ACT Government to invest $20 million into ‘Home of Football’

In a recent press release from ACT Football, it has been confirmed that the ACT Government will be investing $20 million into a new ‘Home of Football’ facility in the national’s capital.

This announcement comes only a week after the Victorian Government announced they would be investing a similar amount ($22 million) into facilities across the state.

Here’s a link to that story:

Victorian government to invest $22 million into state football facilities

With both Federations clearly confident of what the future holds for soccer in their respective state/territory, it will be interesting to see if more announcements are made across other states in the coming weeks and months.

Full press release can be found below:

Canberra will have a new ‘Home of Football’ following the announcement of a $20 million investment by the ACT Government, announced in Tuesday’s budget.

The facility, to be built at Throsby, will be the new headquarters for football in the ACT. It will feature multiple outdoor fields, indoor futsal courts, office space for Capital Football, and associated amenities.

With the ACT Government investing $20 million to the project, Capital Football will contribute $4.5 million to build the 24.5 million-dollar facility. It is expected to be operational during the second half of 2021.

Capital Football CEO, Phil Brown, says the organisation has been looking for a parcel of land in the ACT to establish a headquarters for the entire football community for some time as many facilities are already operating at capacity. He says, “This high performance and community facility is just as much about providing for the grassroots as it is about providing a training base for our elite teams, such as Canberra United.”

And Mr Brown says the establishment of futsal courts will contribute to gender parity in football; “In Canberra, 42 per cent of futsal players are female. This is more than double the national average for females of 20 per cent. With Futsal centres in Canberra at capacity, the new facility will provide opportunity to run more competitions that will support our work to achieve parity with male participation.”

Tuesday’s budget announcement sees the ACT Government partnering with Capital Football and Football Federation of Australia (FFA) to establish the headquarters for football in Canberra. Mr Brown sees this injection of funds as having significant benefit for the future of Canberra football, “The ‘Home of Football’ facility represents a real opportunity for strategic growth in football in the ACT.”

As part of the partnership, the FFA will be bringing three elite games to Canberra over the next 18 months, including Matildas and Socceroos matches. Further details around these games will be announced on Friday morning when an official Home of Football announcement will be held onsite in Throsby with representatives from the ACT Government, Capital Football and Football Federation of Australia.

*ENDS*

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Europe Is Packing Out Stadiums – Is Australia Missing the Bigger Picture?

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Image credit: Maciej Rogowski

More than 60 million fans attended matches across Europe’s five major domestic leagues during the 2025/26 season, with average attendances rising 2.4 per cent to 34,402 spectators per game.

On the surface, the figures paint a picture of a healthy ecosystem. Stadiums are fuller than ever, supporters continue to attend in large numbers and live football remains one of the most compelling entertainment products in the world.

But headline crowd figures only tell part of the story.

The more revealing measure is stadium utilisation how much of a venue’s capacity is actually being filled and the structural factors influencing those numbers.

For clubs, higher attendances don’t simply mean more ticket sales. Every additional supporter creates revenue opportunities across hospitality, food and beverage, merchandise and memberships. Modern stadiums are increasingly designed to maximise revenue per visitor, making infrastructure investment as much a commercial decision as a football one.

Attendance growth needs context

In Germany, the Bundesliga reclaimed its position as Europe’s best-attended league, averaging more than 42,300 spectators per match following a 9.4 per cent increase on last year’s figures.

However, much of that growth was driven by the return of traditional powerhouses Hamburger SV and 1. FC Köln. Both clubs continued to attract crowds of more than 50,000 despite spending recent seasons in the second division.

Their promotion didn’t suddenly create new supporters.

It returned two of German football’s biggest fan bases to the top flight, demonstrating how promotion and relegation can significantly influence league-wide attendance trends.

Everton shows how new stadiums can unlock demand

While the Premier League recorded another increase in average attendance, much of that growth can be traced to Everton’s move into the new Hill Dickinson Stadium. The larger venue added almost 13,000 spectators per home match compared with Goodison Park, accounting for more than half of the league’s overall attendance growth during the season.

Rather than generating new demand, the project unlocked demand that already existed.

That distinction matters.

Attendance should be viewed alongside stadium utilisation because many clubs have effectively reached capacity.

A stadium averaging 98 per cent capacity tells a very different story to one averaging 60 per cent, even if the latter attracts more spectators overall.

