Football Australia and Commonwealth Bank begin partnership to grow women’s football

Avatar

Football Australia have today announced the start of a game-changing partnership with Commonwealth Bank.

Originally announced in April this year, today’s newly formed partnership will see Commonwealth Bank become one of the largest investors in Australian women’s football.

Millions of dollars are set to be injected into the elite women’s game and grassroots initiatives across the country over the next four years.

The bank will become the official partner and bank of the Commonwealth Bank Matildas, Commonwealth Bank Young Matildas, Commonwealth Bank Junior Matildas, Socceroos and more.

In addition, the partnership supports Football Australia’s 15-year vision and strategic agenda to increase women’s and girls’ participation in the sport that was pledged in the Legacy ’23 plan.

Monique Macleod, Commonwealth Bank Group Executive of Marketing and Corporate Affairs, acknowledged the significance of such a landmark moment for CBA and Australian football.

“This is an exciting time for women’s football; the Matildas recent performance on the world stage is showing young Australian women and girls they can achieve great things. We are ready to play our part in strengthening the game at all levels as we head towards 2023 and beyond,” she said.

“We are delighted to partner with Football Australia in supporting the Commonwealth Bank Matildas in their quest for glory on the world stage, and the future growth and development of the game across all levels.”

Football Australia Chief Executive Officer James Johnson added: “Our partnership with Commonwealth Bank represents a clear and strong alignment of values between our two organisations. It is also a significant endorsement of our vision for Australian football and our strategic priority to anchor the growth of the game in women’s football.

“We are already seeing Commonwealth Bank’s commitment to helping Football Australia provide opportunities for all Australians to play football, and to further strengthen the Commonwealth Bank Matildas’ position as an iconic brand, by helping us to reach more Australians than ever before.

“In recent weeks we’ve seen the Commonwealth Bank Matildas set the record for the largest audience for a women’s team sport in Australian TV history, with an average television audience of 1.87 million tuning in to watch Australia and Sweden in Tokyo. This is a sign of how this team is capturing the hearts and minds of Australians everywhere and with Commonwealth Bank’s support, we believe this team will continue to grow and reach new heights over the coming years.

“Commonwealth Bank’s support for the Socceroos also comes at a time when the team has reached its highest FIFA ranking since 2011, and readies itself for the next phase of the Asian Qualifiers – Road to Qatar with upcoming matches against China and Vietnam in the September Men’s International Match Calendar window.”

Previous ArticleNext Article

Football NSW supports Female Coaches CPD as Women’s Football Surges

Avatar
Image Credit: Shutterstock

Football NSW has used the platform of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup to deliver a targeted professional development workshop for female coaches, bringing together scholarship recipients for an evening of structured learning and direct engagement with elite women’s football.

Held at ACPE last month, the session was open to female coaches who received C or B Diploma scholarships through Football NSW in 2025. Coaching accreditation carries a financial cost that disproportionately affects women, who are less likely to have their development subsidised by clubs or associations operating in underfunded community football environments. Scholarship access changes that equation at the point where many women exit the pathway.

Facilitated by Football NSW Coach Development Coordinator Bronwyn Kiceec, the workshop focused on goal scoring trends from the tournament’s group stage, with coaches analysing attacking patterns and exploring how those insights could translate into their own environments. The group then attended the quarter-final between South Korea and Uzbekistan at Stadium Australia.

The structure of the evening mattered as much as its content. Female coaches in community football rarely have access to elite competition environments as a professional resource. The gap between the level at which most women coach and the level at which the game is analysed and discussed tends to reinforce itself. Placing scholarship recipients inside a major tournament, as participants rather than spectators, closes that gap in a way that a classroom session cannot.

Female coaches remain significantly underrepresented across all levels of the game in Australia. The pipeline that will change that depends not only on accreditation access but on the professional networks, peer relationships and exposure to elite environments that male coaches have historically taken for granted.

The workshop forms part of Football NSW’s ongoing commitment to developing female coaches through scholarships and structured learning opportunities.

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