World Footy News

The Victorian Women’s Football League Executive and its clubs have voted to transfer the governance and maintenance of the league to AFL Victoria. The transfer will be competed by the 1st of November, 2013.

The vote is the culmination of more than a year of work between the VWFL, AFL Victoria and the Transitional Working Group. The TWG was formed in May 2012 to develop a future competition model for women’s clubs.

AFL Victoria’s General Manager, Grant Williams, said that the changes would be a positive step for women’s football in Victoria. He pointed to the current collaborative approach and the recent successes of the state team as an example of how the women’s game will further develop in Victoria. He also thanked the VWFL Executive for their input into making the vote happen.

As part of the transfer, the existing VWFL, which features a premiers and reserves metro league with two country leagues, will be restructured to form a true state level competition. Williams believes that this will help further develop the pathway for female football players in Victoria and enhance initiatives such as the AFL Victoria VWFL Academy.

VWFL President Naomi Hurst said that the new structure would be more efficient and effective for administering the women’s leagues in Victoria. She also said that the considerable expertise and resources of AFL Victoria would provide invaluable support and guidance in managing the development of the women’s game into the future.

Collaboration with state AFL organisations has been very successful for women’s football leagues in the Rugby League heartlands of New South Wales and Queensland, whilst the women’s leagues in the smaller states of ACT and Tasmania, both of which did well at the recent Women’s National Championships, would not exist without AFL support.