Sarah Styles appointed as Director of the Office for Women in Sport and Recreation

Liam Watson

Sarah Styles has been appointed to the role as Director of the Office for Women in Sport and Recreation in Victoria.

Beginning with Sport and Recreation Victoria on May 3, 2021, Styles is a highly experienced and well-credentialed sports administrator, where she becomes a valuable addition as a skilled and respected leader, who has been a driving force behind women and girls getting involved in sport.

Styles has a wealth of experience upon taking up the position, with her background featuring roles as an investment banker, and business owner.

Styles is best renowned for her work with Cricket Australia, where she orchestrated a range of initiatives to increase women and girls’ involvement and inclusion in cricket as the organisation’s inaugural Head of Female Engagement.

Her leadership was highlighted by the historic ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on International Women’s Day last year, as 86,174 fans packed the stands to see Australia defeat India to secure the title.

This incredible attendance showcases the growth of women’s sport over time, with the upcoming 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand sure to be another fantastic milestone.

More recently Styles has worked as a strategic advisor to Sport Australia and the Australian Institute of Sport on its ‘Women Leading Sport’ initiative, that aims to significantly increase the representation and success of women in leadership positions throughout Australian sport.

She is also a Director of Gender Equity Victoria – Victoria’s peak advocacy body for gender equity, women’s health and the prevention of violence against women.

Styles is the successor to Dr Bridie O’Donnell, who was the first Director of the Office for Women in Sport and Recreation when it was established by the Victorian Government in 2017.

The Office and its Change Our Game plan provides a range of grant and funding programs to support women and girls across all levels of sport and recreation in Victoria.

The Office for Women in Sport and Recreation has also led a world-first board quota policy requiring sport and active recreation organisations funded by Sport and Recreation Victoria and the Victorian Government to comply with the compulsory minimum of 40 per cent consisting of women on boards.

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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.

Football NSW supports Female Coaches CPD as Women’s Football Surges

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Image Credit: Shutterstock

Football NSW has used the platform of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup to deliver a targeted professional development workshop for female coaches, bringing together scholarship recipients for an evening of structured learning and direct engagement with elite women’s football.

Held at ACPE last month, the session was open to female coaches who received C or B Diploma scholarships through Football NSW in 2025. Coaching accreditation carries a financial cost that disproportionately affects women, who are less likely to have their development subsidised by clubs or associations operating in underfunded community football environments. Scholarship access changes that equation at the point where many women exit the pathway.

Facilitated by Football NSW Coach Development Coordinator Bronwyn Kiceec, the workshop focused on goal scoring trends from the tournament’s group stage, with coaches analysing attacking patterns and exploring how those insights could translate into their own environments. The group then attended the quarter-final between South Korea and Uzbekistan at Stadium Australia.

The structure of the evening mattered as much as its content. Female coaches in community football rarely have access to elite competition environments as a professional resource. The gap between the level at which most women coach and the level at which the game is analysed and discussed tends to reinforce itself. Placing scholarship recipients inside a major tournament, as participants rather than spectators, closes that gap in a way that a classroom session cannot.

Female coaches remain significantly underrepresented across all levels of the game in Australia. The pipeline that will change that depends not only on accreditation access but on the professional networks, peer relationships and exposure to elite environments that male coaches have historically taken for granted.

The workshop forms part of Football NSW’s ongoing commitment to developing female coaches through scholarships and structured learning opportunities.

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