National second division clubs sign-off on final report

Thirteen months after releasing the progress report into the establishment of a national second tier of football competition, and almost five years after getting the conversation going on the issue, the Association of Australian Football Clubs (AAFC) has released its final report – literally signed-off by 30 of its clubs - and submitted it to Football Australia. 
 
“Like everyone, we’ve had to work on this through the Covid pandemic, which compromised our ability to get things done as efficiently as we might have hoped, but nonetheless the Partner Group [of clubs] has worked together to get to this point,” AAFC Chairman, Nick Galatas said.
 
Galatas said that the Partner Group has considered feedback and assessed new material and information from numerous sources to develop the report.
 
“We believe this report will assist Football Australia in its introduction of the much-anticipated new national competition in 2023.
 
“Most gratifying and welcome have been the collaborative working relationship we have developed with James Johnson and his new administration at Football Australia. 
 
“Their input has proven invaluable to the Partner Group. 
 
“We now look forward to the imminent announcement by FA of its allocation of a dedicated resource focused on the development of this exciting project.
 
Galatas said that with the added resources FA is committing to establish the new national second tier, AAFC is confident it will prove to be the addition to the national football landscape that is desperately needed. He also said he is confident it will kick-off in 2023. 
 
The AAFC model provides for:

• A single national competition comprising 12-16 teams from the outset and reaching 16 teams as soon as possible;
• Commitment from all participating clubs to a women’s team and commencement of a women’s competition from 2026;
• Over 300 new elite playing and coaching positions;
• All participating clubs must have grounds that can accommodate a minimum of 3,000 fans;
• Teams to be included based on meeting stringent criteria as the basis for entry, followed by promotion and relegation from lower tiers. There are ten criteria to be met including in the areas of youth development, coaching standards, finance and facilities;
• A $200,000 participation fee from each club; 
• A requirement for participating clubs to have a comprehensive women’s programme in place as a pre-requisite for participation in the NSD;
• Alignment with the Domestic Match Calendar; and 
• Establishment of a Women’s Football, Marketing, and Youth and Coach Development Steering Committees.

 
“We look forward to working with FA, its new dedicated resource and all stakeholders in developing and introducing this exciting new competition which we are confident will be a success and the bridge we need to unify the game,” Galatas said.
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 A copy of the full report is available here.
The 30 clubs that have signed the report are below.