Brisbane Roar’s stagnation has dragged on for too long

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Image via Brisbane Roar academy

Australian football experienced a shock to the system on Tuesday evening when A-Leagues side Brisbane Roar announced the abrupt dismissal of its junior academy sides.

Earning league-wide discontent and now the involvement of Football Australia in the matter, the situation has added to the club’s woes in a tumultuous season that has also seen the termination of Corey Brown’s contract for alleged drug use and subsequent judicial hearings with Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) in regards to the incident.

The announcement, released by the Roar unexpectedly on Tuesday, saw the club state the following via a press release:

“As the only Isuzu UTE A-League team in Queensland, Brisbane Roar are proud to support a pathway for the junior players in the state to have professional football opportunities,” the statement read.

“Brisbane Roar also recognise that Football Queensland works with NPL clubs and players, across the state, and that these clubs are the backbone for development, particularly for junior players.

“Therefore, Brisbane Roar have made the difficult decision to focus on the development of players from the age of 16 and up that are eligible for the Under 23’s and NPL men’s squad.

“As a result, the Brisbane Roar Football Club Academy Under 14 to Under 18 programs will cease to operate. The Under 13’s has been removed under the new Football Queensland model.”

The Roar went on to cite an ambition to provide a “direct pathway to professional football with our Under 23 and Men’s teams” as the ultimate reasoning behind the decision – this is in spite of the fact that the club’s under-15 and under-23 sides won their respective Grand Finals.

An already deteriorating relationship with its fan base has been further solidified with fan malaise at an all-time high at the club. Despite returning to Suncorp Stadium amidst growing fan discontent towards having to travel to Redcliffe for home games, the Roar currently sit 10th on the Isuzu Ute A-League Men’s ladder following a draw against Macarthur and loss against Melbourne City both at home.

The Bakrie Group, the Indonesia-based conglomerate who has owned a 70 percent share in the A-Leagues sole Queensland representative, has reduced their investment into the club through the years, and despite early success under Ange Postecoglou and Mike Mulvey, has been largely at fault for the club’s unfortunate decline and has only been a source of ire for their loyal supporters recently. With funding into the club clearly an issue, it is no doubt time for Brisbane Roar to move on from their relationship with the Bakrie Group – something which is undeniably no easy feat.

The intention to stick with only an expanded Under-23 side for the foreseeable future has generated obvious furore for a reason, especially with Queensland being home to the second largest contingent of football participants in Australia. Adding to the club’s ill decision-making is the fact that Football Queensland, the governing body in charge of the state’s footballing endeavours, issued a statement of their own which made it clear that the result of the Roar’s decision is solely their making:

“This decision was made exclusively by the Brisbane Roar and by Brisbane Roar alone,” the statement read.

“Football Queensland accepts the position of Brisbane Roar who will now focus on their U23 and First team squads.

“Football Queensland will ensure the advanced junior development pathway continues to be strong and accessible to Queensland talent.”

Football Queensland went on to back up their initial statement with a commitment to the implementation of a full-time state development program for boys that aligns with the FQ Academy QAS girls’ program ahead of the upcoming 2024 National Premier Leagues Queensland season.

The fallout of Brisbane Roar’s decision will invariably leave elite junior players looking elsewhere for opportunities and also reduce coaching opportunities for aspiring local coaches. In addition, it will arguably result in the Roar potentially alienating NPL sides who develop these players that they poach or worse, it will leave generational gaps in Australian football – something which is irrefutably detrimental to the growth of Australian football.

Football Australia immediately released a statement of their own on the issue, further reflecting the implications behind the Roar’s decision and the foreseeable damage the club and the Bakrie Group may cause in the future.

“Football Australia, in its regulatory capacity, has some concerns with Brisbane Roar Football Club’s announcement regarding proposed changes to its Academy and have scheduled a meeting with the Club to gather information and discuss their decision in more detail. Only once this meeting has taken place will Football Australia be able to provide further comment.”

Regardless of the Roar’s justification behind the end to its junior sides, it can no longer remain behind the rest of the A-Leagues on or off the field, especially in a state where football is so deeply-entrenched at a grassroots level. The time is now overdue for the club to depart with the Bakrie Group in search of something greater or at minimum stabler. As daunting as that may appear, it will be nothing but holistically positive for Queensland and Australian football.

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FQ Annual Report 2024: A Blueprint for Sustainable Growth

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Image Credit: Football Queensland

Football Queensland’s (FQ) 2024 Annual Report, Refine Today, Progress Tomorrow, outlines ambitious goals for the state’s leading team sport. With over 280,000 overall participants and 308 affiliated clubs, the report highlights a year marked by substantial participation growth, expansion of the elite path, and meaningful engagement with Queensland’s diverse footballing communities.

