As anticipation builds for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026, Western Australia is witnessing a transformation not just in readiness for a global sporting event, but in how public sporting spaces are funded, developed, and shared. This week’s announcement of major facility investments across Perth is being defined equally by politics and policy as it is by sport, with leaders openly discussing the long-term implications for equity, access, and participation in football.
On Wednesday morning at E&D Litis Stadium, Football West (FW) CEO, Jamie Harnwell, and FW Manager Female Football & Advocacy, Sarah Carroll, joined WA Sport and Recreation Minister Rita Saffioti to announce the latest round of State Government investment into football infrastructure. Floreat Athena’s home ground received $800,000 to upgrade lighting and facilities. In the city’s north, the Sam Kerr Football Centre is set for a $4 million injection to add two new turf pitches, upgraded lighting, shade structures, fencing, and landscaping. Kingsway Reserve, home of Olympic Kingsway, will benefit from $750,000 for new audio equipment, an electronic scoreboard, and expanded seating.
While each announcement drew applause, the underlying message was unmistakable. Public money is being leveraged not just to stage another successful event, but to tackle historical shortfalls in local sporting infrastructure and move the system toward more equitable access, particularly for women, girls, and multicultural communities.
Public Investment: A New Political Standard for Equity
WA Sport & Recreation Minister Rita Saffioti made the stakes clear that “these upgrades ensure Perth is ready to host a world-class football tournament while leaving a lasting legacy for community sport in Western Australia.”
It means “Delivering these upgrades [gives] more training opportunities, more matches, and more women and girls able to participate in football at the local level.”
“I look forward to seeing clubs, players and families enjoy the new facilities and encourage all Western Australians to support the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026 in Perth by heading to a game and cheering on these amazing athletes.”
Equity, in this context, is about more than distributing funds. It’s about correcting the historic channeling of resources toward select sporting codes and regions. As well as making sure that the facilities built for world-class players last beyond the tournament and serve the local kids, families, and clubs year-round. It’s about ensuring that facilities meet the daily needs of the entire community, not just a handful of media moments.
Female Participation, Inclusion and the Policy Gap
For Carroll, the focus is explicit and urgent. “It’s great that we are so near another massive tournament in Australia. We saw the huge upturn the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup brought to the female game and it would be great to see a similar boost on the back of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup,” she said.
“The State Government funding for the three host venues is fantastic, and FW will work tirelessly to attract more investment, including for female-friendly facilities.”
“Longer term, the focus has to be on a lasting legacy for Australian football, driven by increased female participation through improved community and regional infrastructure.”
This approach represents a deliberate deviation from the past, where clubrooms, pitches, and lighting frequently lagged behind the numbers and ambitions of local girls wishing to play. By explicitly pledging “female-friendly” facilities and broader “community and regional infrastructure,” Carroll is naming the equity gap and positioning this public investment as part of a permanent structural shift in Western Australian sport.
Club Level: Access and Social Outcomes
For clubs, the benefits aren’t theoretical. Floreat Athena Life Member and former President Con Poulios said the club’s increased capacity and upgraded amenities are an outcome of determined advocacy and timing.
“It’s really exciting for the club. We were hoping to be a training venue in the Women’s World Cup but obviously the changerooms weren’t built at the time.”
“The amount of money that’s been spent in the last few years, every club would love that to happen to them, so we’re really grateful to both the Federal and the State Governments and the City of Vincent for their support. They were much-needed upgrades but we’re really, really grateful.”
At Olympic Kingsway, President Steve Nelkovski said the changes go well beyond elite sport:
“It’s exciting for the game of football in the northern corridor. What we’ve seen is record investment which is game-changing for the sport, but more importantly, it will inspire the next generation of boys and girls to play football.”
“All the training venues are open to all the nations that come to WA. Again, it’s exciting, having hosted Denmark during the FIFA Women’s World Cup, we have the opportunity to potentially host six different nations.”
“If you peel back the layers to the night against Melbourne Victory, what was the best part was seeing kids on the field celebrating, having the night of their lives. It’s about inspiring children. There’s pathways through Kingsway, there’s pathways through all the Football West programs (…) they can learn the sport, build great friendships and dream big.”
Notably, these words come after years when many suburban and regional clubs felt sidelined from major capital spending. Now, the “legacy” language is backed with real funding and facilities with lasting community value.
Beyond 2026: Ongoing Challenges, Enduring Impact
The investments being made now in lighting, amenities and accessible pitches are designed to outlast a single tournament. They embed equity in the built environment, ensuring that women, girls, new migrants, juniors, volunteers and everyone who makes football possible share in the benefits. Political and football leaders alike are setting a precedent: global events must serve local goals, and access must be for all, not just for the moment.
For many, the real scoreboard will be seen in growing registrations, full clubrooms, and sustained engagement across all parts of society. If the lessons of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup are any indication, this is one political legacy with the power to shape Western Australian sport, and community life, for decades to come.
