In a big win for the Illawarra football community, Wollongong will be one of the venues to host the 2023 National Youth Championships.
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WIN Stadium in Wollongong and John Crehan Park in Cringila will be the venues for the Under 14 and 16 Girls championships running October 9-13.
Taking place over 12 days in October, the Under 15 and 16 Boys (October 2-6) portion of the championships will be held at the home of Football NSW, Valentine Sports Park at Glenwood.
The National Youth Championships are the flagship youth event in the Australian football calendar, with teams from Football Australia's nine state and territory member federations competing not only to claim the coveted national title, but to impress attending national team technical staff.
The National Youth Championship has long been an integral part of the Football Australia's talent identification program, proving an important stepping-stone for many current Matildas and Socceroos.
Destination Wollongong general manager, Mark Sleigh welcomed Wollongong's participation in the prestigious tournament.
"As a proud football region, we're delighted to host the Youth National Championships. Not only is it a great event for junior pathways, it will deliver a strong economic boost to the city and we're able to show off our great outdoors, the diverse range of hospitality options in the city and our stunning stadium by the ocean," he said.
Northern NSW Football has successfully run the championships in Coffs Harbour for the past 16 years.
Football Australia chief executive officer James Johnson acknowledged the contribution of Northern New South Wales Football ahead of the tournament's move to Wollongong and wider-Sydney.
"The National Youth Championships have been a huge success over more than a decade thanks to the work of Northern NSW Football, Coffs Harbour City Council and our NSW Government partners - the event leaves a lasting legacy on the mid-north coast region of NSW," Johnson said.
"We're delighted to now give the opportunity to another region to host one of Football Australia's most important youth talent identification tournaments.
"Many current Subway Socceroos and CommBank Matildas have participated in the National Youth Championships, highlighting its importance as a national team pathways event for boys and girls."
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Agron Latifi
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
