View from the Chair: Matildas chase Asian Cup glory, football's geopolitical crisis and last days to complete our Global Fan Survey

Welcome to March!

We are right in the thick of a massive month of football, highlighted by the Women’s Asian Cup taking centre stage on home soil.

Before diving into the football, on behalf of the FSAA Committee and our members, I want to send our best thoughts and well wishes to those within the wider Asian football community who are currently enduring some deeply troubling developments.

In particular, we have witnessed this through the Iranian women’s national team and the awful dilemma they face.

The Graham Arnold lead Iraqi men’s team are just days out from the World Cup qualification playoffs and have been stranded at home. Clearly, the region is beset with great insecurity and football is not immune.

On the pitch, the tournament has had many highlights. The Matildas have perhaps not had it their own way, albeit their grit and determination has seen them through to the final. Congratulations to the Matildas who will be chasing their 2nd Women's Asian Cup title.

We wish the players and the coaching staff all the very best for Saturday's final. We are sure you'll join the possible millions in pubs, clubs, and gathering around TVs across the country to support them.

While not the crowds of the 2023 Women’s World Cup, there have been some quite reasonable attendances – certainly significantly greater than any previous edition of this tournament.

We must ensure this tournament leaves a tangible legacy for the game in Australia. Our Deputy Chair, Blayne Treadgold, has penned a great opinion piece on this exact topic, which I highly encourage you to read.

While the Matildas are in the thick of things, our Socceroos are also looking to finalise their preparations over the next month with the upcoming FIFA Series to be held in Sydney and Melbourne.

Naturally, this leads us towards the 2026 World Cup. I want to reassure members that we are continuing to closely monitor the current safety and geopolitical and domestic safety situation, particularly in the United States and Mexico.

We are in regular contact with our overseas counterparts, and together, we are keeping a very close eye on developments to ensure travelling fans are protected and informed. Of course, we want to see as many Socceroos supporters in the stands as possible!

Domestically, the action is heating up across the board.

In the A-Leagues, we are rapidly moving towards the business end of the season as clubs jostle for position and the race for the title kicks into another gear.

Meanwhile, NPL competitions are well and truly underway in most regions of the country, and grassroots and junior competitions will start to fire up over the next couple of weeks.

Whoever you support, and at whichever level you follow the game, make sure you get out to your local grounds and back your clubs.

Internally at the FSAA, I am pleased to report that things are tracking very well. In addition to our current MOU with Professional Footballers Australia (PFA), we are making great strides in building formalised working relationships with various stakeholders and governing bodies.

This is a core part of our 'Unite' pillar—bringing all parties together to seek beneficial outcomes with supporters placed firmly at the front of the discussion. We will have more to share on this in the coming weeks.

A crucial part of this advocacy work is the FSAA Global Fan Survey, which will officially close for submissions at the end of this month.

The more responses we get, the clearer the picture we can paint of exactly how Australian football supporters take in their football.

This isn't just a poll; it provides us with valuable, independent data which can be taken directly into boardrooms to advocate for you. If you haven't completed it yet, please take a few minutes to have your say and share the link with your mates.

To ensure we remain transparent and focused, over the next month or so, we will be releasing our 2026/27 Strategic Plan. This document will help members keep up to date with our key objectives and timelines as we work towards our collective goals.

As always, we rely on FSAA members and the wider football community to help us spread the word.

Please continue to talk to your mates in the stands about the importance of signing up as an FSAA member so we can keep building our voice.

Thanks once again for your ongoing support.

Enjoy your football,

Patrick Clancy
Chair, FSAA