Future of Sport in Canada Commission releases Final Report

Press Release

March 24, 2026

Today, the Future of Sport in Canada Commission released its Final Report, following nearly two years of thorough review, analysis, and engagement with a wide range of participants. The Final Report sets out the Commission’s final findings and 98 Calls to Action to improve safe sport and to fundamentally strengthen the sport system in Canada.

The Final Report also provides a roadmap for change focused on prevention, response, and support in safe sport, and on renewed leadership, alignment, governance, funding and investment across the Canadian sport system.

The Final Report focuses on the two parts of the Commission’s mandate: improving safe sport and the sport system in Canada.

Improving safe sport

• The Commission found that maltreatment in sport is widespread, systemic, and ongoing. Power imbalances and a culture of silence have allowed harm to persist, with winning, reputation, and funding too often prioritized over participant safety and well-being. Long-standing weaknesses in the sport system, including governance failures and inadequate oversight, have allowed maltreatment to continue.
• The Commission’s Calls to Action to improve safe sport focus on effective response to maltreatment, support for those affected, and prevention. The Final Report calls for consistent safe sport policies and complaint mechanisms across the country. The Commission calls for the creation of a single Pan-Canadian Safe Sport Authority empowered to investigate and adjudicate reports of maltreatment from all levels of sport. Recognizing the urgency of the situation, the Commission also calls on the federal government to support provincial and territorial safe sport programs so that common standards and independent, centralized mechanisms can be implemented nationwide.
• To strengthen prevention measures, key Calls to Action include the creation of a Pan-Canadian Safe Sport Education program, the development of universal background screening policies, the designation of safeguarding officers, and the creation of a Pan-Canadian Registry of Sanctioned Individuals in Sport.

Improving the sport system

• The Commission found that Canada’s sport system is underfunded and fragmented and lacks clear national leadership. Barriers to participation are growing as sport is becoming more expensive, inaccessible, and exclusive. The sport system needs to be inclusive, safe, accessible, and welcoming for all.
• To improve the sport system, the Commission’s Calls to Action focus on strengthening leadership, governance, and system alignment, urgently increasing investments in the sport system, reducing barriers to participation, particularly for equity-deserving groups, and ensuring that the sport system is inclusive of Indigenous perspectives.
• The Final Report calls for enhanced intergovernmental collaboration and the creation of a Centralized Sport Entity, structured as a Crown corporation, to provide national leadership, oversee federal funding, set and enforce standards, reduce duplication, and improve accountability. Other key Calls to Action include mandatory governance standards for sport organizations, increased public investments in sport, the establishment of shared services among sport organizations, and the amalgamation of sport organizations.

The Commission emphasizes that safe sport and the sport system are deeply interconnected. Failures in the sport system directly affect safety in sport. A robust, well-governed system is necessary for the creation and maintenance of safe sport environments.

These final findings and Calls to Action are the product of the Commission’s extensive review of the sport system. Over the course of its mandate, the Commission held over 590 meetings and met with over 1,000 individuals, including 175 victims and survivors of maltreatment in sport and representatives from 270 sport organizations. Participants shared more than 1,400 documents and submissions. The Commission also received over 150 post-Preliminary Report submissions and 3,351 responses to its online public survey.

The Commission’s Final Report reflects the depth of concern expressed by participants and the urgency of reform. It calls for decisive and sustained action to restore trust, protect participants, and ensure that sport is safe, inclusive, and accessible for all Canadians.

Quotes

“Sport is at a turning point in Canada. While sport matters deeply to Canadians, systemic failures and widespread maltreatment continue to undermine participant safety and the health of the sport system. The status quo is not acceptable. This Final Report sets out 98 concrete Calls to Action to build a sport system that is safe, accountable, inclusive, and aligned with Canadian values. Delivering meaningful change will require decisive action and continued collaboration between governments and the sport sector. The path forward is clear and the time to act is now.”

Lise Maisonneuve, Commissioner, Future of Sport in Canada Commission

Related Products

• Future of Sport in Canada Commission: Final Report
• Future of Sport in Canada Commission: List of the Commission’s Calls to Action

Associated Links

• Future of Sport in Canada Commission

Contacts

For more information (media only), please contact:

Media Relations
Future of Sport in Canada Commission
media@commissionsport-sportcommission.gc.ca

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