Football Victoria has announced All Abilities April is back in 2025

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Image credit: Melbourne Victory

With April having arrived, Football Victoria has announced the launch of All Abilities April for the fourth year running.

Launched in 2022, All Abilities April is a month-long initiative dedicated to highlighting the incredible work being done to support people with disabilities in football.

It also aims to raise awareness of the many ways people and clubs can get involved in all abilities programs across the state.

These football programs are specifically designed for individuals with disabilities or impairments, with modifications made to ensure they meet the diverse needs of participants.

Throughout April, Football Victoria will be sharing inspiring stories from clubs and participants across Victoria, as well as showcasing the elite pathway opportunities available.

These stories will demonstrate the positive impact that football and futsal have on players, emphasising their significance and the difference they make in participants’ lives.

New Participants and Volunteers:
Clubs and programs across Victoria are welcoming new participants to come and try out football.

This is a fantastic opportunity to explore different programs and find one that is the best fit for you or your child.

If you’re new to all abilities football or futsal, Football Victoria encourages you to give it a try! Available programs include:

  • All Abilities Football (Club programs for all types of disabilities)
  • All Abilities League (A league for all types of disabilities)
  • Wheelchair Football (For wheelchair and powerchair users)
  • Victorian Paralympic Football State Team Program – Elite Pathway Program (For individuals with cerebral palsy, acquired brain injuries, or stroke-related impairments)
  • Powerchair Football (For powerchair users)
  • Blind or Vision Impaired Football (For those with blindness or vision impairments)
  • Athletes with Disability Futsal – Elite Pathway Program (For all disabilities, including Deaf/Hard of Hearing and Vision Impairment)
  • Deaf Futsal (For players who are Deaf or hard of hearing)

Football Victoria encourages everyone to get involved and discover the benefits of these inclusive programs.

For more information on all-abilities football in Victoria and how you can get involved, you can visit the Football Victoria website.

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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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