Football Queensland hosts first C Diploma course in four years

Liam Watson
C Diploma course
Image credit: Football Queensland

Football Queensland (FQ) has hosted the state’s first female-only Football Australia/AFC C Diploma course since 2018, sparking more development opportunities for women in coaching.

16 candidates from clubs across Brisbane took their next step on the coaching pathway as they completed Part 1 of the course in November.

In an ongoing objective to contribute to Football Australia’s target of 100,000 registered coaches, FQ will regularly conduct coaching programs by providing dedicated coaching staff. With the impact of Covid-19 less than it was just a couple years ago, it will lead to programs being consistently run, such as for AFC C Diploma qualifications.

In general, the coaching pathways can be either from community-based or advanced coaching courses, creating pathways to move from grassroots all the way up to the professional environment.

Football & State Technical Director Gabor Ganczer said in an FQ statement:

“As outlined in our recently released 2023 – 2026 Strategic Plan, Football Queensland is committed to achieving 50/50 gender parity in participants, referees, committees and club officials by 2027,” he explained. 

“Growing the number of female coaches across the state is critical to meeting this gender parity target, so we’re excited to provide more development opportunities for our female coaching candidates as we support them in their progression by offering female-only courses.

“Football Queensland has already been very active in the delivery of courses specifically for female coaches at the community level, and just recently we were proud to deliver the country’s first ever female-only Football Australia/AFC B Diploma. 

“We’re excited to further strengthen the opportunities for progression from community coaching for female coaches through the delivery of the Football Australia/AFC C Diploma course which we hope to deliver more regularly in the future.”

FQ Club Development Ambassador – Head of Coaching Davide Bertamini added via press release:

“It is fantastic to see such high demand for female-only courses in Queensland, with over 50 female coaches expressing their interest in the recent female-only Football Australia/AFC C Diploma course,” he said.

“Attendees heard from highly experienced presenters during part 1 of the course including CommBank Matildas Assistant Coach Mel Andreatta, while other special guest presenters including CommBank Junior Matildas Head Coach Rae Dower will join us for part 2. 

“It was wonderful to receive some fantastic feedback from attendees who highlighted the encouraging and supportive environment that was created on the course as they were challenged to reflect, think critically and grow as coaches.  

“In addition to creating more development opportunities for female coaches, Football Queensland is also focused on providing additional learning opportunities for our female coach developers including Priscilla Tan and Lauren Mangan who were in attendance to observe and assist throughout the opening three days of the recent female-only C Diploma. 

“A number of other female coach developers will be invited to join us for part 2 of the course as we continue working to strengthen the pathway for female coaches and coach developers throughout the state.” 

For more information on coaching pathways, you can find it here.

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Capital Football Introduces Pink Armband to Protect Junior Referees

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Image Credit: Marist Canberra FC

Capital Football has launched a visible identification program for referees under 18, requiring them to wear a pink armband during matches. It’s intended to build awareness surrounding the concern across Australian football about the abuse driving young officials out of the game.

The Pink Armband Initiative, effective immediately across Capital Football’s competitions in the ACT and surrounding region, makes junior referees identifiable to players, coaches and spectators. The federation says the marker is designed to set clear behavioural expectations and signal that many match officials are minors still developing their skills.

Capital Football acknowledged a referee crisis as far back as 2022, at which point it restructured its entire referee department in partnership with Football Australia. The pink armband program is the latest layer of that response; this time by targeting the cultural conditions on match day rather than systems of recruitment and pay.

A problem that spans codes and states

Research has consistently linked referee abuse to declining retention rates, with officials quitting in growing numbers due to sustained mistreatment, a trend researchers warn will reduce the pool of skilled match officials available at all levels of the game. Studies also show that young, less experienced referees are disproportionately likely to be subject to abuse.

Capital Football is not alone in reaching for a visible solution. Similar programs operate across Football Queensland, Football South Australia, Football South Coast and several other federations, while Basketball Victoria and Basketball South Australia have adopted comparable measures through the Green Whistle initiative. The spread of these programs across codes and states reflects a shared administrative problem: many grassroots referees are teenagers and volunteers who do not officiate for money but because they love the game, and abuse is eroding that foundation.

For a federation overseeing nearly 29,000 registered players, fewer referees means fewer matches. Fewer matches means reduced participation. The pink armband is a low-cost intervention with structural consequences if it works.

Football Victoria Backs Campaign to Shield Junior Players from Gambling Harm

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More than 600 sporting clubs across Victoria have enrolled in a state government program designed to limit young players’ exposure to gambling, with Football Victoria now urging its community clubs to join before a late-July registration deadline.

The Love the Game initiative asks clubs to formally commit to a set of principles: refusing sports betting sponsorships, developing internal harm prevention policies, and building environments where coaches, parents and players are equipped to discuss gambling risks with children.

The program’s public health rationale has a sharper statistical edge than its community-facing materials suggest. A 2025 study of Victorian secondary school students aged 12 to 17 found that nearly 30% had gambled at some point, and among those who had gambled in the past year, 7.5% met the criteria for problem-gambling and a further 26.8% were classified as ‘at-risk’. The research, commissioned by the state government and published earlier this year, also found that students exposed to gambling venues and advertising were more likely to gamble or to do so in a risky manner.

The most recent Victorian Population Gambling Study found that Victorians aged 18 to 24 are the group least likely to gamble overall, yet carry the highest rates of harmful gambling across all age groups. Young people aged 18 to 34 are around five times more likely to bet on sports than older cohorts.

When the data lands at the clubhouse door

Football Victoria’s support for the program reflects a broader recognition within community sport that participation rates and club culture are connected. The environments clubs create shape whether young people stay in sport and what norms they carry with them into adulthood. For football specifically, which draws participants across a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds, that responsibility is not evenly distributed. Approximately 440,000 Victorians, or 8.5 per cent of the state’s population, are classified as being at some risk of experiencing problem gambling.

The Victorian Government’s program gives clubs more than symbolic membership. Registered clubs receive practical tools to develop governance frameworks around gambling harm, resources for coaching staff and volunteers, and standing as part of a growing network of clubs taking a formal position on the issue.

Researchers have described the current framing of gambling harm as a matter of personal responsibility as inadequate, arguing it is a public health issue requiring a systemic response. Community football clubs, with their reach into households across the state, are one of the institutional levers available to make that response visible.

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