Queensland clubs get in excess of $600,000 in approved funding

Staff Writer27/09/2019 11:15 am12/10/2021

Football Queensland affiliates are encouraged to consider applying for future rounds of the Gambling Community Benefit Fund after over $600,000 in funding was recently approved for Queensland clubs and organisations.

24 FQ affiliates were successful with approvals totalling $625,457 in the recently announced May 2019 round, with the next round closing on October 31.

Not-for-profit groups operating in Queensland can apply for grants from $500 to $35,000 through the Gambling Community Benefit Fund, one of the state’s largest one-off community grants programs that distributes approximately $57 million per year.

The fund allocates grants to not-for-profit community groups, to enhance their capacity to provide services, leisure activities and opportunities for Queensland communities.

This program is a great way for Queensland clubs and zones to present a proactive approach to their members and community in supporting the development of the game.

Gambling Community Benefit Fund May 2019 Approvals:

Bayside Strikers Soccer Club	Purchase Shade Tents	$2,800
Bethania Rams FC	Install Commercial Kitchen	$35,000
Canungra Owls Soccer Club	Upgrade Kitchen	$35,000
City Brothers FC	Purchase Lawn Mower	$21,500
Estates Soccer Club	Upgrade Facility	$33,202
Football Brisbane	Electronic Scoreboard	$35,000
Gladstone United FC	Construct Shed	$33,925
Gracemere Redbacks FC	Construct Change Rooms	$35,000
Kingaroy Snrs Soccer Club	Install Field Lighting	$35,000
Logan Lightning FC	Construct Fence & Shelter	$35,000
Longreach Jnr Soccer	Purchase Shipping Container	$8,250
Monto FC	Goal Posts & Training Equipment	$10,808
Narangba United FC	Purchase Equipment & Trailer	$35,000
North Brisbane FC	Install Solar	$35,000
North Queensland Football Ltd	Canteen Equipment	$35,000
Olympic FC	Construct Junior Field	$35,000
Parkside United Jnr FC	Replace Shed	$26,353
Pine Hills FC	Upgrade Lighting	$32,486
Roar Recreation & Welfare Ltd	Purchase Soccer Equipment	$15,000
Stanthorpe Carlton United FC	Upgrade Change Room Facility	$14,760
Tarragindi Tigers Sporting Association	Change Rooms & Canteen Equipment	$35,000
Tinana FC	Purchase Equipment	$10,000
Walking Football Brisbane	Purchase Equipment	$17,231
Westside Sports Club	Construct Fencing & Seating	$34,052
	TOTAL	$625,457

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Victory unites with Roasting Warehouse in culture-led partnership

Patrick Irving16/04/2026 8:55 am16/04/2026

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

Patrick Irving15/04/2026 6:05 am14/04/2026

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.