Participation Soars – Especially Among Women and Girls

One of the report’s most noteworthy results is the unprecedented increase in participation, notably in the women’s game. FQ had over 90,000 female participants, a rise generated by the momentum of the FIFA Women’s World Cup and facilitated by FQ’s ‘One Football’ policy, which aims for gender balance by 2027.

FQ’s developmental initiatives, including MiniRoos, Girls United, and Female Football Week, have undoubtedly yielded results, with a 34.4% increase in girl-specific programs and a 26.9% increase in participation for all abilities.

“Football isn’t just a game to me—it’s my passion and my purpose,” said Leif Charlton, a 2024 TAFE Diploma student, illustrating the state’s growing appreciation for opportunity.

From Grassroots to Global – A Connected Pyramid

A properly defined competition environment serves as the foundation for this expansion. The interconnected structure extends from FQPL 3 to the premier NPL Queensland tier, with promotion and relegation promoting competitive integrity. At the same time, new initiatives such as the Kappa Pro Series and the Mitre FQPL Champions League provide more high-performance opportunities, particularly for regional and female athletes.

Football Queensland’s collaboration with Brisbane Roar, particularly through the FQ Academy and QAS alliance, continues to provide career prospects for young talent.

“It’s fantastic to see Brisbane Roar and Football Queensland working together,” said Brisbane Roar A-League Women’s Head Coach Alex Smith.

Queensland’s growing national influence is demonstrated by performances such as the ParaMatildas’ 2024 IFCPF World Championship victory and futsal’s return to the national scene with the NFC held in Queensland after 18 years.

Financially Sound, Strategically Focused

FQ’s finances were solid in 2024, with the 11th straight surplus of $291,505, thanks to prudent leadership and increasing commercial earnings. Revenue increased from $8.8 million in 2020 to over $20 million, allowing FQ to maintain or lower club fees while boosting infrastructure and development assistance.

This disciplined expansion has enabled FQ to address one of its most significant continuing challenges: infrastructure. While state funding per football player still lags behind other codes, notable gains include $6 million for women’s facilities, a $35 million lease on the Nudgee sporting hub, and various council-backed synthetic pitch initiatives.

FQ’s general manager for government relations, Chris Rawlinson, emphasised that the organisation’s lobbying activities in state and federal legislatures are helping transform chronic underinvestment into actual progress.

“We’ve seen real progress in providing better facilities, and the government funding secured has been staggering,” the report noted. 

Coaching, Refereeing, and Safeguarding the Game

FQ also provided more than 2,800 coach education sessions and increased referee development under its 2024-2026 Referee Strategy. This includes the FQ Referee Academy, regional exchanges, and female-specific training.

“Knowing I successfully handled a high-level match like the Kappa Queensland Cup Final has greatly boosted my confidence,” shared referee Nefertiti Kurzelewska.

In addition, FQ has prioritised a safer playing environment by establishing a three-strike penalty to safeguard officials and improve sideline conduct.

Media, Engagement and the Football Identity

In 2024, FQ increased its emphasis on digital interaction and storytelling. Campaigns such as Queensland’s Most Picturesque Ground and the Football in Queensland Awards Night boosted brand visibility across conventional platform as well as social media. Events such as the Queensland Football Convention showcased the state’s emerging football identity, bringing stakeholders together to discuss the game’s future.

Looking Ahead: Operational Plans Driving Strategy

FQ’s successes are based on the developing ‘One Football’ strategy, which has now been translated into tangible action through the recently announced Operational Plans. These plans serve as a road map, matching macro and micro goals for player development, infrastructure, and competition structure.

“When we talk about the One Football Strategy, we’re not just talking about something static,” FQ CEO Robert Cavallucci noted in the report.

“It’s about evolving with the times and the needs of the football community… actively tracking progress and ensuring we’re making meaningful moves at every level of the game.”

Conclusion: Refining for Tomorrow, Building for All

Football Queensland’s 2024 report makes a convincing argument for the organisation’s future, one founded on equitable growth, elite development, and substantial infrastructure investment. Its outlook is positive.

However, obstacles exist, particularly in bridging regional differences and ensuring long-term infrastructural funding.

Football Queensland is well-positioned, with the 2026 FIFA World Cup approaching and grassroots enthusiasm growing. What is evident is that Football Queensland is not just expanding the game; it is also creating a more connected, resilient, and egalitarian football future for all Queenslanders.

