AFFI – Dev Platform

Female Football

initiative

Our Mission

We strive to offer females of all backgrounds a positive and safe space to develop as footballers but also as people focusing on:

Skill - High quality coaching sessions

Physical - Science backed strength and conditioning

Mental - Mental health education

Our Story

The Female Football Initiative was born out of a coffee table conversation between friends who have worked/volunteered in local football communities. We wanted to create something different, something that wasn’t political nor club based. We were mindful of families not needing to be wealthy and purely had the best interests of young aspiring female football players at heart.

We had no other agenda than to provide the best quality coaching and training sessions in a positive and safe environment as well as providing mental health education. Furthermore we want to provide a pathway for young aspiring female footballers to pursue their goals of becoming professional footballers.

What Are We Doing?

We are running a female only football training program free of charge to participants to bridge the gap of inequality and opportunity that currently exists between female and male football players.

The sessions will be run weekly during school terms on a weeknight. During each term, an allied health professional or young athlete will be invited to speak about their story with a mental health focus.

Why We're Doing It

The opportunity for female players to receive quality football coaching is minimal in Northern Tasmania. The opportunities that are available can cost a substantial amount of money to participate in. This scenario, excludes many, especially those living in the Northern part of Tasmania where 1/3 of Launceston residents live.

Based on Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas data (SEIFA), all suburbs rank below Australia's average for socio economic disadvantage. As well as this, the Northern Suburbs have the highest percentage of residents with an ancestry of Chinese, other Indian subcontinent, and Nepalese compared to the City of Launceston.

Exercise and Mental Health

Participation in sports such as football provide many benefits for individuals' health and well being, however those that take part can be exposed to additional risk factors that may impact upon their mental health and self-esteem. Coaches and other members within the care network of the footballer are in a unique position to support or detect mental health issues, and intervene to provide pathways of assistance through difficult stages of the person’s life, (Chang C, Putukian M, Aerni G et al British Journal of Sports Medicine 2020).

The Female Football Initiative sees the mental health of its participants as vital to their overall health and success, not only as footballers but as a person in the community as we understand the debilitating effects in the short and long terms of depression, anxiety, disordered eating, PTSD and bipolar affective disorder can have on an individual.

Our aim by providing educational workshops and other health initiatives is to support our female participants to become more aware of their own mental health and others within their communities. Furthermore, we can provide them with networks they can use if they ever need them.