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.

Serie A to stay on DAZN and Sky screens to 2029

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Image via Getty images

DAZN and Sky will retain the rights to broadcast live Serie A matches in Italy for the next five seasons after Italian clubs accepted bids worth at least 4.5 billion euros ($4.8 billion).

After four months of discussions, the Serie A teams convened to examine final bids from streaming services DAZN and Sky, which totalled around 900 million euros each year until the conclusion of the 2028/2029 season, barely below the existing agreement’s yearly worth.

Seventeen of the 20 clubs backed the offer but the decision drew sharp criticism from Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis.

“It’s a total defeat for Italian football, these deals will be the death of Italian football. The problem is being a borrower or an entrepreneur. The entrepreneur must know how to measure the risk area, it is more convenient but this will never implement the value of Italian football”, he stated via press release.

Serie A earns around 930 million euros every season from the sale of its TV rights in Italy under a three-year contract that expires next June, with DAZN once again taking the lion’s share. DAZN will exclusively carry seven Serie A games each week (266 out of 380 matches per season). The remaining three will be carried by DAZN and Sky (114 matches per season).

In recent months, Serie A explored the creation of a media platform to distribute matches to other TV outlets as well as the launch of a home-run live video subscription service.

Torino chairman Urbano Cairo was all for the deal claiming the league was correct to continue the partnership.

“Figures were below our initial expectations and below our current contracts, but I think we were right to continue our relationship with Sky and DAZN. Creating a Serie A TV channel now, would had meant adding further risk to a risky business he stated via press release,” he told reporters.

When some variable components tied to revenue sharing are included, the new contracts may match or even exceed the value of the present contracts and reach 1 billion euros.

Strategic Plan 2023-2026 launched by Football West

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Football West Strategic Plan
Image via Football West

Football West recently announced the launch of their 2023-2026 Strategic Plan, a documentation affiliated with Football Australia’s One Football Strategy that will set the direction for football in Western Australia for the coming years.

The plan will see Football West improve the game under five essential departments:

  • Participants and Clubs
  • Elite Teams and Pathways
  • Fans
  • Unifying Football
  • Asia and the Sam Kerr Football Centre

Participants and Clubs

The first pillar has the aim to make Football the most accessible sport in Western Australia where everyone can play anytime, anywhere.

There are key targets set such as: Increase registrations by 5% per annum, increase participation by 3% per annum and have 95% of clubs and associations with a completed affiliation agreement (presently 82%).

Another key focus is the development of women and girls football which isn’t surprising after the recent Women’s World Cup success. Football West set a goal of 42,500 additional women & girls playing football across the three year plan.

Elite Teams and Pathways

This pillar focuses simply on the development of talent at all ages in a bid to improve the quality of the game in Western Australia.

The focus areas are Delivery of a state-wide Football West Academy program, Frequent and consistent talent identification opportunities and High quality coach development pathway

Fans

Football West is focusing on optimising the fan experience and grassroots to improve attendance numbers and social media engagement.

Unifying Football

They will develop a resourcing model that allows for the servicing of responsibilities between Football Australia and Football West, formalised in a Service Agreement

Asia and the Sam Kerr Football Centre

Football West will look to improve international exchanges with Asian countries and use the Sam Kerr Football Centre to secure sponsorships and play big matches there by 2026.

Football West Chairman Sherif Andrawes mentioned the vision that the federation has for the future of football across all levels.

“We are excited to present the Strategic Plan to the WA football community. This is a vision that will see football move forward in tandem with Football Australia but with a strong WA focus,” Andrawes said in a statement.

“Football is in a great position across the state. We saw during the FIFA Women’s World Cup and, more recently, when the CommBank Matildas played in Perth, that our sport is unique in its widespread appeal. This passion can be felt across all areas of the game.

“We want to be bold and ambitious, and the Strategic Plan gives us a strong base from which to deliver on that.”

Football West CEO Jamie Harnwell was excited to announce how the Strategic Plan would be implemented successfully.

“This Strategic Plan is a real statement of intent and one we are proud to deliver. Harnwell mentioned in a Football West statement.

“Football is more popular than it has ever been in Western Australia, in terms of participation, inclusivity and popularity, and we should all be proud of this. However, we cannot rest on our laurels.

“As a governing body, we want to make our game even more accessible, so we can inspire a new generation to love football. That comes through hard work, consultation and direction, all of which are key to the Strategic Plan.”

The Strategic Plan is well set out and focuses on the current struggles the federation is having at grassroots level. Partnering closely with Football Australia will help them achieve the ambitious goals set out to improve both the state and national foundation.

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