Gungahlin United Football Club’s collapse has reignited debate about sportsground fees and government support for football.
The club will be wound up after falling into debt and losing its National Premier League licence for 2026.
In a statement, the club confirmed that it would commence winding up under the Associations Incorporation Act, citing debts exceeding $200,000 and Capital Football’s decision not to renew its NPL licence as decisive factors.
The club said the financial crisis stemmed from “poor financial oversight” and “a failure to implement adequate governance controls” under its former leadership, which had “significantly overspent within the NPL Men’s program and operated without the necessary checks and balances to ensure financial and operational accountability”. When the president and executive committee were stood down, an interim executive was appointed earlier this month to stabilise operations and develop a recovery plan.
However, after Capital Football refused to issue new NPL licences, the interim committee said the club had “little or no alternative” but to cease operations.
“It is deeply saddening that the actions and mismanagement of a few individuals have now resulted in the displacement of over 2,000 players plus the coaches, volunteers, and families,” the statement said.
The club also hit out at “misinformation, speculation, and targeted commentary” circulating on social media, urging restraint and “respect, empathy, and understanding” for affected players and families.
Advocacy group Fund Football Fairly called the situation “a salutary tale” of underfunding and unfair treatment of the ACT’s largest participation sport.
According to newspaper reports, Gungahlin United’s total debts exceed $550,000, including $180,042 owed to the ACT Government in unpaid sportsground hire fees, $99,899 for this year’s soccer season. Fund Football Fairly said that the club had to pay the ACT Government more than $100,000 each year for ground hire fees.
“The inability to make this payment has effectively driven the club into bankruptcy,” Fund Football Fairly’s convenor Nicholas Houston said. “Many clubs in in Canberra are in the same position and must pay excessive fees to even exist.
“The ground hire fees represent an unfair tax on football, because you can bet your bottom dollar junior rugby league, AFL, and union pay barely anything like this amount for ground hire fee. It is football through our numbers subsiding the other codes once again.”
The group reiterated its call for a moratorium on ground hire fees, arguing that if one had been in place, “Gungahlin United would not have collapsed”.
In response, the ACT Government said the club’s decision to wind up was “upsetting and has left a significant gap in community sport”, but defended its approach to sportsground management.
“The ACT Government has and continues to work constructively with Gungahlin United Football Club where appropriate.
“The ACT Government values community sport and meets approximately 86 per cent of the cost for sportsgrounds maintenance. Hire fees are a modest contribution to the overall cost of upkeep.”
