Football Queensland (FQ) have signalled their intent to help football reach its lofty potential in the state with the release of the 2021 Services Guide – Investing in the Future of Football.
The announcement marks another significant step being taken by FQ in the pursuit of assuring a positive future for the game in line with Football Australia’s own initiatives to unlock the potential of Australian football. The guide is divided into FQ’s four key Strategic Pillars – Participation, Infrastructure, Clubs & Community and Leadership & People.
By building on the solid precedent set by recent years, FQ is aiming to deliver on a number of critical key targets from this year onwards. Specifically, FQ is seeking to build their participation base to 90,000, including 22,500 female participants alongside 8,820 registered coaches and 2,200 referees.
Notably, FQ have identified women and girls as the future of football in the state. With a surge of focus on the development of the women’s game, particularly with the 2023 Women’s World Cup right around the corner, FQ want to transform interest into active involvement. FQ’s concerted effort to grow women’s football is illustrated in the guide through their establishment of female-only coaching & referee courses, alongside the employment of a full-time Participation Manager to work specifically within the women and girls space.
Additionally, FQ has pledged to provide increased support for all forms of the game, including all abilities football, futsal, Indigenous football, masters football and summer football, as well as promote an inclusive space to people from all cultural backgrounds.
FQ’s strengthening of its programs and competitions is seen by the state’s governing football body as essential to creating a connected pathway to provide ambitious players with a clear view of the top. A stronger focus on assuring access for young male and female talent to the Australian footballing pyramid aligns with Australian football’s collective desire to build up the talented pool of youth available, ultimately allowing for Queensland’s footballing youth to thrive.
Following on from the release of the ‘Strategic Infrastructure Plan 2020-2024’ document in September of last year, FQ have reiterated their desire to build self-sufficiency within Queensland’s football infrastructure with the ‘Investing in the Future of Football’ guide. This reinforces that FQ are working towards the securement of a Queensland Government football infrastructure fund equating to $60 million over four years, thereby placing an clear emphasis on ensuring the expansion of football state-wide.
Moreover, the Kappa Festival of Football marks a clear effort by FQ to put a spotlight on the budding male and female talent coming through. The tournament will see NSW’s Men’s and Women’s teams featuring alongside Brisbane Roar’s A-League and Westfield W-League sides pitted against the very best that Queensland football has to offer. The inaugural 2020 edition was a huge success and was deemed as being massively beneficial to the process of scouting and recruiting young talent.
FQ’s dedication to a shared services model in its running of the game has been a fruitful initiative, particularly in extending practical support for football participants, officials, staff, volunteers and fans across the entire state. The measure has allowed for the management and administrating of football in Queensland to be proactively run, creating efficiency through the sharing of resources across the finance, competitions, refereeing, digital and marketing departments.
“With 313 clubs and over 180,000 participants, football in Queensland is operating on an enormous scale and the FQ Services Guide demonstrates just how FQ is delivering for its members and unlocking the opportunity in the game, increasing the number of participants, referees and coaches with services, programs, knowledge and support across all areas.” FQ Chief Executive Officer Robert Cavallucci said upon the guide’s release.
“With this structure in place, we can narrow our focus on accomplishing the projects that enable us to unite the game across Queensland, introduce efficiencies that place downward pressure on fees, meaningfully engage with members and provide quality products and services.
“FQ is striving to reach these targets by improving the standard of delivery at all levels and thereby improving the overall experience for our members.
“There is now a greater emphasis than ever on bringing communities together by developing community club capabilities and, crucially, on creating the efficiencies needed to make football more accessible.
“We are finding fresh ways to bring our vision to life through initiatives such as the shared services model, making managing and administering football across the state easier and more efficient.”
To view the full copy of FQ’s 2021 Services Guide – Investing in the Future of Football, you can find it here.
