Football Australia and OFC enter agreement to grow Pacific football

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Image Credit: Mark Metcalfe / GETTY Images

Football Australia and the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) have entered into a new agreement with the aim of advancing the development of football in the Pacific.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed, strengthening a long-standing partnership and creating opportunities for collaboration through to 2029.

Football Australia Chairman, Anter Isaac, and OFC President, Lambert Maltock, signed the agreement on August 25 2025 at the Australian Football Leadership Summit in Sydney.

The Memorandum of Understanding states that the two organisations will collaborate on player pathways, coach and referee development, competitions and international matches, governance and administration excellence, knowledge-sharing and the delivery of social responsibility programs across the Pacific.

This partnership will strengthen football in both Australia and Oceania through shared opportunities and the exchange of best practices.

Anter Isaac, Chairman of Football Australia commented on the continued partnership.

“Football Australia and the Oceania Football Confederation share a partnership built on decades of collaboration, respect and shared ambition. This Memorandum of Understanding reinforces our relationship as a cornerstone of regional cooperation and sets the foundation for long-term collaboration that benefits us both,” said Isaac in a press release.

“We are committed to learning from each other – from OFC’s disciplined governance and administrative frameworks to the opportunities that Australia can provide in pathways, competition, and technical expertise.”

The agreement also solidifies Football Australia’s backing for the launch of the OFC Pro League, scheduled to commence in 2026.

Football Australia will help ensure the League launches and operates successfully by sharing technical, governance, regulatory, and competition expertise.

This creates a clear pathway toward professionalism and qualification for international competitions, benefiting both clubs and players across Oceania.

Lambert Maltock, President of the Oceania Football Confederation shared his view on the agreement.

“Working with Football Australia will bring new opportunities, resources, and expertise that will benefit players, coaches, referees and communities across the Pacific,” said Maltock via press release.

“This directly connects with OFC’s strategic pillars: Development, Education, and High Performance and will pave the way to success both on and off the pitch, while also building stronger ties between our nations.”

Crucially, the Memorandum of Understanding acknowledges that Football Australia will gain valuable insights into the OFC’s proven governance and administrative strategies.

These insights will inform Football Australia’s individual programs, ensuring both parties benefit from this partnership.

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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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