THE AFL has announced recipients of ‘2023 Women & Girls Community Grants Program’ funded by the Australian Women’s Football Fund, launched this year to benefit women and girls’ community football across the country.

The program, which is open to community clubs, leagues, and associations, has been set up to fund projects and initiatives of up to $5,000 (leagues and associations) and $2,500 (clubs).

26 projects have been announced as funding recipients. Consideration was given to applications for projects in three focus areas:

• Creating safe and inclusive environments for women and girls
• Increasing participation for women and girls (on and off the field)
• Increasing participation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and girls, and women and girls from culturally diverse communities

The AFL established a panel to oversee and assess grant applications. The panel comprises Susan Alberti AC (Chair, Susan Alberti Medical Research Foundation), Nicole Livingstone OAM (AFL General Manager, Women’s Football), Debbie Lee (AFL National Women and Girls Action Plan Lead), and Liz Campbell (Social Policy and Inclusion Manager).

2023 recipients and the funding categories for their initiatives below:

NSW/ACT

Ballina Bombers Football Club  
Coaching and committees

Bermagui Football Club
Participation, environment, Indigenous

Bomaderry Junior Football Club
Participation, umpiring, coaching, committees

Orange Tigers Australian Rules Football Club
Participation and Indigenous

West Broken Hill Football Club
Participation, environment, Indigenous
_______________________________________________________________________________

NT

Jabiru Australian Rules Football Club
Participation, environment, Indigenous

Nightcliff Football Club
Participation and Indigenous

Rovers Football Club
Participation, environment, Indigenous
_______________________________________________________________________________

QLD

Bakers Creek Football Club
Participation and environment

Beenleigh Football Club
Participation, umpiring, coaching, committees

Carrara Football Club
Participation, environment, umpiring, coaching

Goondiwindi Football Club
Participation

Mt Gravat Football Club
Participation, umpiring, coaching

Redland-Victoria Point Football Club
Participation, environment, Indigenous
_______________________________________________________________________________ 

SA

Goodwood Saints Football Club
Participation, coaching

Limestone Coast Women's Football League
Umpiring

Payneham Norwood Union Football Club
Coaching
_______________________________________________________________________________ 

TAS

Channel Junior Football Club
Participation

East Launceston Junior Football Club
Participation, Indigenous

North Hobart Football Club
Committees
_______________________________________________________________________________ 

VIC

Heidelberg West Football Club
Environment

AFL Masters - Victorian Metropolitan Super Rules Football League
Participation

Western Region Football League
Umpiring
_______________________________________________________________________________ 

WA

Coolbinia Amateur Football Club
Participation

Kardinya Junior Football Club
Participation

Koongamia Football Club
Indigenous

Other notable developments helping to highlight the growth in women and girls football:

• The AFL enshrined an increased minimum level of annual funding in community football, which resulted in an immediate injection of $17m investment in the grassroots game in 2023 - a massive 35 per cent increase on the year prior.
• The AFL approved more than $5 million in new investment to fund phase one of the Women and Girls Action Plan for the next three years, designed to drive participation and representation for women and girls across all aspects of community football from playing to coaching, umpiring and administering.
• The action plan was developed to help achieve the aspirations in participation outlined in the Women’s Football Vision, which was released late in 2021 and has a stated objective that the game will strive for equal participation and representation by the end of this decade.
• There are now 57 female coaches helping shape the next generation of young footballers throughout the Coates Talent League this season, in a huge boost for the AFL's female pathway programs.