First Gold Coast club awarded five stars in National Club Development Program

Philip Panas23/03/2021 6:00 am12/10/2021

Magic United have become the first club on the Gold Coast to achieve five-star accreditation in Football Australia’s National Club Development Program (NCDP).

The ambitious young club will play its first season in the Football Queensland Premier League 2 in 2021.

The NCDP assists community-based club administrators by providing them with clear models for clubs to enhance and maintain standards across the board.

FQ CEO Robert Cavallucci congratulated Magic United on the achievement.

“It is crucial that FQ continues to assist parents and players with making informed choices about the clubs they play at,” he said.

“Equally, it is important for clubs like Magic United to celebrate their success in taking these positive steps to build capacity and make progress with their technical programs.”

Football Queensland Gold Coast General Manager Damien Bresic said of the news: “It’s great that we have a local club that is setting standards high enough to be acknowledged by Football Australia.

“Magic United has been a leader in player development and providing a pathway for talented players for a number of years and this 5-star rating is a timely recognition of their efforts to improve football on the Gold Coast.”

Magic United President Peter Fenton believes the 5-star rating is an indicator that the club continues to build in the right direction.

“This rating is an indication of what we want to achieve at Magic United. We now have a clear pathway in place for all our players to progress,” he said.

“In addition to obtaining a FQPL 2 Senior Men’s Licence for the 2021 season, we have also launched a Senior Women’s team and now have over 120 females participating from U8s to senior women.

“We are a fairly new club but we’re constantly growing. Our next objective is to upgrade our club house and changing rooms to accommodate our members.”

Previous ArticleFootball NSW’s ‘Don’t Cross the Line’ handbook addresses sport rageNext ArticleAnnual General Meeting conducted by Football NSW

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.