Football NSW Begins Schools Activity Book Initiative

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In the build-up to the AFC Women’s Asian Cup™ 2026, Football NSW has commenced a new initiative across classrooms in NSW to inspire excitement for the competition among young learners. The Schools Activity Book had its first session last Friday, 21 November, at Birchgrove Public School. 

Football NSW hopes that increasing the competition’s presence in classrooms will allow students to celebrate the tournament, as well as learning more about the nations involved in a fun and engaging manner. 

From the Boardroom to the Classroom

Students at Birchgrove Public School were provided the opportunity to see the AFC Women’s Asian Cup™ Schools Activity Book in a session led by Football NSW coach, Zac Bloem. The book is designed with young learners in mind and features activities such as crosswords, maps, and ‘Find The Ball’ challenges, all of which aim to create an engaging learning experience about the tournament due to be held in Australia in March 2026.

Football NSW Program Manager – Sporting Schools, Tunahan Guner, has revealed that the Activity Book has been popular both among students and the coaches leading the sessions. 

“Our coaches love stepping into the classroom and helping students learn about the tournament in a fun, interactive way. It’s a fantastic opportunity to connect education with football and inspire the next generation of fans and players,” he said via press release.

Inspiring the Next Generation

Through initiatives like the School Activity Book, Football NSW is not only encouraging students to remain engaged with the sport in the build up to the AFC Women’s Asian Cup™ 2026, but is also providing an interactive framework to educate young learners about diversity, inclusion and participation. 

By teaching students about the 12 nations who form the competition, as well as the myriad of players who will be performing on Australian soil, Football NSW is showing that football is a game for everyone, regardless of nationality, race or gender, making it an extremely valuable addition to the classroom environment. 

This is also not the first time Football NSW has displayed its commitment to inspiring young fans. This year alone, more than 200 Sporting Schools Programs were carried out by Football NSW, including the Miniroos Schools Program which runs over 6 weeks and gives students a safe environment in which to have fun, develop motor skills, and participate as equals.

Schools or parents wishing to access the Activity Book can find it here

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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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Image Credit: Football NSW

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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