Venues soar as Summer Football scorches

Summer Football has continued to kick goals for the 2015 season with as many as seventeen new venues jumping on board Football NSW’s ever popular competition.

With player records set to be broken with current registrations over the 26,000 mark, the increase in venues has once again displayed the important role Summer Football plays in the development of the sport.

This has now brought the number of venues to 66 affiliated centres.

Providing an ideal platform of playing football all year round, this social version of the beautiful game has given participants the opportunity to keep fit throughout the summer months across all age groups.

The Structure

Summer Football competitions are conducted by Football NSW clubs and associations from September to March.

Keeping fit and playing the beautiful game all year round at the 66 affiliated venues across NSW provides a great experience for the whole family to enjoy with its flexible yet consistent model.

Players 6 to 11 years will love the discovery phase of football in a non-competitive atmosphere whilst players 12 years and above have the ability to show off their skills and compete in a fun and safe environment.

Along with the normal Summer Football Season, there is also a special Summer Football Champion of Champions component attached to it.

The Champion of Champions tournament is a celebration of the summer of football and the teams that have had success on the pitch in Summer Football Open Mens and Open Womens competitions.

Football NSW deliver this tournament at no additional cost to affiliated Summer Football competition operators or participating teams with the venue being Valentine Sports Park, the home of Football NSW.

The Statistics

Only two months into the season, records are set to be broken as this year’s Summer Football competitions is well on its way to becoming the biggest ever experienced  with over 26,000 players officially registering.

The gender split has shown that 73.9% are male and 26.1% are female while a further 74.8% have come across from outdoor football continuing their love for the game after their respective winter seasons have completed. It’s also been recorded that 25.2% of new players have come on board all of which have either taken up the sport for the first time or have rekindled their love affair for the beautiful game.

The Exposure

The interest in Football NSW’s Summer Football has increased ten-fold with Football NSW’s Game Development Manager Hayley Todd impressed with the rapid traction the sport has achieved.

“Summer Football has come through leaps and bounds and continues to impress the sporting community.

“The level of interest for the game has risen considerably and that’s thanks to the structure and the venue hosts who have done a tremendous job in facilitating these matches on a week to week basis.

“Along with an increase in venues and the fact that registrations are still on-going, the Summer Football 2015/2016 season is on course to breaking a number of records.”

Key learnings from 2014 were that the affiliation process was conducted more consistently and the information was provided to centres earlier. The marketing aspect of Summer Football was also at a new level as it was promoted more efficiently online and via social media.

An official Football NSW Play Summer Football video was created for the purpose of the new season and this has been well received.

The Facilities                                                                                

The major talking point has been the increase of venues in Summer Football as 66 affiliated venues have played host to a number of matches on a weekly basis.

The Northern Beaches especially have taken to the game immensely as Manly Warringah’s Summer Football centre at Cromer Park has had over 2000 players grace its artificial turf on a weekly basis.

Ash Road Sporting Complex, run by Southern Districts as well as APIA Leichhardt Tigers’ home of football, Lambert Park have also had a great turnout of players with over 1700 registered.

While outside Sydney, Shoalhaven District Football Association’s South Nowra Football Grounds has done a remarkable job with over 1800 players taking part.

On the topic of regional venues, it’s been confirmed that as many as 17 affiliated centres have been recorded for the current season with plans to increase this ever growing figure moving forward.

A number of high quality artificial synthetic turf venues such as Blacktown Football Park, Seymour Shaw, Northbridge Oval, Blackman Park, Cammeray Oval, David Phillips Oval and Sydney United Sports Centre continue to accommodate Summer Football. With a significant number of new synthetic fields currently being built or in the planning stage in NSW, the future for Summer Football looks extremely bright.

-Football NSW Media Release