Football Victoria induct Karen Hocking as Life Member

Liam Watson

Football Victoria have held their Annual General Meeting (AGM), where they inducted Karen Hocking as their latest Life Member.

The AGM by Football Victoria, coinciding with the release of the 2019 Annual Report, was held via video conference due to Covid-19 restrictions.

On Monday May 25th, the meeting was attended by over 50 Life Members and Members across the Victorian football community.

On the night, it was made official that Hocking would be inducted as a Life Member following the amount of work she has done over her lifetime.

Hocking has been the Shepparton Junior Association secretary for almost two decades – a driving force behind the growth of football throughout the Goulburn Valley region.

Her commitments for the game extend to managing SJSA Academy Player Development Program, being the Vice President of the Victorian Country Leagues Football Association and as the SJSA Registrations Officer.

Hocking’s passion for grassroots football and the tireless effort to make sure every child gets the opportunity to play they game they love has been formally recognised by Football Victoria as their inducted Life Member.

Speaking to Shepparton News, she praised her fellow team at SJSA as she receives this major honour.

“You don’t do it for accolades, it’s felt like much more of a team effort than an individual one,” she said.

“It’s really lovely to be recognised, but I feel the whole association deserves this award.”

Football Victoria’s 2019 Annual Report featured how they would respond to the Covid-19 pandemic, including it’s effect on the sport – a topic of discussion for Members on the night.

“Football Victoria will continue to work tirelessly on understanding the impact of the virus on all stakeholders in the community,” the member federation said.

“The Board thanked the Members, Life Members, our 355 clubs, coaches, referees, community volunteers and all who support football for their incredible contribution – especially during the challenging times we are all facing at the moment.”

Photo Credit: Shepparton News

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Football NSW supports Female Coaches CPD as Women’s Football Surges

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Image Credit: Shutterstock

Football NSW has used the platform of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup to deliver a targeted professional development workshop for female coaches, bringing together scholarship recipients for an evening of structured learning and direct engagement with elite women’s football.

Held at ACPE last month, the session was open to female coaches who received C or B Diploma scholarships through Football NSW in 2025. Coaching accreditation carries a financial cost that disproportionately affects women, who are less likely to have their development subsidised by clubs or associations operating in underfunded community football environments. Scholarship access changes that equation at the point where many women exit the pathway.

Facilitated by Football NSW Coach Development Coordinator Bronwyn Kiceec, the workshop focused on goal scoring trends from the tournament’s group stage, with coaches analysing attacking patterns and exploring how those insights could translate into their own environments. The group then attended the quarter-final between South Korea and Uzbekistan at Stadium Australia.

The structure of the evening mattered as much as its content. Female coaches in community football rarely have access to elite competition environments as a professional resource. The gap between the level at which most women coach and the level at which the game is analysed and discussed tends to reinforce itself. Placing scholarship recipients inside a major tournament, as participants rather than spectators, closes that gap in a way that a classroom session cannot.

Female coaches remain significantly underrepresented across all levels of the game in Australia. The pipeline that will change that depends not only on accreditation access but on the professional networks, peer relationships and exposure to elite environments that male coaches have historically taken for granted.

The workshop forms part of Football NSW’s ongoing commitment to developing female coaches through scholarships and structured learning opportunities.

Marie-Louise Eta makes history as new Union Berlin head coach

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Image credit: FC Union Berlin

In an historic appointment, Eta will take over as head coach of Union Berlin until the end of the season.

History in the making

Previously the first female assistant coach in Bundesliga history with Union Berlin, Eta will now take the reigns of the men’s first team on an interim basis.

Currently, the club sit in 11th place in the Bundesliga table, but with only two wins so far in 2026, relegation appears an all-too-real prospect, and one which the club is desperate to avoid.

“Given the points gap in the lower half of the table, our place in the Bundesliga is not yet secure,” said Eta via official media release.

‘I am delighted that the club has entrusted me with this challenging task. One of Union’s strengths has always been, and remains, the ability to pull together in such situations.”

Eta will begin as Union’s new head coach with immediate effect, and will be in the dugout for the club’s matchup against Wolfsburg this weekend.

 

A step into an equal future

Eta’s appointment signals a major step towards a more level playing field in the football landscape.

Furthermore, Eta joins other coaches including Sabrinna Wittmann, Hannah Dingley and Corinne Diacre who, in recent years, have blazed a trail for female coaches to step into the men’s game.

Wittmann currently manages FC Ingolstadt in Germany’s third division, and was the first female head coach in Germany’s top three divisions.

In 2023, Dingley became caretaker manager of Forest Green Rovers, and thus the first woman to lead a men’s professional team in England.

Diacre, now head coach of France’s women’s national team, managed Ligue 2’s Clerment Foot between 2014 and 2017.

 

Final thoughts

The impact therefore, is that Eta’s appointment will show future generations of aspiring female coaches that men’s football is an equally viable and possible pathway as the women’s game.

The time is now to level the playing field.

And while it may be a short-term role, its effect on attitudes towards equality and fair opportunities in the game will hopefully resonate long after the season ends.

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