High utilisation suggests strong demand, pricing power and a compelling matchday experience, while lower utilisation can indicate untapped potential or a venue unfit for its market.

Capacity is becoming a strategic issue

In competitions where grounds are regularly close to full, future growth will depend less on attracting new supporters and more on expanding or redeveloping stadiums.

Elsewhere, the opportunity lies in making better use of existing capacity.

Spain illustrates how infrastructure can also temporarily suppress attendances. Barcelona’s continued absence from the Spotify Camp Nou during its redevelopment has limited crowd numbers despite strong demand.

Real Madrid’s renovated Santiago Bernabéu, meanwhile, demonstrates how modern stadium investment can increase not only capacity but also commercial revenue through premium hospitality.

League structures also shape attendance trends

Ligue 1’s growth over recent seasons has coincided with its reduction from 20 clubs to 18, concentrating a greater number of well-supported clubs within the competition and lifting average attendances as a result.

Stadium investment, league composition, promotion and relegation, and long-term supporter culture all play a role.

Taken together, the figures suggest that attendance growth is rarely driven by a single factor.

The lesson for Australian football

Crowd figures are often viewed as the primary indicator of a league’s health, but European football demonstrates that context matters just as much as the headline number.

The recent Australia Cup fixture between South Melbourne and Preston Lions provides a good local example. While the official attendance was 6,673, the packed grandstands, active supporter groups and television presentation created an atmosphere that felt far larger than the raw figure suggested.

It was a reminder that fan engagement, venue utilisation and matchday experience can often say more about the health of a competition than attendance alone.

A sold-out 15,000-seat stadium may indicate stronger demand than a half-full 30,000-seat venue, while investment in infrastructure can unlock thousands of additional supporters without changing underlying interest in the game itself.

As clubs continue to invest in new stadiums and redevelop existing venues, attendance should increasingly be measured not simply by how many people are watching, but by how effectively football is meeting supporter demand.

The crowds may be rising, but the real story is why.

FIFA’s U15 World Cup continue to seek secretive external investment

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Image Credits: FIFA.com

FIFA’s inaugural U15 World Cup has raised fresh questions about transparency after private investors were reportedly involved in plans to finance and commercialise the tournament. According to reporting from The Athletic, FIFA President Gianni Infantino discussed a potential investment worth more than US$250 million without informing members of the FIFA Council about the external investment talks.

The proposal involved Todd Boehly’s Eldridge Industries. Boehly owns Chelsea in the Premier League. It reportedly targeted a global U15 tournament involving all 211 FIFA member associations. The discussions included broadcast rights and a potential hosting location near Disneyland before being scrapped. The investment discussions add another layer to FIFA’s growing push to bring private capital into football.

Council oversight questioned

The biggest issue is not simply the size of the proposed investment. It’s that this was planned in late 2025 without the FIFA Council being included. Several FIFA Council members reportedly said they were unaware that external investors were being approached. They learned about the discussions after the reporting emerged.

FIFA has disputed the suggestion that the process breached its governance rules. The organisation said its administration was developing funding options for the tournament and that the Council would consider formal proposals when required. However, the distinction matters. A tournament involving children, FIFA’s global brand and long-term commercial rights creates significant governance responsibilities.

A new commercial model

The proposal also shows how FIFA could use new competitions to create commercial properties. The reported investment model explored revenue from broadcasting, sponsorship and licensing. The intention to use a youth sporting tournament for external commercial benefit and to create value with all 211 nations represented adds another layer to FIFA’s questionable actions.

The proposal was reportedly dismissed just before this year’s FIFA World Cup. This could have been due to FIFA’s extensive proposal to introduce the FIFA Forward Enterprises (FIFA), which received major backlash as the governing body attempted to sell stakes in its major tournaments. The agreement with Eldridge Industries could’ve been a conflict with those existing FFE plans.

A different direction

For FIFA, they ultimately went against the proposal ideas. The U15 World Cup will be held in October in Azerbaijan from October 22nd to 31st. But once again, transparency and FIFA become an issue. The lack of consultation around specifically a youth tournament with the wider footballing community raises questions if FIFA is developing the game only for financial gain.

The U15 project may eventually create a valuable global football property. But the way FIFA handles its commercialisation could determine whether that value strengthens the organisation — or creates another governance problem.

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