What's more, last year Football Victoria (FV) estimated that in just 10 months their government policy platform unlocked $118 million in infrastructure funding.

“Based on participation growth we’re expecting over the next eight years and population growth, the facilities strategy went municipality to municipality,”  Filopoulos told FTBL in 2019.

“And based on growth predictions, we saw we’d be short 420 full-size pitches by 2026. So that really started a whole narrative with the government. They realized they had a problem here.

 

FOOTBALL VICTORIA'S INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING POLICY HAS BEEN A SUCCESS

 

"And we could support that with data such as 12,500 boys and girls missed out on an opportunity to play the game because facilities at clubs had reached saturation point."

The A-League must also take advantage of any available infrastructure funding by formulating a compelling national policy. 

CHECK OUT THE OFFICIAL A-LEAGUE SITE HERE

Additional infrastructure funding for training facilities may be required for those A-League clubs who share facilities with NPL clubs (for say, youth league, and W-League teams). 

And there will be a need for infrastructure funding for boutique A-League stadia upgrading or building from scratch, as the A-League looks for alternative venues during the busiest usages times of the year between March and November. 

 

 

Infrastructure funding in Victoria has been supercharged by an effective policy that's benefitting future A-League talent
 
FTBL’s story on May 11 (“Ultimate guide to winter A-League”) sparked healthy debate as it detailed the benefits of an A-League and W-League staged from March to November. 
 

PLUS...

Ultimate guide to a 'winter' A-League and why it'd work in 2021

About 30 years ago, football in Australia switched from a winter code to a summer one. But in those three decades since that major realignment, the landscape has changed dramatically. 

 

The winter idea has been warmly received, though it’s sparked a fierce debate with pundits, fans, and journalists on Twitter. 

Some say it won't have an impact on the A-League, others argue a change needs to be made. 

"We're very positive that this could be something very good for us to be able to really engage with grassroots in their season.

"It does allow us to really get going with the A-League, get going as a club and allow us to help build and grow participation numbers and connect with the grassroots,” Central Coast Mariners CEO Shaun Milekamp said this week.