Football Australia near $200m TV deal with Network Ten

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Football Australia is currently in the final stages of negotiations to secure a record-breaking $200 million TV deal with Network Ten that will extend the current broadcast deal for four more years.

Reported by The Australian, the deal will be worth double the current $100 million agreement.

The deal will include broadcast rights to the 2026 Asian Cup women’s tournament that Australia will host, the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil as well as most Socceroos and Matildas games. Football Australia has also bought the rights to some junior World Cup tournaments in order to package them in the new TV contract.

There is no bigger indication of the lasting impact the Matildas have made since the recent FIFA Women’s World Cup concluded in August of last year.

Channel Seven reported that for the Semi Final against England last year, the broadcast reached staggering 11.15 million people nationally with an average audience of 7.13 million, making it the most watched TV program since the OzTAM measurement started in 2001.

Not to mention the fact that the Matildas have sold out stadiums 14 times in a row, including an incredible 76,798 attendance at Monday’s Olympic send-off friendly against China in the cold weather.

Football Australia Chief executive James Johnson didn’t publicly discuss the numbers in the deal but commented on the TV package itself and how the FA no longer relies on broadcast deals to survive.

“What it does ­strategically is it creates a one-stop shop for Matildas and Socceroos content over the next four-year cycle, and it is a creative way to come up with a new package broadcast deal,” he said via press release.

“If you go back four or five years, we were very dependent on broadcast.

“But today you’ve got strong sponsorship and other revenue streams, like merchandise, the broadcasting for national teams only, and also ticketing revenue.

“We have more broadcast revenue that will pick up in (financial year 2025) and there’s also new sponsorship deals like Milo, Coles and the new Nike deal that we signed at the back end of last year.”

This deal is extremely positive for football fans, normalising free-to-air TV in an era where Australian’s access to free sport is dwindling.

The impact of the Matildas and Socceroos producing good results in their respective World Cup’s has given the FA a platform to surge growth at grassroots level and this record-breaking TV deal is the biggest indicator that the future is heading in the right direction.

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Pushing for First Nations representation in the game with Football Queensland’s Murri Cup

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Image Credit: Football Queensland

Football Queensland has announced the inaugural FQ Murri Cup, a two-day tournament celebrating First Nations cultures and showcasing Indigenous football talent from across Queensland, to be held at Nudgee Recreation Reserve on November 28 and 29.

The competition, developed in close consultation with Football Australia’s National Indigenous Advisory Group and Football Australia’s General Manager of First Nations Courtney Fewquandie, will feature a Coles MiniRoos activation, a Charles Perkins XI Talent ID session and a community stallholder zone alongside the on-field competition. Expressions of interest are open now for individuals and teams across the state.

More than a tournament

The launch arrives at a moment when the structural underrepresentation of First Nations Australians in organised sport, at the administrative, coaching, and pathway levels, is under sustained scrutiny. Football, like most codes, has historically failed to build the kind of community-embedded structures that make sustained Indigenous participation possible rather than incidental.

The FQ Murri Cup is a direct response to that gap. By centering First Nations culture within the competition itself, rather than treating it as supplementary to a standard football event, the tournament signals a shift in how the game positions Indigenous participation as a community with its own relationship to the sport that deserves its own platform.

The inclusion of a Talent ID session carries specific weight. Structured pathways into elite football have not always been accessible to players from regional and remote Indigenous communities, where geography, cost and cultural barriers compound one another. Embedding that opportunity within a culturally safe environment lowers the threshold at the point where it most frequently closes.

“The FQ Murri Cup will bring together First Nations players, families and communities for a two-day celebration, providing a wonderful opportunity to acknowledge the contributions of First Nations participants within our game,” said Football Queensland CEO Robert Cavallucci.Mu

PlayHER Tournament returns as Football Victoria Doubles Down on Women’s Participation

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Image Credit: Football Victoria

Football Victoria‘s PlayHER Tournament returns to the Knox Regional Football Centre in Wantirna South this May, offering women across Victoria the chance to play football in a structured, social and welcoming environment.

Now in its fifth year, the tournament has grown considerably from its origins as the GO Soccer Mums Cup, which was recognised as Community Sporting Event of the Year at the 2023 Victorian Sport Awards. The rebranding to PlayHER reflects a deliberate broadening of the event’s ambition, from a competition aimed at a specific demographic to one designed to lower the barriers to entry for any woman who wants to play.

That ambition is visible in the structure of the day itself. Matches are played in a five-a-side format with short halves, keeping the format accessible for players who may not have competed in years, or those who are stepping onto the pitch for the first time. New for 2026, participants will compete across two categories: an Open and 35 years and over. It’s an addition that acknowledges the different pathways women take into sport, and the importance of ensuring the game remains available at every stage of life.

More than a matchday

The tournament comes at a strategically critical time. Women’s football in Australia is in the middle of a period of unprecedented growth, with record crowds at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup and a growing pipeline of players coming through at club level. Translating that momentum into lasting participation growth depends on events like PlayHER- low-cost, community-driven, and explicitly designed for women who might not see themselves reflected in elite competition.

At $20 per participant, the tournament remains one of the most accessible organised football experiences available in Victoria. The message is straightforward: the game is for everyone, and the door is open.

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