Three years ago, the Women\u2019s World Cup promised a new dawn for football in Australia. Record crowds, unprecedented funding, and widespread media coverage signalled a turning point for the domestic game, offering a vision for what football could look like if women were its driving force.<\/p>\n
The hope was that this groundswell would be funnelled into the A-League Women<\/a>, accelerating it towards full-time professionalism and putting it back on par with the thriving women\u2019s leagues in Europe and North America.<\/p>\n But the opposite appears to be happening. Barely a month after hosting the Women\u2019s Asian Cup, the ALW is facing yet another crisis. Having lost one team in Western United<\/a> before the season began, the league may be about to lose another<\/a> in Canberra United, the country\u2019s only stand-alone professional women\u2019s club.<\/p>\n It has been a slow and painful few years for a once-great team. Founded in 2008 as part of the inaugural W-League, the three-time premiers and two-time champions have been responsible for the development of dozens of Matildas<\/a>, maintaining one of the highest average fan attendances, as well as hiring the most women coaches of any club in Australia\u2019s top-flight competitions. It was a glimpse into a future now being brought to life elsewhere in the world.<\/p>\n But as women\u2019s football has evolved and the funding required for ALW teams has increased, Capital Football \u2013 the last remaining member federation to run a professional side \u2013 has struggled to keep pace; their meagre resources stretched thin as they simultaneously try to support their grassroots of the game.<\/p>\n The result has been multiple seasons of uncertainty<\/a> for Canberra United, with players and staff signing on to single-season contracts, not knowing whether it will be their last. Indeed, the only reason Canberra has been able to field a team at all over the past two years is thanks to emergency injections of state government funds<\/a> combined with a community fundraising effort.<\/p>\n Home town hero Sasha Grove celebrates scoring for Canberra United during an A-League Women elimination final against Melbourne Victory at McKellar Park. Photograph: Mark Nolan\/Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cResolving the ownership situation as swiftly as possible is critical to giving players clarity over their futures,\u201d the Professional Footballers Australia chief executive, Beau Busch, says. \u201cMore broadly, football must move from a cycle of perpetual reaction to maximising its enormous potential, as set out in the PFA\u2019s vision, Ready For Takeoff.\u201d<\/p>\n Two years on from Capital Football first admitting that they can no longer run the team, exactly what has been happening behind the scenes to save the club? How much of a priority has this been for those who can do something about it? And how much longer can this uncertainty continue?<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re in meaningful conversations with multiple parties, which we are working hard to progress,\u201d the Australian Professional Leagues chief executive, Steve Rosich, says. \u201cOur focus is on securing a new, long-term owner for the club, and we will explore all other options with Capital Football and the ACT government over the coming weeks.<\/p>\n \u201cWe understand the urgency and that this is time-sensitive for players, partners and fans. We will provide a further update to the Canberra<\/a> United community as soon as an outcome is reached.\u201d<\/p>\n Canberra United face an uncertain future after losing an A-League Women elimination final against Melbourne Victory at McKellar Park. Photograph: Lukas Coch\/AAP<\/p>\n Guardian Australia understands there are two Australian-based investors currently circling Canberra United, who were redirected to the capital by the APL after losing the race to buy the Central Coast Mariners.<\/p>\n