Football West achieves incredible growth of player registrations

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Image credit: Football West

Football West have confirmed that player registrations in the state have reached an all-time high after passing the 50,000 mark for the first time.

The number of players in Western Australia registered on Play Football currently sits on 50,231 – 18% up on the same time in 2023 and also includes over 10,000 female players, another record figure and 34% increase from last year.

There are also 3,806 registered coaches in 2024, a massive 74% increase of last year’s figure which stood at 2,226 coaches.

Referee numbers are also 25% higher than at the same time 12 months ago, 408 in 2023 while in 2024 it is 510.

Football West CEO Jamie Harnwell was ecstatic to confirm this new milestone being hit in the state amongst other participation records.

“These numbers are incredible, and we are delighted to share them with the WA football community,” Harnwell said in a statement.

“We were expecting a spike after the success of the FIFA Women’s World Cup. However, this is a wider success story and the result of much hard work done across clubs, associations and the Football West team over a number of years.

“We also know that there is a lot of work to be done to ensure these record numbers are not a one-off, rather part of a long-term growth that sees football continue to be the No1 participation sport in Western Australia.

“This includes tackling the extra demands on clubs by providing adequate facilities, including more female-friendly facilities. This will help attract new people and hopefully see them develop a lifelong love of football.

“This is why Football West is currently carrying out a new facilities audit across the state. We are also working closely with the State Government and the Local Government Authorities to identify key areas required for investment.”

Football West are doing a fantastic job in providing adequate funding at grassroots levels for facilities, encouraging the youth to play the sport and ensuring that across all divisions of participation there are more willing to sign up.

As Harnwell mentioned, it’s much more than the sudden boom of the Women’s World Cup that was expected but rather years of hard work and great decisions that have led to these promising statistics and the plan now is to sustain this growth to hopefully become the most played sport in the state.

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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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