Maestracci named chairman of the board

Dominic Maestracci has today been named chairman of the board of the Canadian Soccer Association. Maestracci will lead the Canadian Soccer Association until the next general meeting, presently scheduled for May 2008, when an open vote will be conducted to select the next president. He will serve as the chairman of the board, presiding over all meetings of the Association and the Board of Directors.
Maestracci was the vice president of the Canadian Soccer Association. He has served as the chair of the governance committees and has also served on the Canadian Soccer Association’s futsal committee, finance committee, national referee committee, senior amateur committee and FIFA U-20 World Cup national organizing committee. He previously served as vice-president and president of the Québec Soccer Federation. Dominic was both a player (up to the university level) and a coach (at the national level). He was a national referee from 1983 to 1989 and served as a FIFA nominee in 1988 and 1989. Dominic is a full professor of medicine at the Université de Montréal.
Victor Montagliani, the Canadian Soccer Association’s other vice president, withdrew his name from selection prior to this weekend’s meetings for personal reasons. Montagliani’s decision was made to strengthen the Canadian Soccer Association’s executive committee’s unity heading into the weekend’s general meeting.
The Canadian Soccer Association, in partnership with its members, is dedicated to the growth and development of soccer for all Canadians at all levels. The Canadian Soccer Association is also dedicated to providing leadership and good governance for the sport. The Canadian Soccer Association’s goals include providing opportunities to all members from participation at the grassroots level to the FIFA World Cups, encouraging positive values in all aspects of the sport, and being recognised as a major player in the sport.
In 2007, the Canadian Soccer Association hosted a very successful FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007. The 52-match tournament set an attendance record with 1,192,168 fans and was broadcast in 200 countries and territories around the world. Prior to the tournament, the Canadian Soccer Association officially opened the new National Soccer Stadium in Toronto – BMO Field – which is also the home of the Major League Soccer expansion club Toronto FC.
As for Canada’s two senior teams, the men’s team reached the semi-final of the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup in June and is now ranked third amongst CONCACAF countries in the recent FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings. As for the women’s team, it participated in its fourth-straight senior FIFA Women’s World Cup and reached an all-time high ninth-place in the FIFA/Coca-Cola Women’s World Rankings. In 2008, Canada’s men’s team will take part in preliminary qualifications for the FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010 while the women’s team will take part in qualifications for the 2008 Summer Olympics.