Football Australia partners with Qukes

Avatar

Football Australia has announced that Qukes Baby Cucumbers have signed an agreement to become a partner of the MiniRoos grassroots program, as well as an official supplier of the Socceroos and Matildas.

The deal will run for two years, with Qukes set to help deliver the MiniRoos program nationally.

Qukes Baby Cucumbers will be promoted as an ideal healthy sporting snack for Australian footballers of all ages, under the details of the partnership.

MiniRoos branding will also be present on Qukes’ product packaging across Australia.

Football Australia CEO, James Johnson, detailed the importance of the governing body’s new partnership with Perfection Fresh via the Qukes brand: “Football has a participation base of nearly two (2) million Australians – including nearly a quarter of a million participants in the MiniRoos bracket – and can act as a powerful vehicle to deliver positive messages to the Australian community,” he said.

“With the 2021 MiniRoos season just a couple of months from kick-off, we’re proud to have partnered with Perfection Fresh and, in doing so, welcome another important corporate partner to our football family.

“The Australian football community is at the heart of the sport and vital to the ongoing growth and popularity of the sport in Australia. This agreement ensures that young players and their parents around Australia will be delivered important healthy eating messages and content, and, in the spirit of truly integrated and aligned marketing partnerships, we’re pleased to have Perfection Fresh Australia’s commitment to promote football via its national marketing initiatives. Soon the MiniRoos brand will live on over two million Qukes packages in supermarkets and grocers across Australia, while from next week MiniRoos branding will be beamed into up to 5.5 million households across the nation via a new Qukes television commercial.”

Perfection Fresh Australia Chief Executive Officer, Michael Simonetta, said: “We’re really excited to establish Qukes Baby Cucumbers as the perfect sporting snack for Aussie kids. Our partnership with Football Australia and the MiniRoos allows us to reach the next generation of fresh produce consumers, educating them on the benefits of fresh produce, healthy eating and regular activity.

“We want to get kids ‘Qrunching’ on Qukes and football as an inclusive, grassroots and community sport is the perfect partner. It touches the lives of many Australian families across the country and the Football Australia values TOGETHER, DIVERSE & UNITING really resonate with our brands and business as a whole.”

 

Avatar
Philip Panas is a sports journalist with Soccerscene. He reports widely on football policy and industry matters, drawing on his knowledge and passion of the game.

Dandenong Thunder to enjoy $700,000 LED lighting upgrade at George Andrews Reserve

Avatar
Dandenong Thunder lighting upgrade
Image via Star Journal

Greater Dandenong Council and Dandenong Thunder have recently confirmed that works have commenced for new powerful lighting towers to be built at George Andrews Reserve.

The upgrade will cost $700,000 and is being jointly funded by Greater Dandenong Council ($500,000) and the State Government ($200,000) with a plan to improve the ground’s overall quality for both training and matches. They formerly had 200-lux LED towers and they will be replaced by 500-lux towers.

For the Greater Dandenong local council, the focus was to improve the facility for the community to enjoy the health and wellbeing benefits through the increased amount of playable hours at the reserve.

Importantly, the project ensures that the Thunder have a ground that is up to professional competition and broadcast standards which means they can broadcast and host games that are viewed by a national audience, a huge step forward for the NPL Victoria club.

This broadcast upgrade also opens up the possibility to expand to national matches involving the Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City A-League women’s teams and an even more ambitious goal of hosting a Matildas game. The ground can easily hold 5000 people and the lighting and broadcasting standards will be fantastic after this upgrade.

Dandenong Thunder shared the positive implications this light upgrade has for the club.

“The new lights mean the club will be able to host a number of games, not only that but it’s a step forward to the clubs ambition to be part of the NSD (national second division),” a club spokesperson told Soccerscene.

“The support from local council has been nothing but fantastic, Dandenong want to be a sporting hub for the south east suburbs.

“With the FA cup we have seen A-League clubs play at local level clubs, having these new high powered lights we will be able to broadcast at a higher quality, no more yellow light broadcast.”

This news presents an exciting future for Dandenong Thunder and the matches played at George Andrews Reserve. The quality of training, matches and broadcasts has improved tenfold and it matches the size of the NPL Victoria side that have big ambitions.

CPKC and Kansas City Current’s major stadium naming rights deal a win for women’s sport

Avatar
CPKC Stadium design
Image via CPKC

The world’s first professional female-football dedicated stadium – home of the NWSL’s Kansas City Current – will be known as CPKC Stadium, after an historic naming rights deal was agreed with the North American rail network company.

Formed as a merger between Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern rail networks in July this year, CPKC represents the first trans-North American rail network between Canada, the United States and Mexico.

CPKC has been a leading investor for women’s sports in the state of Kansas, and CPKC President & CEO, Keith Creel, was proud to announce the stadium naming rights deal.

“We are incredibly proud to sponsor the Kansas City Current and support this history-making project here in the city that is at the heart of our North American rail network,” Creel said via press release.

“CPKC has been a long-time champion of women’s sports and of investing in our communities. This stadium and this partnership with the Current will build on that legacy as together we write a new chapter here in Kansas City.”

CPKC will also hold naming rights to the stadium’s outdoor space for fans, which will be known as CPKC Plaza. This area provides entertainment for all CPKC Stadium attendees, including the KC Current’s official merchandise store.

It is hoped that the naming rights deal will kickstart further investment in women’s football across the region, which has been the cornerstone of the KC Current’s existence according to co-founders and owners, Angie and Chris Long.

“Our [KC Current & CPKC] organisations share a commitment to strive for excellence, invest heavily in our communities and raise the bar with global influence. We are extremely excited to work with CPKC on this historic agreement and know our partnership will create a long-standing positive impact!”

Further to its substantial investment in women’s football, CPKC’s establishment of a direct line between Canada, the United States and Mexico is expected to have substantial benefits for football supporters attending the 2026 Men’s FIFA World Cup.

Presently, though, the stadium naming rights deal demonstrates CPKC’s intention to be a key investor in women’s football across Kansas and North America.

Most Popular Topics

Editor Picks

Send this to a friend