Community football grounds in NSW to benefit from FIFA Women's World Cup legacy

The success of the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 continues to leave a legacy for football in NSW following the awarding of more than $3.2 million in the NSW Football Legacy Fund.

More than 90 community football projects received funding for new facilities and participation initiatives that will benefit all levels of the game.

The funding is part of the NSW Government's $10 million NSW Football Legacy Program that is supporting the construction of new and upgraded facilities, participation initiatives, high performance, leadership and development programs as well as tourism and international engagement as a direct result of NSW hosting games at the tournament.

The NSW Football Legacy Fund is a collaboration between the NSW Office of Sport Football Australia, Football NSW and Northern NSW Football with $6.3 million awarded for almost 200 projects across the 2 rounds of the fund.

The NSW Government also recently launched the Level the Playing Field program, delivering more than $30 million dollars to improve female sporting infrastructure across the state; the Football in Schools program, a $14.6 million program delivering a wide range of initiatives to get more students participating in sport and living healthier lives; and the Local Sports Grants providing $4.65 million to grassroots sporting clubs across the state.

Commenting on the funding, NSW Minister for Sport, Steve Kamper explained “the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 took women's sport in Australia to new levels.

"The NSW Government is committed to ensuring the momentum created by the Matildas success leaves a positive legacy for women and girls at all levels of football.”

Football NSW Chief Executive, John Tsatsimas stated "Football NSW is excited to see further football projects come to fruition thanks to the announcement of recipients of the 2nd round of the NSW Football Legacy Fund.

"The excitement from the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 is already evident with huge increases in registration numbers for summer football.

"The infrastructure projects will focus on improving player experiences and safety through facility upgrades including lighting and drainage and creating more modern and accessible amenities for local communities.

"The participation funding initiatives support the statement 'You can't be what you can't see', targeting female growth towards gender parity in all aspects of the game including players, coaches, referees, and leadership roles."

Northern NSW Football Chief Executive, Peter Haynes added “this funding will allow for new facilities and participation initiatives to be implemented, which will significantly improve the experience of women and girls within our game which is a big win within the northern NSW football community."