Football Queensland launches Volunteer Guide in support of clubs

Matthew Badrov20/04/2021 6:00 am12/10/2021

In an effort to assist clubs across the state with the recruitment and retention of volunteers, Football Queensland has unveiled its Volunteer Guide.

The Volunteer Guide is dedicated to the many volunteers who ensure that Football Queensland’s 180,000 participants enjoy their football year-in, year-out. However, in the wake of the COVID-19 epidemic, two out of three volunteers across the state made the difficult decision to stand down from their roles.

Volunteers are the lifeblood of football across not just Queensland, but grassroots football in Australia. Football Queensland CEO, Robert Cavallucci, acknowledged that the Guide was a significant addition to the range of support services made available to clubs throughout the state.

“This clear, easy-to-read Guide focuses on three key areas including understanding volunteers, the role of volunteer coordinators and the ‘four R’s’: Recruitment, Retention, Recognition and Review,” Cavallucci said.

“At Football Queensland, we recognise that volunteers are the lifeblood of the game and vitally important to the ongoing growth of football throughout Queensland.

“Whether it be at a grassroots community club or one of the elite clubs in the National Premier Leagues Queensland, volunteers play a crucial role in club operations and making the world game Queensland’s most popular participation sport.

“However, research by Volunteering Australia suggests that an estimated two in three volunteers stepped away from their roles in 2020 due in part to COVID-19 restrictions.

“This only strengthens our resolve to meet our strategic objective to make working in football easier for those selfless clubmen and women who volunteer their time to run our clubs, manage our teams, referee our matches, staff our canteens and much more.

“As part of FQ’s Club Support Hub, the Volunteer Guide offers clubs practical assistance in building a strong foundation for volunteers to join, stay and encourage others to help.

“Volunteers have never been more crucial to sport and this Guide will help clubs grow the game throughout Queensland and make football the game of choice, for all, for life.”

Previous ArticleOakleigh Cannons well-placed to build on its competitive foundationsNext ArticleFootball West and Computing Australia Group ink two-year deal

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.