Football NSW launches 2018 facilities audit

Local clubs and communities across NSW are about to benefit from the most comprehensive analysis of football facilities and pitches to support the ongoing growth in demand for the game.

A collaborative venture between Football NSW, Northern NSW Football and Capital Football, the 2018 Football Facilities Audit is designed to establish what facilities the sport currently utilises and in turn identify the needs of the game going forward.

The Audit will capture the most up to date set of facilities data from 1,200 distinct venues and an estimated 1,600 pitches.

In terms of the national landscape, the 2018 Football Facilities Audit will be the starting point for developing strategic facility investment in each State and Territory for Football Federation Australia. The last such audit was conducted in 2010 as part of Australia’s FIFA World Cup Bid.

The 2018 Football Facilities Audit will be the catalyst for Football NSW to help sustain the current trends and support the increase in participation. Improving the quality of a playing field, providing floodlights that allow night games and additional training, and change room facilities that cater for both men and women are important steps in improving the overall player experience in safe and conducive environments.

Introducing the Audit, Football NSW Chief Executive Stuart Hodge stated “the 2018 Football Facilities Audit will provide important insight into current and future trends as well as facility needs to help guide the development of our ongoing strategies moving forward.

“Further, it will assist us in lobbying governments to ensure that our facilities are adequately developed considering that football remains the largest participation and number one sport in Australia.

“Football is the most popular sport in NSW with over 400,000 registered participants, with a player base 22% larger than all other football codes combined. Many of our facilities are inadequate especially when it comes to meeting the needs of female players which is concerning given that this aspect of our game continues to grow with more than a quarter of registered players being female.”

The 2018 Football Facilities Audit will be completed through a specially designed software system that will allow the sport to capture data utilising the latest in mobile technology.

Football NSW’s Facilities & Advocacy Unit will be working closely with Associations, Clubs, Local Councils and schools to collect the necessary information to complete the auditing process.

The 2018 Football Facilities Audit will commence early April 2018 and is expected to take five months to complete with preliminary results due in September 2018.

Click here for further information regarding the 2018 Football Facilities Audit.

Images: Football NSW's state-of-the-art facilities at its headquarters in Western Sydney (top) and penalty shoot-out action at Manly United FC's Cromer Park (below). 

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