Culture Change Required in Canadian Hockey
What’s the story?
Hockey Canada has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons and is being forced to take stock, shake up its leadership and reassure its fan base after allegations of serious sexual misconduct were brought against current and former National Hockey League (NHL) players. Allegations go back several years, investigations are ongoing and are not isolated - pointing to a long term culture problem in the sport. During a recent House of Commons committee hearing, Hockey Canada confirmed it has paid out $8.9 million in sexual abuse settlements to 21 complainants since 1989.
There has been widespread criticism and condemnation of the leadership and culture in the sport; sponsors have walked, federal funding was temporarily pulled (and only reinstated under strict conditions) and supporters are demanding action. In recognition of the scale of change required, Hockey Canada’s entire board of directors and CEO resigned but the reputation of the national organisation remains tarnished. A change in leadership does not automatically result in a change in culture.
These allegations are serious and concerning. They point to a much larger and long standing culture problem in the sport and its governing bodies. A new president is promising reform and the first of a planned series of Hockey Canada summits has taken place, designed, as reported by CBC, to tackle one root cause identified at the heart of racism, sexism, homophobia, discrimination and exclusion in hockey: how masculinity is defined in the sport. This includes glorifying toughness and violence, the "bro culture", the "code of the locker room" — and how elite men's hockey dominates the sport's culture in Canada.
The Team Code take
It’s great that Hockey Canada is looking at the systemic issues within the sport. However, they have to follow this with meaningful sustained action rather than rhetoric and superficial work. Hockey as a game is closely aligned with toxic masculinity - the fights that break out during a game are a drawcard for some supporters - and it will take strong intention and action to change this. Toxic masculinity is often seen as the root cause, when in reality it’s the culture that encourages and supports it, that’s the problem.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau weighed in on the Hockey Canada culture when details of the ‘National Equity Fund’ being used to settle sexual assault claims came to light. He said: “Hockey Canada needs to do an awful lot as an organisation to gain back the trust of Canadians. Their behaviour over these past years and indeed over these past months has not been worthy of an organisation that embodies so many hopes and dreams for young Canadian boys and girls.”
The goal should not be to erase the excitement, competition and tough play that fans and players admire, but develop an intentional culture with strong values of respect and teamwork at the core. A good example would be the goal setting and fair play ambitions of the Japan Football Association. They have strong and specific aims they want to achieve without sacrificing reputation and respect. And the fans play their part too, famously cleaning the stadium after World Cup matches - winning them praise and inspiring other nations to do the same.
As this excellent article in The Conversation says, it’s easy to blame individuals (‘bad apples’) when in reality the entire culture condones the poor behaviour of some (not all) of its leaders, coaches, players and staff.
Hockey Canada has pledged to implement reforms to change the culture within the organisation and address abusive and toxic behaviour. With some critics describing Hockey Canada as a ‘secretive and unaccountable organisation’ there is clearly a lot of work to be done to rebuild trust in the sport.
There needs to be a zero tolerance approach for poor behaviour. When children come into the game they know nothing of toxic masculinity or the culture that perpetuates it - they learn it from those around them.
While the reflection on how Hockey Canada, and Canadian hockey culture, got where it is today is useful, action is required right now to create a safe and inclusive culture that the sport can be proud of. Navel gazing or waiting for another report to confirm what is already known, will merely add to the current cultural stagnation.
The Team Code believes that this requires humility and accountability from all corners of hockey leadership in the face of these allegations and a willingness to deal with the bystanders who have witnessed the culture rot on their watch.
In our experience of working with teams, change is possible, but only with a determination to do something different and educate everyone in the sport on their role in making this happen.
Culture belongs to everyone - from the coach, to the left defenseman, to the equipment manager, the wider community and of course, the CEO and their team. High profile players, coaches and commentators advocating values of teamwork and integrity need to back up words with demonstrable action, accountability and policy.
Hockey Canada is certainly not alone in this situation. A ‘sweep it under the carpet’ mindset is prevalent in many sports. Unless sporting organisations get the help they need to redefine the conditions required to address their culture issues, more and more will face this scrutiny, loss of revenue and ultimately loss of support. No player, supporter or sport wants to see that.
Suggested actions:
Involve stakeholders to establish a core set of values that identify the kind of organisation that Hockey Canada needs to become
Educate coaches and players on what culture is, their role within it and how to challenge toxicity when they see it
Deal with offenders swiftly to set the tone for the future