Football Australia are proud to announce the latest additions to their Legacy ’23 Ambassador Program, naming Azmeena Hussain OAM and Narelda Jacobs in the Final XI.
In the lead up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023TM, the Legacy ’23 Ambassador Program will play a critical role in raising awareness and advocacy for the variety of important initiatives set out in Football Australia’s .
As trailblazers in their respective fields, Hussain and Jacobs, are true champions for gender equality and cultural inclusion, and will leverage their personal experiences overcoming diversity to inspire and empower the next generation of women and girls both on and off the field.
Azmeena Hussain OAM is a Director with Football Victoria and social justice advocate who is passionate about empowering young women and girls both on and off the field. She has a strong dedication to taking a stand for greater equality and diversity in sport and has an inspiring journey on becoming the first Muslim woman to become a partner at her law firm.
Hussain says: “Our commitment to 50:50 gender equality by 2027 is an important one. But we also need to ensure that women from all walks of life are captured. Intersectionality is about embracing those different attributes of women, whether it be their sexual orientation, their age, their culture, their religion, or their abilities. We need to ensure that we tackle the issue of discrimination to remove barriers of participation for women.”
Network 10’s Narelda Jacobs is an Indigenous rights advocate and a member of Football Australia’s ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Indigenous Advisory Group. After more than 20 years at Network 10 as a newsreader and presenter, Narelda is passionate about joining the national conversation for change.
Of her ambassadorship, Jacobs said: “Legacy ’23 provides a unique opportunity to shift the psyche of Australians and the world when it comes to women in sport. Through my role as an ambassador for Legacy ’23, I would like to see more participation in football amongst First Nations people, women and gender fluid people in Australia, not just on the field but off the field in roles like administration, leadership and commentary.”
Football Australia Chief Executive Officer, James Johnson, said of the new appointments: “An integral part of our Legacy ’23 Plan is increasing diverse participation in our sport and creating a supportive and inclusive environment for our community from the grassroots level, through to all our professional leagues. We know that Azmeena and Narelda will be incredible advocates in empowering future generations of women and girls to play, support and enjoy football.”
Previously announced include:
- Julie Dolan AM, #1 Matilda
- Kate Jenkins, Australia’s Sex Discrimination Commissioner
- Awer Mabil, Socceroo
Julie Dolan AM is a trailblazer in women’s football, becoming Australia’s inaugural Matildas captain at just sixteen years of age. Across her 14-year career, she played 34 matches for Australia including 18 full internationals. Julie hopes that through Legacy ’23, more women and girls can feel empowered to take to the park at the grassroots level and we can inspire the next generation of CommBank Matildas.
Kate Jenkins has been a key advocate for change and the advancement of gender equality and anti-discrimination since taking on the role of Australia’s Sex Discrimination Commissioner in 2016. As part of her appointment as a Legacy ’23 Ambassador, Jenkins will advocate ensuring women have equal opportunity to succeed in professional sports but more importantly as leaders in our communities.
Awer Mabil is one of the Socceroo’s leading wingers after he made his debut in the national side in 2018. His passion for football started as a young boy, growing up with his parents in a Kenyan refugee camp. After settling in Australia, Mabil utilised his natural ability to secure a contract with Adelaide United and become one of the club’s youngest debutants at the age of seventeen.
The Legacy ’23 Plan, developed by Football Australia, will ensure Australia can realise the long-term benefits of hosting this prestigious global sporting event can have on every community across the country. From economic, social, physical, and mental health benefits to its promotion of social cohesion and multicultural inclusion, Legacy ’23 will introduce new and expand existing programs to ensure the future of football in Australia is stronger than ever before.
The programs will aim to increase participation, improve community facilities, optimise high-performance offerings, drive leadership and development of the sport as well as encourage local and international tourism as Australia and New Zealand recover from the global pandemic.
As the world’s biggest women’s sporting event and the first to be hosted in the Southern hemisphere, it is expected that over a billion people across the world will tune in to watch the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023TM.
