Australian photographs secured for the future

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There’s nothing better than looking through the archives.

Seeing your favourite clubs and old-time players in action, plus reliving some memorable moments, should be cherished.

In a move to protect and secure the history of Australian soccer, Football NSW and Football Victoria have united with leaders in the game and passionate fans to ensure some old photographs are brought here to Australia.

The huge collection of photographs related to Australian soccer has been able to be retrieved thanks to the two member federations and seven leading individuals who have all contributed money to the cause.

There has been a deposit paid for more than 19,000 soccer photographs which was previously in Fairfax Media’s photographic collection.

Under Fairfax’s control, the Australian photographs were among two million of them which were sold by the media organisation to US interests in 2012.

Fairfax currently own the digitised collection of photographs, but the originals which represent Australian soccer history from the 1920s to the 1990s, are held in the United States.

With the help of several key Australian personnel, they’re aiming to bring these valuable photographs back home.

Along with Football NSW and Victoria Federations, the following have each added their contribution to a deposit for the photograph collection – FOX Sports commentator and journalist Simon Hill, Chairman and deputy Chairman of new A-League expansion side Macarthur FC, Rabieh Krayem and Gino Marra.

Adding to these key figures are fans Tom Kalas from Melbourne, Chris Kunz of Bowral, Bonita Mersiades of Sydney and Christo Patsan of Newcastle.

With their assistance, they are doing their bit to make sure Australian soccer’s history and heritage are preserved for future generations.

Who doesn’t love going back to old times? This is the exact thing that can help connect more people to the game of soccer and reminisce on the key moments that matter in our history.

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Liam Watson is the Co-Founder & Publisher of Soccerscene. He reports widely on football policy, industry matters and technology.

The 2023-24 Local Sports Infrastructure Fund to cater for participation boom

Staff Writer
2023-24 Local Sports Infrastructure Fund
Image via Pxhere

The Victorian Government’s 2023-24 Local Sports Infrastructure Fund is a state-wide investment, open until December 13, 2023.

This fund was created to adapt to the increasing need for infrastructure that is required for regular active sport and recreation.

Utilising three streams, sports clubs, facility managers and community organisations will all benefit from the following grants:

  • Community Facilities – up to $300,000
  • Community Sports Lighting – up to $250,000
  • Planning – up to $40,000

Led by Minister for Community Sport, Ros Spence, the creation of infrastructure will be made possible by planners, architects, engineers, project managers,
builders, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, facility managers and operational staff as part on the construction process. In turn, this has a direct link back to the local economy and offers hundreds of jobs.

For sporting & recreation clubs, sporting associations & leagues, educational institutions, not-for-profit community organisations, businesses and individuals looking to apply for the Local Sports Infrastructure Fund, an important note is that they cannot do so directly. Instead, they will coordinate this with Local Government Authorities and the Alpine Resorts Victoria who will apply on their behalf.

Applications close at 5pm on Wednesday December 13 2023 – with successful candidates of the 2023-24 Local Sports Infrastructure Fund announced from April 2024.

For full information and resources, you can view those here.

Football Queensland remain with Kappa for five more seasons until 2028

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Football Queensland & Kappa partnership extension
Image credit: Football Queensland

Football Queensland have announced a five-year partnership extension with iconic international sports brand Kappa as its official apparel partner from 2024.

This relationship between the two parties has been very strong since they first partnered all the way back in 2017 and reinforces the support for football in Queensland that the brand has had.

Kappa has provided quality garments for some of Europe’s biggest clubs including Manchester City, Juventus, AC Milan and the Italian National team.

It’s a brand that was established in 1916 in Turin and eventually in 1978 they rebranded themselves to branch out as a sportwear brand where they focused purely on football-related products and designs.

For Football Queensland, they currently produce and provide quality on and off-field apparel for all Queensland State Representative teams including the state’s futsal representative squads. Kappa also provide on-field apparel for the game’s referees on the FQ website.

They also helped sponsor and start up the Kappa Women’s Super Cup and Kappa Pro Series tournaments that debuted in late 2021 and 2022 respectively for clubs to participate in across the state.

FQ CEO Robert Cavallucci was extremely pleased to announce this partnership extension following Kappa’s amazing support.

“Football Queensland is incredibly excited to announce Kappa as our official apparel partner for the next five years following a competitive tender process which saw us receive 20 expressions of interest and 15 submissions of an extremely high quality,” Cavallucci said via Football Queensland press release.

“In their seven years as a Football Queensland partner, Kappa has provided fantastic support to Football Queensland, our clubs and the wider football community thanks to their quality of apparel, ability to deliver on their promises and the team’s unwavering commitment to customer service.

“We’ve built a wonderful working relationship with the team at Kappa thanks to their willingness to go above and beyond to deliver outcomes for our organisation and our game, and we’re delighted to continue working in partnership with them from next year.”

Kappa Australia Director Ze’ev Bogaty shared the same sentiment for the great relationship the two parties have created.

“Kappa is a strong supporter of football in Queensland and has been proud to invest in the game since the partnership with Football Queensland began in 2017,” Bogaty mentioned in the FQ press release.

“Some highlights of the partnership have included the development of the teal shirt for first year referees, witnessing Queensland state sides dominate on the national stage in Kappa kit, and the launch of the Kappa Women’s Super Cup and Kappa Pro Series tournaments.

“As we embark on another five years as the state’s official apparel partner and continue our close working relationship with Football Queensland, we look forward to contributing even more to the growth and success of football across the state.”

There is a shared goal of improving the grassroots game in Queensland from both parties and the track record of Kappa’s immense investment over the past seven years has shown that this extension will do wonders for Queensland football.

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