Football Australia recently launched ‘Game Changer,’ a program to support community football clubs across the country to create an effective and sustainable environment and Capital Football is proud to be able to implement this initiative in the region.
Introduced as part of Football Australia’s Legacy ’23 Program, and proudly supported by the Australian Government, through the Australian Sports Commission (ASC), Game Changer aims to protect and enhance affiliated clubs and make them stronger and more resilient.
The program will also lead clubs in building welcoming and inclusive cultures, and educate them on positive environments for players, coaches, volunteers, and officials while planning for long term viability and success.
Dylan Deep-Jones will join Capital Football as Club Development Manager, a position responsible for the management and operations of Football Australia’s ‘Game Changer’ National Club Development Program.
“Working in close collaboration with Football Australia and Capital Football, the Club Development Manager role will guide clubs through the Sport Australia platform ‘Game Changer,’ providing guidance and counsel on priority areas of club development,” Head of Participation and Game Development, Mark Barnes, commented.
“Dylan will strategically engage subject matter experts for club consultation and deploy a workforce within the community to aid program delivery and participation.
“The role will motivate and empower clubs to progress through the 3 Club Status’ within the program in order to continually implement upward change and showcase their initiatives and success.”
With a strong focus of increasing a club’s capacity building for Women & Girls, the Club Development Program will also reward and recognise a club’s efforts in action planning and improvement in areas of deficiency.
Game Changer comprises the completion of a series of tasks and modules, including modules through Game Plan (ASC’s free online platform), which relate to the themes of lead, empower, support, and celebrate
Topics covered will include:
- Women & Girls in Football
- Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
- Safeguarding
- Finance
- Governance
- Workforce
- Participation
- Diversified Partnerships
- Infrastructure
- Stakeholder Alignment
- Marketing & Communications
- Values and Behaviours
- Research & Insights
- Technology & Digital
- Strategy
- Roles & Responsibilities
As clubs complete these tasks and modules, they will obtain a Game Changer Star status, starting at one, moving to two, and upon completion of all tasks and modules, the respective club will graduate to a three-star status.
Upon progressing through the Star rankings, clubs can access recognition and rewards in the shape of funding, training courses, special appearances, experiences, discounts, unique football opportunities and much more.
“The Game Changer program will give clubs the knowledge and support to build, educate, recruit, retain and plan for long term success and viability,” Barnes revealed. “The Club Development Manager’s role is to support every club throughout the program and work with closely with each one to identify areas for improvement, growth, and sustainability.
“Clubs can expect a list of different resources within each module to help support an action plan and to provide an environmental check of where the club is currently. There are 15 different modules that clubs can access, with the estimated timeframe for each being approximately 10 minutes. We highly recommend clubs take advantage of this program.”
Dylan will reach out to clubs in early May and we’re excited to see where the program will take clubs in the near future.
To learn more about the program visit: https://www.footballaustralia.com.au/gamechanger
