AAFC WELCOMES PROGRESS ON NATIONAL SECOND DIVISION

AAFC has welcomed the announcement today by Football Federation Australia (FFA) of progress made towards a National Second Division.

Earlier today, FFA released a discussion paper that confirmed there was consensus amongst football's stakeholders for a National Second Division. 

AAFC Chairman, Rabieh Krayem, said he was "absolutely delighted" that the discussion paper is now available.

​"When we released our own initial position paper in October 2017, there was a distinct lack of interest from many of the stakeholders and the general view was that this would never work.

"Yet here we are twenty months later, and we have consensus from the key stakeholders, as well as a determination to make it happen.

"As we said at the time, a national second division is good for football, as it helps increase the talent pool and helps give more players more opportunities to play. 

“The professional footprint needs to grow, and providing a pathway for Australian players is vital to enable national teams of the future to be successful."

FFA Chairman, Chris Nikou, said that the purpose of the discussion paper is "to provide a well-researched way forward".

A steering committee will now be charged with acting on the recommendations in the discussion paper and with providing a report to the FFA Board later this year for implementation of a National Second Division in 2021-22. 

AAFC's representatives on the steering committee will be Krayem from Queensland and Legal Advisor, Nick Galatas of Victoria.

AAFC's annual general meeting in Melbourne on 27 July will include a briefing on the National Second Division and attendance by FFA Board Member and Steering Committee chairman, Remo Nogarotto.

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