Football Queensland hosts unique futsal referee course

Philip Panas02/12/2020 5:50 am12/10/2021

Football Queensland hosted a first-of-its-kind referee course over the weekend, supporting match officials who are transitioning to futsal officiating.

20 football referees attended the course at Mt Maria College, which was designed to give outdoor referees the knowledge and qualifications to apply their skills to the small-sided game.

“The referee course delivered over the weekend was an innovative way to support a group of match officials to broaden their skillset and pursue a new pathway with an introduction to the futsal Laws of the Game,” FQ State Referee Manager Jacqui Hurford said.

“Football Queensland developed this concept for our referees after discovering that the existing two-day futsal referee course model was prohibitive for some match officials.

“This provided an opportunity for us to get creative and come up with a new form of futsal referee course for existing match officials, created in collaboration with established referees Dion Bradley, Zac Keenan and other members of the Futsal Referee Working Group.

“Dion and Zac also delivered the course on Sunday, which was attended by 20 match officials from across Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast.

“Members of the Football Queensland referee department were also in attendance alongside a number of experienced referees assessors and instructors who will help to develop these match officials as they transition into refereeing futsal.

“After a successful course over the weekend, we’re excited to continue providing more opportunities for our outdoor referees to gain experience in futsal to support the growth of the sport.

“For this reason, Football Queensland has recently released a Futsal Referee Information Pack to provide new and existing outdoor referees with information on the benefits of refereeing futsal, and we encourage any match official interested in broadening their skillset to register for an upcoming Futsal Referee Course.”

The next Futsal Convention Course will be held in Brisbane in February 2021, with a Futsal Referee Course to be held on the same weekend.

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Philip Panas

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

Theo Athans3 days ago06/12/2023

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

Nick Davis3 days ago06/12/2023

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.