Owl mascot Shuéme unveiled for FIFA Women's World Cup
Canada to host month-long tourney beginning June 6, 2015
A young female great white owl named Shuéme is the official mascot for the FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada next year.
The animal mascot was fittingly unveiled at the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa, less than a year before the tournament begins on June 6, 2015.
Vancouver, along with Edmonton, Winnipeg, Montreal, Ottawa and Moncton, N.B. are hosting the tournament, which finishes on July 5, 2015.
Speaking at the event, Laureen Harper said the attention the men's World Cup has attracted across Canada is a sign of the sport's popularity across the country and said having our own team in the women's event will attract interest.
"Canada will have a team in the Women's World Cup," said Harper. "In fact we'll have the best team."
Canada, led by star player Christine Sinclair, is currently seventh in the FIFA rankings.
On Dec. 6 representatives of all 24 participating soccer teams will meet at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Que., for a draw to determine the order of play.