Football Australia confirms SBS as broadcasters for the 2023 IFCPF Asia-Oceania Championships

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2023 IFCPF Asia-Oceania Championships
Image credit: Kelly Defina

Football Australia has recently announced that SBS will be broadcasting the 2023 IFCPF Asia-Oceania Championships.

SBS will deliver unrivalled coverage of the Championships with live and free access via SBS On Demand, providing greater visibility of the tournament and its athletes than ever before.

The tournament kicks off on November 4 and will end on the 11th, one week later. SBS will be broadcasting over 45 hours of football during that time period across both the Men’s and Women’s IFCPF Asia-Oceania Championships, which is set to be played at the Home of the Matildas at La Trobe University in Bundoora, Melbourne.

The free coverage of these championships is a fantastic way to engage people with physical disability from many households with varying interests in the sport, and to hopefully attract and inspire the people in this community to participate in the sport.

Football Australia’s Head of Inclusion, Sarah Walsh, explained how important it was to have increased coverage of the event via free to air TV.

“SBS has a long and proud relationship with Australian football, and we are delighted they will support the 2023 IFCPF Asia-Oceania Championships,” Walsh said in a Football Australia press release.

“At the recent FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 we witnessed the transformative power of visibility and representation on the national level. Providing effortless access and increased opportunities to watch the CommBank Pararoos and the CommBank ParaMatildas, and show what is possible through football, could be lifechanging for an Australian living with cerebral palsy, acquired brain injury or symptoms of stroke.”

Pararoo captain and legend David Barber is excited at the opportunity to showcase the sport in front of a large TV audience.

“It’s incredibly humbling to know that this year, SBS will be helping to share our beautiful game with all of Australia,” he added via press release.

“This will bring fans not just of the green and gold, but the vast and rich diversity of our Asian Cup visitors as well, the chance to come together, and enjoy the pure competition that will light up Melbourne this year.”

SBS Director of Sport Ken Shipp also shared his thoughts on the broadcast agreement with Football Australia.

“SBS was established more than 40 years ago, and it is the only media organisation dedicated to inspiring a shared understanding and promoting the value of cultural diversity. One of the best ways in which SBS can bring Australians together in this way is through great sporting moments like the 2023 IFCPF Asia-Oceania Championships,” Shipp explained via press release.

The CommBank Pararoos and CommBank ParaMatildas will feature in the opening day of match action on Saturday, November 4 as the men’s team faces Thailand (5.15pm AEDT) and the women’s team opens their campaign against Japan (3.00pm AEDT).

The finals will begin on Friday, November 10 with the women’s final followed by the men’s final on Saturday, November 11, 2023.

The 2023 Women’s World Cup showed the amazing influence that the Matildas had on the next generation of footballers in Australia and the Pararoos and ParaMatildas hope to make a similar impact in their respective communities.

The clear goal with the agreement is to expand the audience for this competition and try to increase participation among aspiring Australian footballers who suffer with cerebral palsy, acquired brain injury or symptoms of stroke.

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Peter Kokotis: South Melbourne Was Never Built to Finish Second

Staff Writer

South Melbourne football director, Peter Kokotis, has just one complaint following the club’s historic Australia Cup triumph last Saturday: that the team he has played a primary role in building may not have had due time to take it all in.

As those players – just a week on from becoming the first semi-professionals to win the national Cup – headed to Sydney for their next assignment, Kokotis took a rare moment to himself. Remaining in Melbourne, he reflected on what the achievement meant to the club he started supporting as an eight-year old in 1979, his uncle earlier a signatory to their 1959 establishment.

‘As was common with a lot of young Greek boys, our fathers were of a different generation. My father was in the hospitality industry, always working nights. So that two, three hours with him every second Sunday was gold to me. It was my time with dad,’ Kokotis told Soccerscene Unfiltered.

‘Once we dropped to the State League in 2005 some of us stayed, but a lot left or didn’t come at all, or went off to Melbourne Victory. We went from an NSL powerhouse to a club struggling to compete.

‘The last seven days [as we spoke] haven’t been normal. It’s been an incredible outpouring of emotion, gratitude from all over the community with people reaching out. It’s been really refreshing and lovely to listen to people’s stories of how it’s impacted them.’

From the gloom, South Melbourne now finds itself in its strongest position of the post-NSL era. Once a FIFA-licensed player agent, Kokotis has served as South’s general manager, a board member, and the past two seasons as senior football director – an immense task, given the relentless schedule the club is undertaking.

Off-field, they’re banging at the gates for an A-League license, a status they’ve been denied numerous times over the past 20 years. This time does feel different; with the A-League stagnating and South packing the stands on Cup final night, their top-flight exclusion looks ever-more incongruous with the broader health of the game.

While their preparedness to step up can’t just hinge on a result here or there, Kokotis is aware their on-field showings do supplement their attractiveness as a proposition – significantly.

‘We are evolving as a club, and there are many things we do outside of the senior team that are about cultural connection, the wider community. We’re not just a team that cares about trophies and silverware,’ he says.

‘But South is not a club built on coming second… and [winning] is my area. I feel the responsibility, the legacy and the history of the club, and all the success and great people that have come before us.

‘I feel obligated to maintain the machine and keep it going. This time is unique with what’s going on in the football landscape, and success now is very important.’

Catch the full chat with Peter Kokotis on Soccerscene Unfiltered: from helping Brazilian flair reach Australia and backing the unfancied Sinisa Cohadzic, to the top-down versus bottom-up growth debate, and plenty more…

Shepparton Cup – Victoria’s biggest junior football tournament – set for 2026 edition

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Image Credits: Shepparton Cup

Victoria’s largest junior football tournament is set to kick off in style as the Shepparton Cup returns for 2026. With age groups from under-sevens through to under-17s, the Shepparton Cup welcomes players of all genders and abilities as the perfect way to end the 2026 club season.

The tournament kicks off on the 23rd of October with an Olympic-style opening ceremony. The 2025 edition saw 385 teams and 4,600 players take to the pitch across both Liga and Copa Divisions. The Liga Division is for grassroots teams of all abilities who want a fun competitive experience; the Liga Division is for NPL and state league teams who will compete in a competitive carnival.

Rolando Navas, Managing Director of Sports Group Melbourne, says the tournament is not only beneficial for young players but also for the community of Shepparton.

“The Shepparton Cup is a great opportunity for families and the wider Shepparton community to embrace the regional community and provide a platform for young players to participate and experience a competitive and fun three day festival of football.”

The 2026 Shepparton Cup will be held from 23rd to 25th October 2026 at Shepparton Sports City. For more information about the Shepparton Cup, click the link here.

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