Grassroots central to FFA strategy
FFA?s vision is to make Australia a world-class football nation, including:
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Development of a football culture ingrained with unique Australian characteristics.
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Producing technically-gifted Australian players from an elite player pathway that?s the equal of the world?s best.
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Building a Hyundai A-League that rivals the best in Asia.
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Making football a sporting and social powerhouse in Australia.
To see this vision become a reality, FFA has a mission that will drive everything they do in the next four years.
The mission is to create value for the football community and to convert mass participation and interest into active support for the National Teams and the A-League.
“Our mission is all about conversion ? turning passion into engagement,? said FFA CEO Ben Buckley.
“We have 1.7 million participants in Australian football, as measured by the Australian Sports Commission and the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
“Since 2001, participation in outdoor football has roughly doubled and indoor football numbers have trebled.
“These numbers are our greatest strength and our biggest opportunity.
“When we say ‘We Are Football’ we are talking about a huge football family that spans social class, demographics, gender, ethnicity, language and state borders.
“We are cosmopolitan with a truly national footprint. The faces of football are the faces of Australia,” said Buckley.
With the vision stated and the mission set, FFA’s Strategic Plan includes four pillars:
1. National Teams excellence.
2. A sustainable and vibrant Hyundai A-League.
3. Greater connection with football?s grassroots.
4. Delivering a successful 2015 AFC Asian Cup that leaves a legacy benefit for our game.
With regard to connecting with football’s grassroots, FFA’s Strategic Plan includes the biggest online registration roll out ever seen in Australian sport.
MyFootballClub contains a national database that will for the first time in the game?s history bring everyone together and create value for all stakeholders. It?s provided free of charge to clubs and associations, and will deliver benefits to all tiers:
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For players ? being part of a virtual community with the benefits of our numbers: Socceroo ticket offers, discounts on playing equipment, information on coaching and healthy lifestyles.
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For clubs and associations ? lower IT costs and greater ability to organise and service players.
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For the professional tier (National Teams and A-League clubs) ? a real connection to the grassroots and an efficient and sophisticated way to communicate in this digital age.
The strategic plan target for the MyFootballClub database is to have half a million registrations by June 2012.
In the Strategic Plan period to 2015, FFA’s target is one million ? once they achieve this target Australian football will be in an unprecedented position to connect and convert their numbers.
“This project is the ‘game changer’ for Australian football. We are proud, we are passionate and we are on the move”, said Buckley.