John Dimtsis
John Dimtsis was born in Greece and came to Australia at the age of nine.
He attended Northcote High School and joined the Commonwealth Bank and then moved to the State Bank of Victoria where he was charged with encouraging the Greek community to bank with his employers.
That took him to Alexander Soccer Club, then playing at John Street. He quickly became involved with the club as Treasurer and sorted out its accounts to the satisfaction of the Victorian Soccer Federation (VSF).
His skills were noticed by the VSF and he joined the organisation's Board in 1972 and became its treasurer in 1973, while still retaining his role as treasurer of Fitzroy United Alexander.
In 1980 he succeeded Theo Marmaras as President of the VSF and held the position until 1991.
In that time he responded to criticism that the VSF was too Melbourne-centred and among other initiatives commenced ‘state of origin’ matches between Sunraysia and the equivalent region in South Australia, with coaching sessions involving Tim White and Jeff Olver.
He, along with Vito Cilauro and George Wallace, introduced the restructured top tier, the Victorian Premier League in 1991.
While retaining his role as President of the VSF he became Treasurer of the Australian Soccer Federation (ASF) and Deputy Chairman under John Constantine following the implementation of the Bradley Report.
At the ASF he had responsibility for referees, juniors, indoor soccer and women.
He helped negotiate the merger between the men’s and women’s organisations and the latter’s entry into Olympic competition.
Earlier at the VSF he had presided over the World Indoor Cup tournament held in Melbourne in 1988 when futsal was under the control of the Federation International de Football de Salon (FIFUSA).
He was acting chairman of the ASF briefly in 1995 following the departure of Constantine and before David Hill took over. After five years following his period at the ASF he returned to what was now Heidelberg United, completing his spell as president of the club at the conclusion of 2014.
A Life Member of Football Victoria, John Dimtsis remained a strong supporter of football and his beloved Heidelberg United until his passing in 2022.
