TELSTRA FOOTY COUNTRY GRANTS

On September 14, 2023, it was announced that Telstra and the AFL are launching an initiative that will support community football clubs by establishing the Telstra Footy Country Fund that will provide $2M per year for four years to meet the needs of community footy clubs all across Australia.

Read more on the initiative’s announcement, here.

1. Grow and assist volunteer capacity;

• Undertaking short courses in electronic bookkeeping, governance, barista, RSA, food handling (75% of total cost up to $1,000)
• Improving club financial practices:
  • Electronic POS processes or accounting software such as xero (75% of total cost up to $1,500) 
• Items to ease the workload on volunteers (75% of total cost up to $2,000):
  • Line-markers (75% of total cost up to $2,000)
• Replace of manual score to an electronic scoreboard (50% of total cost up to $20,000)
• Items required to modify ovals for junior football or NINES competitions (75% of total cost up to $1,500)
• Moveable goal posts, cones to define boundaries, additional goal umpire flags.
• Items which improves the safety of the environment
• Goal post padding (75% of total cost up to $1,000)
• Defibrillators (75% of total cost up to $1,500)
• Behind the goal netting where there is a demonstrated safety concern, i.e balls escape onto a busy main road or down a steep embankment (50% of total cost up to $20,000)
• Other initiatives approved by State AFL body

2. Grow and diversify participation;

• Start-up costs associated with the establishment of new or amalgamated clubs or new female teams in the age groups of 5-9 year olds (new team costs up to $2,000, new club costs up to $15,000)
• Subsidies to encourage increased participation of multicultural, Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, all abilities, or disadvantaged participants (up to $500 per player)
• Undertaking club cultural awareness training
  • Indigenous or Pride themed jumpers where a club demonstrates additional education/awareness is delivered, i.e a club delivers cultural awareness training to participants prior to an indigenous themed round (75% of total cost up to $2,000)
• Other initiatives approved by State AFL body

3. Improve environments and experiences;

• Initiatives, resources and or assets that promote and enhance child safety standards
• Short-term financial support to distressed clubs ie where a natural disaster may have impacted on the club’s ability to operate
• Other initiatives approved by State AFL body 

• Facilities improvements or acquisitions other than those associated with new electronic scoreboards and behind the goal netting.  

• Payments for services provided by coaches, trainers, administrators, 3rd party presenters, 3rd party club development providers. 
• Costs associated with catering, facilities improvements or acquisitions, advertising or room hire. 
• iPads, iPhones, Android devices, laptops and printers 
• Equipment for existing teams i.e new footballs, sports tape, water bottles, coaches vests etc 
• Costs for activities and/or programs currently offered by the club’s league, region, state body or the AFL. 

• Player payments or League competition fees. 
• Projects that require ongoing funding assistance or routine or cyclical maintenance works. 
• Retrospective funding for a project that commenced or has been completed more than three months ago. 

Applications for 2024 are now closed. All clubs will be emailed notified in due course information on the 2025 Telstra Footy Country Grants Program.

Applications up to $20k will be considered and assessed against the above strategic areas by the Grants Advisory Board. Clubs will be required to have the support from their relevant State AFL Body prior to the Advisory Board considering the application. Clubs will be limited to 1 application each unless approved by the State AFL Body.  

Where applications include goods or services from a supplier, applications must include official supplier quotes. 

For electronic scoreboards and behind the goal nets projects approval from the landowner should be provided through a letter of support as part of the application 

Successful applicants will be required to enter a Funding Agreement.

Club's upon signing the agreement will have 60 days to purchase their item/s and then invoice the AFL accordingly in order to receive the funding amount.

All Community Football Club’s affiliated to the AFL can apply.

Excluded are VFL, SANFL and WAFL clubs as well as umpiring groups.

Applications will open on Monday 5th February 2024. The following dates will represent a cut off for when applications are considered. For example, if you were to miss Round 1, you can still apply; however, the outcome of your application won't be known until after the Round 2 closure date.

• Round 1: Monday 5th February to 11:59pm (AEDT) Sunday 3rd March 2024
• Round 2: Monday 4th March to 3pm (AEST) Friday 19th April 2024
• Round 3: 3:01pm (AEST) Friday 19th April to 3pm (AEST) Thursday 13th June 2024
• Round 4: 3:01pm (AEST) Thursday 13th June to 5pm (AEST) Wednesday 7th August 2024

Application outcomes will be provided via email and you should expect to receive an update at:

• Round 1: Week of Monday 25th March 2024    
• Round 2: Week of Monday 20th May 2024      
• Round 3: Week of Monday 8th July 2024        
• Round 4: Week of Monday 2nd September 2024

Clubs are eligible for one successful application each year irrespective of category or item. For example applying for an alternate item/s is not acceptable. So be sure to select and apply for what is best for your club in that year.