The Football Ferns during a celebration after Hannah Wilkinson scores the opening goal of the FIFA Women's World Cup in 2023. Photo: Photosport.nz
Female footballers are set to reap the benefits of the $8.4 million windfall New Zealand Football has received for co-hosting the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.
New Zealand Football said it had set up a fund to develop the game for girls and women in Aotearoa.
The money in the FIFA Legacy Fund will be invested in a managed portfolio, ensuring sustainable support for girls' and women's football initiatives, NZF said in a statement.
The benefits would start coming on stream from next year onwards, it said.
"This is a substantial investment that helps the football system in New Zealand continue to grow the game for girls' and women for the foreseeable future," NZF chief executive Andrew Pragnell said.
"We have already seen fantastic growth for girls and women, with a 27 percent increase in participation from before the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 to now, but this is a long-term project where we want to continually be supporting the game, and this investment helps us continue to drive towards that."
The news came as NZF reported at its annual congress a net operating deficit of $4.22 million, slightly better than the $4.5m loss budgeted, and described as a planned shift from the $1.83m surplus in 2023.
The deficit came after a 17 percent drop in total revenue, due in part by the cyclical nature of football funding with the start of the men's World Cup cycle in 2024, as well as the increase in 2023 due to the Women's World Cup.
The congress adopted an acknowledgement from NZF of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tīreni (the Declaration of Independence) as the founding documents of Aotearoa New Zealand.
This involves a commitment from NZF to uphold the mana of the documents.
The congress confirmed NZF life membership to Barbara Cox, one of the first Football Ferns.
She has been a player, coach and administrator for six decades.
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