Report: Alphonso Davies told retailers to stop selling his Canada Soccer jersey

The FIFA World Cup is only a month away, and while Canadian soccer fans have much to look forward to on the field, things are tense around Canada Soccer off of it.

On Friday, TSN's Rick Westhead reported that Canadian soccer star Alphonso Davies' agent, Nick Huoseh, told Fanatics — the largest online retailer of licensed sports merchandise — in September that it no longer had permission to sell Canada jerseys with Davies' name and number on the back.

“National team players have never received royalties from jersey sales, and they should,” Huoseh told Westhead. “We only want what’s fair and they absolutely can and should do this.”

This was not the first time Huoseh expressed displeasure with the use of his client's image rights in Canada Soccer's marketing and sponsorship campaigns, also declining a Gatorade spot that was set to feature Davies alongside fellow Canadian men's and women's soccer stars, according to Westhead's report. Huoseh reportedly advised Canada Soccer's chief marketing officer Sandra Gage that "no company other than ones Davies has personal deals with has permission to use his image in any advertising."

Both Huoseh and Davies support the Canadian Men's National Team Players Association, which was recently formed to negotiate a new agreement between the squad and Canada Soccer.

The players association has also warned the organization that sponsors won't be allowed to use the players' images and rights without their permission. This is the first time in recent memory that Canadian soccer players have taken control of their imaging rights, according to Westhead.

These are only the latest developments in the months-long feud that culminated in a player strike in June, when the team refused to play a friendly against Panama in Vancouver. The players announced their decision to strike in a letter shared to social media, in which they also made public demands that include equal revenue sharing between men's and women's teams and 40 percent of the prize money earned for their World Cup berth as compensation.

Canada Soccer's contract with an obscure company called Canada Soccer Business (CSB) represents the biggest concern for the players, who were told in June that the organization cannot pay their bonuses for qualifying for the World Cup because CSB was siphoning too much of their revenue, Westhead reported.

He also reports that the agreement between CSB and Canada Soccer obligates CSB to pay a fee to Canada Soccer in exchange for the ability to sell broadcasting and marketing rights for both the men's and women's national teams. CSB also owns the right to keep all the revenue it obtains from selling these sponsorships and media rights, Westhead adds.

Players have also shown their frustration over the gear they'll be wearing to Qatar, as Canada is one of only two nations — along with Tunisia — out of the 32 qualified teams to not have new jerseys for the tournament.

Star striker Jonathan David protested this decision by covering the Nike logo on his chest as he celebrated a goal in a 2-0 friendly win over Qatar in September.

Following the backlash on the pitch and from fans online, Nike released a statement explaining the decision, saying, “The 2022 Canada kit will be the same the team has worn throughout the past year, as Canada Soccer is on a different kit development cycle."

“I’m not a fan of it, to be honest,” Canadian defender Sam Adekugbe told The Athletic. “I just feel like every team should get a new kit for the World Cup because it’s a symbolic event. I don’t hate it, but I would have liked to have gotten a new kit, just because it’s something to cherish.”

As Davies and Co. prepare for the country's second-ever World Cup appearance, and first since 1986, fans tuning in from home will hope the tense relationship between the players and Canada Soccer does not create a distraction leading up to one of the most exciting events in Canadian sports history.

More from Yahoo Sports