Expansion Plans making Waves

March 30, 2018

Mark Anderson (Director) & Danny Maher (Chairman) announce United’s A-League & W-League intentions (22 March 2018)

Much debate and discussion in the national Media following the Club’s announcement of its intention to bid for a licence in both the Hyundai A-League and the Westfield W-League and yesterday’s announcement by Football Federation Australia for calls for Expressions of Interest for new licences under their expansion plans.

At Gold Coast United’s press conference held at the Bond Institute of Health & Sport, in the shadows of Cbus Stadium, Chairman Danny Maher confirmed that the Club’s Board had resolved to enact plans for an A-League and W-League bid as was outlined in 2017 when United were granted licences to return and compete in the National Premier Leagues Queensland competitions.

“We made a promise to bring back the A-League and get W-League for the Gold Coast and today we confirm that we intend delivering on that.”

Maher went on to add, “we have a professional setup already. We have facilities here ready to play in … we already have a sustainable A-League quality academy in place … a grassroots-driven model, which is independent of any individual club and represents the region.

“We have business backing, we have proven professionals … we are in a growth area of Queensland and Australia.”

With the Gold Coast about to bask in the Commonwealth Games sporting spotlight, Maher believes the timing was perfect to announce United’s bid. Shortly after the announcement the Chairman reiterated with the Daily Football Show that the time was right for the biggest Australian city outside of any of the State capitals to have both an A-League & W-League team.

https://player.whooshkaa.com/episode/?id=181313

Also resonating strongly from that interview is United’s commitment to Female Football, something that sets the Club apart from some of the other bid hopefuls.

“We don’t believe that a licence should be issued to any club that is not interested in pursuing both the Women’s and Men’s version of the game.

“It’s not just a Men’s sport. We will also bid for a W-League licence.”

United fields teams across all levels of the Queensland NPL competition – Men & Boys and Women & Girls – and is currently the highest performing club across the state in the 2^nd tier National Premier Leagues Queensland competition.

A clear distinction between this Gold Coast United and the previous A-League incarnation is the focus on being a grassroots driven Club.

Hot on the heels of the expansion announcement, United released details of additions to its Affiliate Club network, with three strong Northern Rivers Football Clubs joining the fold. Historically a fertile region for producing outstanding young footballers, this United is reaching out across the border to offer its nearest neighbors the same opportunities to participate at the elite level as their Coast cousins.

Affiliate net widened

With an ever expanding ‘Club Affiliate’ program underway, and a pending announcement about their growing ‘School Affiliate’ program in the wings, United are working hard to deliver a sustainable Football Club from the ground up for the benefit of the entire Gold Coast and Northern Rivers Football Communities, one that can support football at all levels well into the future.

To read more about the ‘splash’ the GCU announcement has made click on the logos below for links to stories about the Club’s expansion plans.