Football Victoria announce 30 new 5-Star clubs

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Football Victoria has confirmed the 30 latest inductees into the Club Engagement Program (CEP) 5-Star club.

The 5-Star status was awarded to 22 community, 1 NPLW and 7 NPL clubs across Victoria.

Seven clubs were inducted into the exclusive group last year.

Football Victoria CEO Peter Filopoulos claimed the creation of the CEP and Club Ambassadors were an important initiative under the state federation’s strategic pillar of Clubs. The program helps clubs throughout the state become stronger and gives them the opportunity to provide consistent positive experiences for all.

The CEP is an on-line development platform that gives clubs the chance to answer a series of questions regarding all aspects of their football such as:

  • Governance and Capacity;
  • Female Participation;
  • Inclusive Participation;
  • Facilities;
  • Meeting Demand;
  • Community Citizenship; and
  • Football Experience.

The program’s objectives and a number of its measurement methods were used last month by Football Federation Australia. The federation launched the program as The National Club Development Program (NCDP).

Mr Filopoulos said the program recognised clubs for the things they did well, but also gave them an aspirational template to strive for further success.

“Our clubs and players are the very reason FV exists.  We have a commitment and a duty to help them be viable, sustainable and successful. We want them to be the very best they can be regardless of status, geography or demography,” Mr Filopoulos said.

“We know that our clubs are all different because of their demographics, socio-economic factors, facilities, local council relationships, competitor activity and regional factors.

“Ensuring they are strong, vibrant and delivering great experiences for all is a core strategic pillar of Football Victoria to help grow the number of participants of all ages, genders and abilities in our great game.

“Over the past two years in Victoria, we have invested heavily in directly engaging clubs with our Club Ambassadors and providing them with a successful framework to improve. We welcome the NCDP being rolled out nationally by the FFA.”

The full list of all the Victorian 5-Star clubs is below.

5-Star Clubs League
Altona City SC Community
Aspendale SC Community
Berwick City SC Community
Brighton SC Community
Brimbank Stallions FC* Community
Casey Comets FC Community
Chelsea FC Community
Collingwood City FC Community
Coonans Hill SC Community
Craigieburn City FC Community
East Gippsland United FC Community
Essendon Royals SC Community
Fawkner SC Community
Glen Eira FC Community
Hampton Junior SC Community
Keilor Park SC* Community
Maribyrnong Swifts FC Community
Mount Martha SC Community
Myrtleford Savoy SC* Community
North Caulfield Junior & Women FC Community
Sandringham SC Community
South Yarra SC Community
Spring Hills FC Community
Thomastown Raiders FC Community
Wangaratta City FC* Community
Williamstown SC Community
Ballarat City FC NPL
Brunswick City SC NPL
Dandenong City SC NPL
Dandenong Thunder SC NPL
Green Gully SC NPL
Moreland City SC NPL
Moreland Zebras FC* NPL
Pascoe Vale FC* NPL
Whittlesea Ranges FC NPL
Bayside United FC NPLW
Calder United SC* NPLW

*Existing 5-Star Club

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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.

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

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2023-24 Local Sports Infrastructure Fund
Image via Pxhere

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

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Football Queensland & Kappa partnership extension
Image credit: Football Queensland

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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