Capital Football appoint Ivan Slavich as CEO

Avatar
Ivan Slavich
Image via Capital Football

Capital Football has announced that Ivan Slavich will take over as CEO of the organisation from December onwards.

Slavich, a local Canberran, is vastly experienced across business, community, and sports and will unite those skills to help take Capital Football to the next level.

The incumbent CEO has been keenly involved in Canberra’s football community for over 20 years, having played the game and served for over three years on the Capital Football board.

Moreover, Slavich has also sponsored the Junior League and supported the A-League women’s team through his previous corporate interests, contributing $5m to establish an A-League men’s team in Canberra during their bid to join the league.

“We are delighted to announce Ivan Slavich as the new CEO of Capital Football,” Capital Football Board Chair, Angelo Konstantinou, said in a statement.

“Ivan is no stranger to football in Canberra and brings a wealth of knowledge of the game and of running high-level businesses. He has previously been the CEO of TransACT, PARASOL and ASX listed Energy Action. He was a General Manager at ActewAGL for nine years and was a senior executive with iiNet as Head of Federal Government and ACT.

“Ivan has also been very active in the Canberra community, helping to raise more than $25m for community organisations and charity groups over the past decade. Recently, as the CEO of Soldier On, he grew the number of veterans supported from 3,000 to 8,000 tripling the size of the organisation.

“He is also a very strong supporter of Camp Quality who help kids up to the age of 15 impacted by cancer and was the highest fundraiser in the world for Movember who help with men’s health.”

Ivan was the inaugural Chair of the Canberra Cavalry baseball team who won the Claxton Shield for the first time and has been involved with many sporting organisations across Canberra and Sydney.

He is currently the Chair of the Capital region’s very own Service One Alliance Bank, which emerged out of the various Credit Unions in Canberra, the Snowy Mountains, and the NSW South Coast.

He has a Business Degree from UTS, post graduate qualifications from the Securities Institute of Australia, Mt Eliza Business School, and the Australian Institute of Company Directors where he is a graduate and a Fellow (FAICD).

“Ivan brings with him strong Strategic, Leadership and Business Development skills and a passion for Football,” Konstantinou added via press release.

“He will listen to the football community in the Capital region, work out what is working well, what needs to change, and what needs to be implemented.

“Ivan is particularly interested in growing Football in Canberra beyond the current 35,000 participants, focusing on football skills, team development and helping football clubs achieve financial strength and already has plans to achieve this.”

Ivan Slavich will replace current CEO Chris Gardiner, who stepped into the vacant position as the hunt for a new CEO continued.

He has also welcomed the appointment, having stepped into the CEO position to assist Capital Football in 2022.

“2023 will be a crucial year for Football with the impact of the Men’s and Women’s World Cups, and an energised Canberra United in the Liberty A-League,” Gardiner said via press release.

“Ivan is very much the right person to ensure Football can grow and strengthen in Canberra going forward.”

Previous ArticleNext Article

Victory unites with Roasting Warehouse in culture-led partnership

Avatar
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

Avatar
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.

Most Popular Topics

Editor Picks

Send this to a friend