness to achieve our goals at the Olympic Games. Ultimately this sort of competition is exactly where we all want to be, pushing ourselves as we move forward in this journey.”
The Canada roster features a mix of established veterans and young players, including five players who could make their debut for the Women’s National Team. The squad includes 12 players that were part of the first Canadian Olympic team to win back-to-back medals at a summer Olympic Games in more than a century at Rio 2016, among which are two-time Olympic bronze medallists Desiree Scott and Sophie Schmidt. Schmidt will also notably record her 200th cap for Canada with her next appearance.
Among the five players yet to make their first international “A” appearance is the most recent Canadian Youth International Player of the Year Jade Rose. Other potential debutants are Evelyne Viens of Sky Blue FC, Jordyn Listro of Orlando Pride, Rylee Foster of Liverpool FC and Samantha Chang of University of South Carolina.
The Canada roster will also feature goalkeepers Stephanie Labbé and Kailen Sheridan; centre backs Vanessa Gilles, Quinn, and Shelina Zadorsky; fullbacks Lindsay Agnew, Gabrielle Carle, Allysha Chapman, and Jayde Riviere; midfielders Jessie Fleming, Julia Grosso, and Sarah Stratigakis; and forwards Janine Beckie, Adriana Leon, Nichelle Prince, and Deanne Rose.
“I know that every player who puts on the Canadian jersey will give everything they have to get a result and make their country proud”, said Priestman. “I have been really impressed by the mindset and application of this group of players since the beginning of our February camp, and I can’t wait to see them in action against some of the best teams in the world.”
OLYMPIC MEDAL WINNERS & CONCACAF CHAMPIONS
Canada are two-time Olympic bronze medal winners (2012 and 2016) and two-time Concacaf champions (1998 and 2010). In all, Canada have participated in seven consecutive editions of the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ (1995 to 2019) and three consecutive editions of the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament (2008 to 2016). At Rio 2016, Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Team were the first Canadian Olympic team to win back-to-back medals at a summer Olympic Games in more than a century.
Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Youth Teams, meanwhile, have won four Concacaf youth titles: the 2004 and 2008 Concacaf Women’s Under-20 Championship, the 2010 Concacaf Women’s Under-17 Championship, and the 2014 Concacaf Girls’ Under-15 Championship. Canada have qualified for seven editions of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup (including a silver medal at Canada 2002) and all six editions of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup (including a fourth-place finish at Uruguay 2018).
CANADA
1 - GK- Stephanie Labbé | SWE / FC Rosengård
2 - FB- Allysha Chapman | USA / Houston Dash
3 - CB- Jade Rose| CAN / Super REX Ontario
4 - CB- Shelina Zadorsky | ENG / Tottenham Hotspur
5 - CB – Quinn | USA / OL Reign FC
6 - F- Deanne Rose | USA / University of Florida
7 - M- Julia Grosso | USA / University of Texas at Austin
8 - M- Samantha Chang| USA / University of South Carolina
9 - F- Evelyne Viens| USA / Sky Blue FC
10 - M – Sarah Stratigakis | USA / University of Michigan
11 - M- Desiree Scott | USA / Kansas City NWSL
12 - GK- Rylee Foster| ENG / Liverpool FC
13 - M- Sophie Schmidt | USA / Houston Dash
14 - FB- Gabrielle Carle| USA / Florida State University
15 - F- Nichelle Prince | USA / Houston Dash
16 - F- Janine Beckie | ENG / Manchester City FC
17 - M- Jessie Fleming | ENG / Chelsea FC
18 - GK- Kailen Sheridan | USA / Sky Blue FC
19 - F- Adriana Leon | ENG / West Ham United FC
20 - FB- Jayde Riviere | USA / University of Michigan
21 - M– Jordyn Listro| USA / Orlando Pride
22 – FB- Lindsay Agnew | USA / NC Courage
23 - CB- Vanessa Gilles| FRA / FC Girondins de Bordeaux
CANADA A-Z
Agnew, Lindsay | 25 | Kingston, ON, CAN & Dublin, OH, USA | Byron Optimist SC
Beckie, Janine | 26 | Highlands Ranch, CO, USA | Real Colorado
Carle, Gabrielle | 22 | Lévis, QC, CAN | AS Chaudière-Est
Chang, Samantha | 20 | Mississauga, ON, CAN | Mississauga SC
Chapman, Allysha | 32 | Courtice, ON, CAN | Darlington SC
Fleming, Jessie | 22 | London, ON, CAN | Nor’West Optimist SC
Foster, Rylee | 22 | Cambridge, ON, CAN | Cambridge Youth SA
Gilles, Vanessa | 24 | Ottawa, ON, CAN | Ottawa Capital United SC
Grosso, Julia | 20 | Vancouver, BC, CAN | Vancouver’s Italian Canadian SF
Labbé, Stephanie | 34 | Stony Plain, AB, CAN | Spruce Grove Saints
Leon, Adriana | 28 | Maple and King City, ON, CAN | Vaughan Azzuri
Listro, Jordyn | 25 | Toronto, ON, CAN | Wexford SC
Prince, Nichelle | 26 | Ajax, ON, CAN | Ajax SC
Quinn | 25 | Toronto, ON, CAN | North Toronto SC
Riviere, Jayde | 20 | Markham, ON, CAN | West Rouge SC
Rose, Deanne | 21 | Alliston, ON, CAN | Alliston SC
Rose, Jade | 18 | Markham, ON, CAN | Markham SC
Schmidt, Sophie | 32 | Abbotsford, BC, CAN | Abbotsford
Scott, Desiree | 33 | Winnipeg, MB, CAN | Maples Cougars
Sheridan, Kailen | 25 | Whitby, ON, CAN | Pickering SC
Stratigakis, Sarah | 21 | Woodbridge, ON, CAN |
Viens, Evelyne | 24 | L'Ancienne-Lorette, QC, CAN | AS Mistral Laurentien
Zadorsky, Shelina | 28 | Kitchener & London, ON, CAN | Kitchener SC