Football Federation Australia teams up with Football Coaches Australia

Football Federation Australia (FFA) today announced it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Football Coaches Australia (FCA) in a ground-breaking partnership to enhance coach development.

Football Coaches Australia President Phil Moss said, “This is a crucial moment for our code.

“The importance of having the governing body and an organisation that represents our professional and community coaches formally working together for the betterment of the game cannot be understated.

“FCA is about ensuring coaches are respected as skilled professionals working in an environment that has a framework and standards within which reflect the importance of the role we play.

“FCA and FFA are aligned with the goal to provide ‘Community, Connection and Camaraderie’ within the coaching network to enable our coaches to perform their role and best promote our great game.

“James, FFA Chair Chris Nikou and the FFA board, along with Greg O’Rourke and the A-League, have embraced this with a collaborative approach that deserves recognition. We look forward to working closely with FFA and all key stakeholders to ensure the game thrives into the future,” Moss concluded.

The agreement will see the organisations collaborate across three key areas, and FFA Chief Executive James Johnson said he was delighted with the partnership.

“Creating world class environments for coach development is a high priority for FFA. Our focus on coach development to the long-term success of Australian football is highlighted by our inclusion of Principle VI within the XI Principles for the future of Australian football (XI Principles) which details the creation of a strong culture around coach development by emphasising the importance of the role as a skilled position and a vital link in player development.

“Establishing a Memorandum Of Understanding with FCA to build key partnerships to enhance coach development was one of a number of proposed measures which we advanced in pursuit of Principle VI.  The signing of this Memorandum is an important step for FFA and we are excited to already begin realising some of the work we anticipated within the XI Principles,” he said.

“This agreement will focus on the development and implementation of standard form contracts for coaches engaged by professional Australian football clubs, and the establishment of a national arbitration tribunal to hear employment disputes between coaches and professional Australian football clubs.”

Importantly FFA and FCA will collaborate to deliver aligned technical education and professional development programs for Advance Licence and Community coaches at all levels.

Johnson added, “FFA and Football Coaches Australia agree to cooperate with each other based on the principle of genuine consultation whilst acknowledging each other’s independence.

“I am very excited that we can move forward together to further improve on the healthy and steady increase we’ve experienced in the numbers of participants on coaching courses and develop many more world-class Australian coaches.”

“We are also seeing more and more Australian coaches succeed on the global stage. Most recently, Harry Kewell was appointed as Head Coach of Oldham Athletic. We congratulate Harry on his appointment and take inspiration from his success, and those before him, to create the type of conditions domestically which will support more Australian coaches to test themselves internationally, should they wish to do so.”

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The 2023-24 Local Sports Infrastructure Fund to cater for participation boom

2023-24 Local Sports Infrastructure Fund

The Victorian Government’s 2023-24 Local Sports Infrastructure Fund is a state-wide investment, open until December 13, 2023.

This fund was created to adapt to the increasing need for infrastructure that is required for regular active sport and recreation.

Utilising three streams, sports clubs, facility managers and community organisations will all benefit from the following grants:

  • Community Facilities – up to $300,000
  • Community Sports Lighting – up to $250,000
  • Planning – up to $40,000

Led by Minister for Community Sport, Ros Spence, the creation of infrastructure will be made possible by planners, architects, engineers, project managers,
builders, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, facility managers and operational staff as part on the construction process. In turn, this has a direct link back to the local economy and offers hundreds of jobs.

For sporting & recreation clubs, sporting associations & leagues, educational institutions, not-for-profit community organisations, businesses and individuals looking to apply for the Local Sports Infrastructure Fund, an important note is that they cannot do so directly. Instead, they will coordinate this with Local Government Authorities and the Alpine Resorts Victoria who will apply on their behalf.

Applications close at 5pm on Wednesday December 13 2023 – with successful candidates of the 2023-24 Local Sports Infrastructure Fund announced from April 2024.

For full information and resources, you can view those here.

Football Queensland remain with Kappa for five more seasons until 2028

Football Queensland & Kappa partnership extension

Football Queensland have announced a five-year partnership extension with iconic international sports brand Kappa as its official apparel partner from 2024.

This relationship between the two parties has been very strong since they first partnered all the way back in 2017 and reinforces the support for football in Queensland that the brand has had.

Kappa has provided quality garments for some of Europe’s biggest clubs including Manchester City, Juventus, AC Milan and the Italian National team.

It’s a brand that was established in 1916 in Turin and eventually in 1978 they rebranded themselves to branch out as a sportwear brand where they focused purely on football-related products and designs.

For Football Queensland, they currently produce and provide quality on and off-field apparel for all Queensland State Representative teams including the state’s futsal representative squads. Kappa also provide on-field apparel for the game’s referees on the FQ website.

They also helped sponsor and start up the Kappa Women’s Super Cup and Kappa Pro Series tournaments that debuted in late 2021 and 2022 respectively for clubs to participate in across the state.

FQ CEO Robert Cavallucci was extremely pleased to announce this partnership extension following Kappa’s amazing support.

“Football Queensland is incredibly excited to announce Kappa as our official apparel partner for the next five years following a competitive tender process which saw us receive 20 expressions of interest and 15 submissions of an extremely high quality,” Cavallucci said via Football Queensland press release.

“In their seven years as a Football Queensland partner, Kappa has provided fantastic support to Football Queensland, our clubs and the wider football community thanks to their quality of apparel, ability to deliver on their promises and the team’s unwavering commitment to customer service.

“We’ve built a wonderful working relationship with the team at Kappa thanks to their willingness to go above and beyond to deliver outcomes for our organisation and our game, and we’re delighted to continue working in partnership with them from next year.”

Kappa Australia Director Ze’ev Bogaty shared the same sentiment for the great relationship the two parties have created.

“Kappa is a strong supporter of football in Queensland and has been proud to invest in the game since the partnership with Football Queensland began in 2017,” Bogaty mentioned in the FQ press release.

“Some highlights of the partnership have included the development of the teal shirt for first year referees, witnessing Queensland state sides dominate on the national stage in Kappa kit, and the launch of the Kappa Women’s Super Cup and Kappa Pro Series tournaments.

“As we embark on another five years as the state’s official apparel partner and continue our close working relationship with Football Queensland, we look forward to contributing even more to the growth and success of football across the state.”

There is a shared goal of improving the grassroots game in Queensland from both parties and the track record of Kappa’s immense investment over the past seven years has shown that this extension will do wonders for Queensland football.

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