Northern NSW Football announce MoU with Heartbeat of Football

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NNSWF
Image provided by Northern NSW Football

Northern NSW Football has announced it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Heartbeat of Football.

The purpose of the partnership is to reduce the incidence of unnecessary deaths while playing football through raising heart health awareness across NNSWF communities and stakeholders, to help ensure a safe environment for participants.

Media personality and football enthusiast Andy Paschalidis established Heartbeat of Football in early 2016 as a direct result of cardiac arrest events on the football pitch.

Heartbeat of Football is a not-for-profit organisation, promoting healthy hearts in sport via:

  • Awareness and education (player, participant and community programs)
  • Prevention (minimisation of health risks through simple screening checks)
  • Action (‘Rescue-ready’ defibrillators at all sporting fields around the country)

NNSWF CEO David Eland said via NNSWF it was important to increase community education around CPR and the use of automated external defibrillators.

“We look forward to working together with Heartbeat of Football on some exciting initiatives and campaigns,” Eland said in a statement.

“We want to encourage adult community members to conduct heart health checks and encourage football clubs to have operational defibrillators available and accessible for use during football activities.

“We have tens of thousands of participants that take to the field every week. So it is essential that our football community understands the issue and can take preventative actions to protect themselves and their families.

“What Andy and Heartbeat of football have achieved has been fantastic. We are proud of this partnership and I look forward to seeing how it can help our football community over the next few years.”

Paschalidis, Heartbeat of Football founder and CEO, said via NNSWF:

“This partnership with NNSWF is important as it further supports our objective of reaching more people and establishing a national footprint. A big thanks to David and the NNSWF team for their commitment to HOF and to their whole football community – truly lifesaving!”

“The impact of the floods on football and the wider community is devastating and our donation of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) to those clubs most affected by these, is our way of giving back to the football family. The AED donation was made possible by the generosity of Tim Cahill, HOF Global Ambassador, who wanted to do something to support football across the region – he said it was a “no-brainer” and hoped it made a difference to those clubs and communities impacted by the floods”

Paschalidis was at Lismore on Friday, along with Chris Cahill (Tim’s brother), to present defibrillators to five clubs from the Football Far North Coast region to help launch the partnership.

The clubs included Lismore Thistles SC, Lismore Workers FC, South Lismore FC, Uki Pythons and Woodburn Wolves FC.

NNSWF also funded one of the defibrillators to help ensure all defibrillators lost during the devastating floods earlier this year were replaced as part of its Flood Recovery initiative.

Socceroos legend Tim Cahill also sent a video message of support to the clubs.

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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.

Marie-Louise Eta makes history as new Union Berlin head coach

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Image credit: FC Union Berlin

In an historic appointment, Eta will take over as head coach of Union Berlin until the end of the season.

History in the making

Previously the first female assistant coach in Bundesliga history with Union Berlin, Eta will now take the reigns of the men’s first team on an interim basis.

Currently, the club sit in 11th place in the Bundesliga table, but with only two wins so far in 2026, relegation appears an all-too-real prospect, and one which the club is desperate to avoid.

“Given the points gap in the lower half of the table, our place in the Bundesliga is not yet secure,” said Eta via official media release.

‘I am delighted that the club has entrusted me with this challenging task. One of Union’s strengths has always been, and remains, the ability to pull together in such situations.”

Eta will begin as Union’s new head coach with immediate effect, and will be in the dugout for the club’s matchup against Wolfsburg this weekend.

 

A step into an equal future

Eta’s appointment signals a major step towards a more level playing field in the football landscape.

Furthermore, Eta joins other coaches including Sabrinna Wittmann, Hannah Dingley and Corinne Diacre who, in recent years, have blazed a trail for female coaches to step into the men’s game.

Wittmann currently manages FC Ingolstadt in Germany’s third division, and was the first female head coach in Germany’s top three divisions.

In 2023, Dingley became caretaker manager of Forest Green Rovers, and thus the first woman to lead a men’s professional team in England.

Diacre, now head coach of France’s women’s national team, managed Ligue 2’s Clerment Foot between 2014 and 2017.

 

Final thoughts

The impact therefore, is that Eta’s appointment will show future generations of aspiring female coaches that men’s football is an equally viable and possible pathway as the women’s game.

The time is now to level the playing field.

And while it may be a short-term role, its effect on attitudes towards equality and fair opportunities in the game will hopefully resonate long after the season ends.

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