Westfield and FFA Extend Deal
Football Federation Australia (FFA) and Scentre Group, owner and operator of Westfield in Australia and New Zealand, have announced a two-year contract extension.
The deal will see Westfield continue as the naming rights partner of the Westfield Matildas, Westfield Young Matildas, and Westfield Junior Matildas, as well as the Westfield W-League, Australia’s women’s football competition.
The deal will continue until atleast 2021 after Westfield joined the FFA as a partner in 2008 and have continued to support the growth of women’s football in Australia during that time.
FFA chief executive officer, David Gallop AM, said he is excited for the partnership to continue as it is mutually beneficial for both parties.
“FFA has enjoyed a long and positive relationship with Westfield,” Mr Gallop said.
“The Westfield brand is synonymous with the Westfield W-League having been the naming rights partner of the competition for all eleven seasons of the competition.
“Westfield’s association with the Westfield Matildas also commenced in 2008 and in that time the team has gone from strength to strength.
“We have witnessed the Westfield Matildas rise from 14th in FIFA’s World Rankings in 2008 to a high of fourth in the world in December 2017, and currently the team are ranked sixth.
“With the FIFA Women’s World Cup in France this year and the Summer Olympics in Tokyo in 2020, we expect that the Westfield Matildas’ brand presence will only get stronger in the Australian and global sporting landscapes.
“We are very excited that Westfield will continue supporting women’s football in Australia and we look forward to working closely with everyone at Scentre Group as we seek to innovate and continue to grow the game in Australia,” he said.
Scentre Group CEO, Peter Allen, said he is very proud of being able to continue supporting the promotion and growth of women’s football in Australia.
“We are now in our 11th year of support for women’s football. Another way to think about this is that Sam Kerr was 14 years old when we started our relationship with the FFA,” Mr Allen said.
“We believe our naming right sponsorship symbolises our purpose as a business, creating extraordinary places, connecting and enriching communities.
“The sponsorship connects our communities with the sport they love through memorable player experiences in our living centres and exclusive opportunities at Westfield Matildas matches.
“It also aligns with our customer base given women account for about 70 per cent of visitation across our portfolio.
“It also aligns with our employees and our focus on diversity and inclusion and supporting female leadership with women making up more than half of our total workforce and 41 per cent of all people managers.
“I would encourage other business leaders to get involved and foster the continued growth of women’s sport in this country,” he said.
The support the Scentre Group have shown to developing women’s football in Australia is something that is becoming somewhat of a trend in Australian sports sponsorship, with multiple organisations throwing support and financial backing behind women’s sport in general, including the Gold Industry Group committing $5 million to Netball WA last week in a blockbuster deal.
