Football Victoria (FV) is delighted to announce that it has commenced the second phase of its comprehensive review of football structures in the State of Victoria with a focus on the game for women and girls.
Tasked with delivering an enhanced football experience for all senior and junior players, the review recently completed the Men's and Boys' (Phase 1) review and will seek to identify the optimum competition model for Women's and Girls' football (Phase 2) in Victoria.
Being implemented as part of FV's strategic priorities, the review will consider Victorian football's key issues including the cost of playing football, the welfare of players, the economic viability of clubs, the elite development pathway, expanding the participation base, club engagement with local government, access to facilities and the experience that players have through their involvement in the game.
To commence Phase 2 of the review, an independent review Steering Committee for Women's and Girls' football has been formally established. The committee is made up of dedicated and experienced football representatives from all levels of the game and will be led by President of Women Sport Australia Carol Fox.
Football Victoria CEO Peter Filopoulos said the learning from Phase 1 of the comprehensive review only served to benefit Phase 2.
"Football Victoria's commitment to grow the game for women and girls has never been stronger than this process which seek to enhance all aspects of the game," Mr Filopoulos said.
"This comprehensive review will methodically review and identify what operates well, areas that require change and seek to find a competition model that best suits female footballers of all abilities.
“We will review both the National Premier Leagues Victoria Women's (NPLW) and FV community competition structures with a view to ensuring that football remains accessible to all Victorian women and girls and enables players to engage with football at the level they most desire.
"As we head into a FIFA Women's World Cup year we expect there to be an acceleration in the growth of women's football, which will put greater demand on FV to provide the best possible football experience.
"For those players that are pushing into the elite player pathway through NPL Victoria Women's we are excited to be finding the optimal model to producing more Victorian Matildas."
Phase 2 of the review will take six months to complete and will deliver its findings to the FV Board in May 2019.
Stakeholder Feedback Program - Have your Say!
FV has engaged leading sports consultancy firm Sports Business Partners (SBP) to run a stakeholder feedback program and further utilise their experience both in football and across all Australian sports to recommend the optimum competition model for the state.
All Victorian football stakeholders are invited to participate in this review either by emailing your submission to footballcompetitionreview@ffv.org.au and/or completing our online survey here.
The deadline for submitting the survey is 5pm on Friday, December 14.
For further information on the review, please contact Emilio Amanatidis here.
Football Competition Review: Steering Committee (Phase 2)
Chairperson
Carol Fox (President of Women Sport Australia)
FV Board
Hanife Ymer
Sezar Jakupi
Local Government Representative
Tamara Mason (Moreland City Council)
Regional Football Representatives
Peter Boyes (Women's Standing Committee Member, based in Gippsland)
Jo Plummer (Geelong Regional Football Committee Chair)
Holly Hays (Women's Standing Committee Member, based in Loddon Mallee)
Women's Football Representatives
Maria Berry (Women's Standing Committee Chair)
Ashlee Good (Women's Standing Committee)
Coaching Representatives
Julie Ryan (Coaches Standing Committee)
Aish Ravi (Coaches Standing Committee)
Junior Football Representatives
Arthur Kiousis (Women's Standing Committee; Junior Standing Committee; FV Member)
Susan Rushworth (Women's Standing Committee)
Referees Representative
Alexandra Mangion (Referees Standing Committee)
Professional Football Australia (PFA) Representative
Kate Gill (Former Matilda, Deputy CEO of PFA)
Football Federation Australia (FFA) Representatives
Sarah Walsh (GM - Women's Football)
Debbie Fisher (Girls Youth Development Manager; SAP)
School Sport Victoria
Lou Simopoulos (School Sport Victoria Football Committee)
Westfield W-League Technical Representative
Jeff Hopkins (Women's Head Coach - Melbourne Victory FC)
NPLW Club Administrator Representative
Gabrielle Giuliano (South Melbourne FC - Director Women's Football)
NPLW Coach Representative
Brian Roberts (NPLW 2018 peer-voted Coach of the Year)
ACHPER
Hilary Shelton (CEO of ACHPER Victoria)
Independent
Cassandra Heilbronn (Lawyer at Minter Ellison)
FV Staff
Emilio Amantidis (Project Manager)
Helen Tyrikos (Women & Girls Program Development Manager)
Tessa Sernio (NPL Coordinator)
Annick Fokachak (Youth Development Manager - Girls)
David Zucchet (Community Competitions Manager)