NSW synthetic fields guideline: securing the future of sport

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Image credit: PxHere

As demand for sporting fields continues to increase, NSW’s new guidelines for synthetic fields are a welcome manual to the decision-making behind the management and implementation of these fields. Though the question of how it tackles this critical issue persists.

Just this month, the NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure released its Synthetic Turf Sports Fields in Public Open Space: Guideline for Decision-Makers.

A comprehensive study that outlines the application of creating more community-based synthetic fields in NSW, backed up by former NSW reports.

The Guideline is broken up into two chapters:

  • Section 2: Decision making for sports field surfaces – provides key information, considerations, and resources to help inform the decision-making process for selecting a sports field surface. This includes the pressures on public open space, the types of surfaces available to meet community needs, and the social, environmental, health, and economic considerations.
  • Section 3: Guide for synthetic turf sports fields – provides advice for projects considering and developing synthetic turf sports fields. It guides the reader on how to achieve best practice when planning, designing, delivering, and managing synthetic turf assets.

As stated in this guideline, it was produced due to the necessary need for synthetic fields to be created to keep up with a number of sporting demands.

Majorly, a growing increase in population of the state, with the population of NSW forecast to grow by 85,000 people each year, reaching 9.8 million by 2041 as outlined in the guideline.

There is also the need for reliable and safe sporting facilities for the community, making the demand and capacity of these fields necessary.

Just last year Football NSW and its associations were facing the tough reality of weather impacts as a winter of heavy rain made many of the natural grass fields unplayable.

With too few synthetic fields to use state wide, thousands of players over the state had shortened seasons and struggling management of the scheduling was met with a huge discourse of disappointment.

As is the nature of Australian sport, many codes must compete for very little space, especially when these spaces are council owned. The preparing of this is no easy task and central to this guideline.

This guideline is comprehensive and valuable for the creation of desperately needed synthetic fields.

The document combines the importance of balancing sustainability, functionality and community needs when considering synthetic turf for sports fields.

This can only be achieved through thoughtful stakeholder engagement in planning to creating multi-faceted spaces with a strong guideline of principles to make the decision of development.

This is a successful start and a very important document for the functional push for more synthetic fields and a huge step forward in providing the grounds for the production for more sporting facilities.

However, one problem is evident. The speed of production of synthetic fields, like any development, cannot fit the speed of demand.

This report importantly outlines the need of all fields is evident and also the ways in which these decisions should be made for synthetic or not. The case study of Allan Border oval in the paper is a perfect example.

Though another case study is an example in the Northern Beaches of Sydney displays the growing situation in another sense.

A local football summer competition called Small Sided Game (SSG) has voiced concerns about its reduced space allocation as the council decided for the coming playing season. Usually played on several grass fields, as it has been classified as a high-impact sport has been reserved to a singular synthetic field for the upcoming season.

The business has calculated that this would mean the loss of around 1000 participants from an average 3,500 participant strong season. A tough reality for the business as it loses such a large part of its revenue.

It is also a huge loss for the community as a thriving local business and summer sport will be considerably constrained and many people will be missing out on this vital activity.

Other environmental and health issues are associated with synthetic fields, such as the impact of injuries on the surface and the dangerous presence of carcinogenic microplastics.

Synthetic fields contribute to plastic migration and rising local temperatures, as heat islands effects potentially worsening soil and water pollution.

These issues have been presented in the guidelines and its relative supporting studies; therefore, they are factored into the overall guideline.

The problem remains, sports a vital part of our Australian culture and community needs to be able to grow physically with its demand.

Yet, is a synthetic revolution the only option?

Natural turf, available in many areas already, needs to be more effectively maintained and preserved, not just due to the logistical demands but for the community and environment demands, grass fields are crucial.

The NSW government needs to find a way to encourage the creation of synthetic fields but also more effectively maintain existing grass fields in a multi-pronged approach.

Football Australia’s $3 billion plan presented to the federal government has stated the need for funding in the growing demand. Synthetic fields and field upgrades is central to this request.

This document is the perfect start to push the necessary development process in the coming years, in conjunction with a multi-pronged approach with quick relief for existing fields and longer development for which synthetic fields is needed.

Otherwise, if situations like the one happening with SSG will continue to affect our communities, the participants who are the backbone of Australian sporting community are the ones who take the biggest hit.

The positive impact of leisure activities on physical, mental and communal health cannot be understated.

If maintaining access to sport — one of Australia’s most important cultural pillars — requires investment, then it must be made. Especially for football, the most played sport in both NSW and the nation.

There are little other endeavours that could trump its importance.

You can read the full report here.

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