Auckland FC adds three All White legends to ownership group

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Three former All Whites—Winston Reid, Tim Brown, and Noah Hickey—have joined the ownership group of Auckland FC, bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience from their time as top-level players.

With over 580 professional and international appearances between them, the trio is united in their passion for New Zealand football and is committed to helping the club succeed.

About the three owners

Winston Reid

The former All White and captain of West Ham brings vast experience from his time in the Premier League, where he played over 150 games. Born in Auckland, Reid is particularly excited about supporting the club in his hometown.

“Getting involved as an investor with Auckland FC feels like the perfect opportunity for me. I love what the club has to offer, what it represents to Auckland, as well as the coaching and development pathways available to help players achieve their very best,” he said in a statement.

“Becoming a professional football player is one of the hardest things to achieve; it takes more than just talent. I’m humbled by the opportunity to give back some of my own experiences as a professional footballer, to the next generation.”

Tim Brown

Brown is now better known as the co-founder and co-CEO of sustainable footwear brand Allbirds and played over 100 times in the A-League and 30 times for New Zealand. His extensive professional career is complemented by his success in business.

Brown shared his ambitious vision for Auckland FC.

“Considering the number of people locally who are playing it and its global appeal, football is massively under-represented in New Zealand,” he said in a statement. 

“Auckland FC represents an opportunity to change that for the benefit of players as well as the wider NZ football community.

“I’m pleased to be joining an ownership group with such experience and expertise. We have some serious ambitions for this club, and with a world-class network of global investors, I’m confident they can be achieved.”

Noah Hickey

Hickey is another former All White and now serves as CEO of fleet maintenance software company Whip Around and co-founder of the fashion brand Asuwere.

After a professional football career spanning Auckland, Europe, and the All Whites, Hickey has built a successful corporate career.

Reflecting on his involvement with Auckland FC, Noah is confident he can unite the city of Auckland and pathways for future players.

“I’ve played football in Auckland, Europe, and internationally. Being overseas, you really notice the cultural behemoth football is and its ability to bring people from all backgrounds together,” he said via statement. 

“There’s a great opportunity here to do that in Auckland, to unite the city and create better pathways for future players to make it professionally. Having people like Tim and Winston involved is vital to that success, and I’m delighted to join them, Ali, Anna, and Bill and become a part of it.”

The reason behind this move 

The new additions join existing local owners Ali Williams and Anna Mowbray, while American businessman Bill Foley remains the majority owner.

Together, the group is focused on the long-term success of the club and creating clear pathways for young Kiwi talent to reach the professional level.

Auckland FC’s strong corporate foundations are further strengthened by the appointments of Tim Brown and Noah Hickey who have sustained success in the business industry.

Whereas for Winston Reid, the chance to give back to the city where he was born is a significant motivation, and he is determined to help the next generation succeed at the highest level.

Auckland FC CEO, Nick Becker, emphasised the club’s vision and how they plan to tackle the near future.

“All of us at the club, players, staff, and our owners share a clear vision for Auckland FC. We are proud to represent New Zealand’s biggest city, and we are working hard to build a club that has its fans at the core of our decision-making, and we’re investing in genuine talent pathways for young Kiwi boys and girls,” Becker said in the club statement.

“We are incredibly lucky that our owners recognize the growth trajectory that football is on in New Zealand and can see the opportunity that having a professional club in Auckland offers. When I look at the calibre of the ownership team now in place, I’m incredibly confident of what Auckland FC can offer, whether that be fans, players, staff, sponsors, and Auckland at large. This is great news for us, but also great news for the city.”

Conclusion

This move by Auckland FC is brilliant, combining the experience and expertise of three footballing legends to try and propel them up the table as quick as possible in this tough transitional period.

With a myriad of fantastic on-field signings, an experienced coach and now this new ownership group, Auckland FC are very carefully building a solid and sustainable foundation to launch themselves as a top club.

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South Canberra FC Breaks the Mold: Equity-Driven Model Earns ‘Club Changer’ Honour

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South Canberra Football Club has been named Club Changer of the Month for April, in a recognition that reflects a broader shift across Australian football toward rewarding clubs that are actively dismantling the structural barriers limiting women’s access to the game.

The AFC Women’s Asian Cup has just delivered record crowds and unprecedented visibility for women’s football in Australia, and the Club Changer program is now asking what comes next. Its decision to name South Canberra Football Club as Club Changer of the Month for April signals a clear shift in how the program defines contribution: away from participation numbers alone, and toward the equity frameworks that determine whether women stay in the game once they arrive.

South Canberra FC built that framework from the ground up. Established in 2021, the club set out to give women and female-identifying players a safe, inclusive environment to play football at any level. It runs entirely on volunteers, operates as a not-for-profit, and is governed by an all-female committee with 13 of its 14 coaches identifying as female.

 

Building the infrastructure of inclusion

In 2026, the club secured grant funding and put it to work immediately. Two coaches are completing their C Licence qualification, and ten coaches, players and community members have undertaken the Foundations of Football course, which directly tackles the cost and accessibility barriers that exclude women out of coaching pathways.

The club also commissioned a female-specific strength and conditioning program with sports physiotherapists ahead of the 2026 season, targeting injury prevention and explicitly supporting players returning after childbirth.

SCFC’s leadership team draws from LGBTIQ+ individuals, First Nations people and veterans, strengthening the club’s connection to the communities it was built to represent.

The Club Changer program is backing clubs that do this work- clubs that treat equity as infrastructure rather than aspiration. At a moment when Australian football is under pressure to turn its biggest-ever surge of women’s interest into something lasting, SCFC’s model offers a clear answer to the question of how.

Football NSW announces 2026 First Nations Scholarships as pathway access program enters new phase

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Football NSW has announced the recipients of its 2026 First Nations Scholarships, with ten emerging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players from metropolitan and regional NSW receiving support designed to reduce the financial and structural barriers that have historically limited First Nations participation across the football pathway.

The scholarship program, developed and assessed in collaboration with the Football NSW Indigenous Advisory Group, targets players across both elite and development environments – recognising that talent identification alone is insufficient without the resources to support progression once players are identified.

Co-Chair of the Indigenous Advisory Group Bianca Dufty said the calibre of this year’s recipients reflected the depth of First Nations football talent across the state, and the importance of structured support in converting that talent into long-term participation.

“Their dedication to football and the desire to be role models for younger Aboriginal footballers in their communities is to be celebrated,” Dufty said. “I’m confident we will see some of these talented footballers in the A-League and national teams in the future.”

 

Beyond the pitch and into the pipeline

The 2026 cohort spans both metropolitan clubs and regional associations, an intentional distribution that acknowledges the particular barriers facing First Nations players outside major population centres, where access to development programs, qualified coaching and pathway competitions is more limited and the cost of participation more prohibitive.

The next phase of the program will introduce First Nations coaching scholarships, extending the initiative’s reach beyond playing pathways and into the coaching and administration pipeline – areas where Indigenous representation remains among the lowest in the game.

The structural logic is clear. Scholarships that reduce financial barriers at the entry point of elite pathways matter most when they are part of a sustained ecosystem of support rather than isolated gestures. Football NSW’s collaboration with the Indigenous Advisory Group provides that continuity, ensuring the program is shaped by the communities it is designed to serve.

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