In 2019, Football Australia witnessed continued growth in grassroots participation with over 543,000 players registering for outdoor organised football and over 63,000 playing futsal. Overall total participation reached a record two million participants.
COVID-19-related disruptions in 2020, however, caused many organised football activities to go on hiatus, and a continued safety concern for participants and families contributed to a 13% drop in outdoor players and a 37% decrease in futsal players.
Today, however, the football body is reaping the rewards after it set up strategies to ensure national-level community programme participants were continually engaged in online football activities during the required “stay at home” periods.
Examples of key initiatives implemented throughout the pandemic included:
- Maintaining physical literacy through online football activities to be completed at home
- Continued engagement of coaches, through course structure pivoting towards online delivery
- Utilising the strength of social media and Australian national teams with participant skills challenges and content involving their favourite team stars
In 2021, Football Australia and its nine member federations and associations focused on ensuring participants were comfortable ‘returning’ to play. This involved a return to pre-COVID activity under COVID-19 safety protocols. At the conclusion of the 2021 season, outdoor participation registrations exceeded pre-pandemic levels with a 1% increase.
The return to pre-COVID participation numbers shows that many football participants were undeterred by the pandemic and that the sport remained an important, and popular, part of many Australians lives.
Football Australia continues to invest significantly in community grassroots football. A new club development unit will be tasked with a target of having over 1,000 clubs on the digital platform by the end of 2023, with an emphasis on improving club environments for Women’s and Girls translating in a 10% participation rate increase for females. This aligns with Football Australia’s vision for a 50/50 participant gender balance by 2027.
Two of Football Australia’s national community programmes are also witnessing sustained growth. The Sporting Schools initiative now delivers over 1,800 football sessions in Australian schools each term while the MiniRoos Kick-Off programme experienced an 18% increase in participation since the pandemic.