Football NSW confirms the return of futsal in 2021

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Futsal competitions are set to return across NSW this year with Football NSW announcing two competitions in conjunction with various Futsal Premier League clubs, alongside two Football NSW affiliates PCYC Marrickville and The Centre Dural.

This news comes off the back off the unfortunate development that the usual Futsal Premier Leagues competitions for 2021 have officially been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Football NSW has been working closely with Local Futsal Affiliates, who have thrown its support behind running and delivering competitions which will once again see players return to venues and participating in the sport of futsal.

PCYC Marrickville is excited to serve the futsal community by hosting junior competitions only consisting of several clubs, including Football NSW Futsal Premier League teams kicking off this weekend on Sunday October 31 and will run up to December 19.

The competition has been set for eight rounds providing a good array of young talent from the Under 8’s right through to the Under 13’s age grades for both boys and girls.

In addition, The Centre Dural has announced its competition will mirror Football NSW’s Futsal Premier League structure by providing age grades from the Under 10’s Boys and Girls right through to the senior men & women.

This competition will be played on Saturdays starting on October 30 and will run until December 18, consisting of four Futsal Premier League clubs.

In a statement, Football NSW Futsal Manager Jordan Guerreiro was delighted to see the sport given the green light to have competitions run once more, considering the heartache during the last two years due to the pandemic.

“I am extremely excited and proud that we have been able to engage with key members of our Futsal community to get Futsal up and running again in 2021,” he said.

“It’s been a difficult period as most can imagine with all the unknown information and protocols with the return to community sport along with the Public Health Order from the NSW Government during our lockdowns.

“A considerable amount of effort has gone into providing opportunities where we can ensure that our Futsal community can come back and play our wonderful game in the best and most efficient way possible. We are prioritising the safety of the participants in coordination with our Futsal affiliates and Futsal clubs through Covid Compliance to the NSW PHO.

“We viewed this opportunity with two of our Affiliates reaching out to provide this opportunity to showcase what Futsal means to the community and the clubs involved. It was necessary to provide these competitions at this time of the year as it plays an integral role to the development of our sport and players.

“We view this opportunity as a Futsal fiesta type of environment where all our players can have fun playing the sport with their teammates as well as enjoying the atmosphere in celebrating Futsal as a game and developing their ability and potential.

“I would like to acknowledge and thank all key members who were involved in this process in having these competitions commence in what have been unprecedented times for all in our sport.

“Good luck to all clubs and affiliates involved in getting their respective competitions up and running in what will be a solid 2021 season for all involved.”

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Football NSW releases $600,000 towards Grassroots Grants to meet Participation Pressure

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The Victorian State Government has announced new grants and funding for 11 new community infrastructure projects for local football clubs, totalling $3.8 million.
Image Credit: Shutterstock

Sixty-five football clubs across New South Wales have secured a combined total of nearly $600,000 in funding through the NSW Office of Sport’s Local Sports Grant Program. It follows as a result of Football NSW’s scale of demand for community sport support and the growing pressure on clubs struggling to keep pace with surging participation.

The grants, covering 69 individual projects across the Football NSW footprint, will fund facility upgrades, equipment purchases, participation programs and accessibility improvements: the unglamorous but essential infrastructure that determines whether community clubs can function at the level their members require.

The Local Sports Grant Program made up to $4.65 million available statewide in 2025, with $50,000 allocated to each electoral district and individual grants capped at $20,000. Football’s share of nearly $600,000 reflects the sport’s status as the largest participation code in NSW, and the degree to which that status has not always been matched by corresponding investment in the facilities and resources required to sustain it.

Volunteers carrying an unsustainable load

The announcement arrives against a backdrop of mounting pressure on the volunteer workforce that keeps community football operational. Across NSW, thousands of volunteers dedicate significant unpaid time each week to administration, ground preparation, canteen operation and the logistical demands of running competitive junior and senior programs. As participation numbers climb, driven in part by the sustained visibility of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup and the legacy of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, those demands have intensified without a corresponding increase in the resources available to meet them.

“As the largest participation sport in NSW it is pleasing to see almost $600,000 will be reinvested back into supporting our players, coaches, referees and volunteers to improve the football experience across our community clubs,” said Helen Armson, Football NSW’s Group Head of Strategic Partnerships and Corporate Affairs.

The equity dimension

The distribution of the grants across 65 clubs and 69 projects also speaks to the geographic breadth of football’s footprint in NSW, and to the uneven distribution of resources that has historically characterised community sport in this country. Clubs in outer metropolitan and regional areas tend to operate with smaller budgets, older facilities and thinner volunteer bases than their inner-city counterparts. Grant programs structured around electoral allocation, rather than club size or existing resource base, provide a degree of equity that market-driven funding cannot.

The kinds of projects funded under this program disproportionately benefit clubs serving communities where the barriers to participation are highest. A club that cannot offer adequate facilities or equipment is a club that turns players away, often without intending to.

Football NSW has used the announcement to call on the NSW Government to maintain and extend its investment in the sport. “We urge the government to continue to invest in football,” Armson said, in the midst for a nation-wide push for a $343 million decade-long infrastructure fund to address the facilities gap across the state.

The nearly $600,000 secured through this round is meaningful. Against the scale of what is needed, it is also a measure of how far the investment still has to go.

Victory unites with Roasting Warehouse in culture-led partnership

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Image credit: Melbourne Victory

The Melbourne-based anf family-owned business will join the Victory family, uniting two institutions which represent the city’s culture and identity.

A partnership with local roots

As the newest partner of Melbourne Victory, Roasting Warehouse joins forces with a vital part of the city’s sporting landscape.

The club’s Managing Director, Caroline Carnegie, outlined why the partnership bears so much value to both parties.

“We are excited to collaborate with Roasting Warehouse, a community-oriented destination for high-quality coffee, proud of its foundations in Melbourne,” said Carnegie via official media release.

“Football and coffee sit at the epicentre of Melbourne’s culture. The two go hand-in-hand, consistently at the centre of the conversation that stirs Melburnians, which is no different to the conversation sport and Melbourne Victory stir in the State.”

Indeed, this is a partnership which combines the identity, passions and culture of an entire city, therefore giving it the foundations required for long-term, mutual success.

Representing the best of Melbourne

Both Victory and Roasting Warehouse are hugely successful in their respective industries. They are institutions with community-oriented philosphies, who pride themselves on craft and quality.

“We’re incredibly proud to partner with Melbourne Victory, a club that represents the heart, passion, and ambition of Melbourne,” revealed Roasting Warehouse Head of Brand, Alexander Paraskevopoulos.

“As a Melbourne-founded, family-run business, supporting a team that means so much to the local community feels very natural for us.”

Furthermore, through their high-quality blends, Roasting Warehouse will look to prepare Victory’s players and staff for high performances on the pitch as the seasons nears completion.

But this is about far more than just fueling athletes.

This is a partnership which embodies and unites two of Melbourne’s greatest strengths and cultural markers – a connection forged from the city’s very own DNA.

 

For more information about Roasting Warehouse, click here.

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