About the Competition

Total Girl Soccer Tournament

Overview of the tournament

1. The Total Girl Tournament is based in Ballarat, Victoria and is organised by an organising committee in Ballarat and is sanctioned by the Ballarat and District Soccer Association and Football Federation Victoria.
 

2. The first Total Girl Tournament was held in March 2005 and has since become an annual event. With help from its sponsor, Total Girl Magazine, who have provided extensive support in marketing and promotion, parents and friends of girls’ football were able to put together a plan for an all girl tournament.

The main barrier that had to be overcome was people believing that not only would the tournament eventuate but that it would also be successful. Even though no tournament such as this had ever been held before, there were many teams which expressed interest in the first Total Girl Tournament but never showed. Most of these teams said they would consider entering the following year. They had a lack in confidence in the event and decided to wait and see how the  first event went. Once these teams heard what a great success the tournament was, they were very eager to sign up immediately for the following year, which led to the tournament doubling in size in the 2nd year.

In 2005, 380 girls participated in the tournament and in 2006, 800 girls participated. In 2007 more than 1,200 participants were involved in the tournament.

The grading of teams is done to make sure there is a balanced competition and to ensure further participation throughout the year.


3. The Total Girl Tournament is based on two main principals; to be a first class football tournament and to be fun.

There is a tournament expo/market, tournament show bags, player appearances by heroes such as the Matildas and Melbourne Victory players and ongoing activities over the weekend which means the girls and their families have an experience they will never forget. The tournament site is themed with pink goals and footballs and the girls are encouraged to dress colorfully and celebrate just being girls and having fun.

The entire Ballarat football community and the community in general are engaged in the successful staging of the tournament. The Total Girl Tournament is the only all girls tournament in Australia open to players of all skill levels.

This tournament has enabled players of all abilities to participate in sport in a fun and non threatening environment thus encouraging the girls to continue to participate in  future sporting activities.


4. The Total Girl Tournament organisers operate very much as a cooperative. They are a group of interested parents and friends of girls’ football who want to provide the best experiences and opportunities for girls. There is a coordinator and an administrator heading up a committee who are each allocated an area of responsibility such as operations, finance, sponsorship, marketing, rules and draw, entertainment and catering.

At past Total Girl tournaments there have been around 20 volunteers. During the tournament the volunteers receive free food and drink and also get a free  tournament T-Shirt. A limited number of Ballarat University students assist as part of their community work assessment.


5. The objective of the tournament is to give the best football experience for girls which in turn would increase participation by girls in football. The Total Girl Tournament is scheduled pre-season so teams can use the tournament as a recruiting tool. Over the past two years, the Tournament has been achieved all outcomes and strengthened relationships throughout the Community


6. In the Ballarat region figures have gone from 130 girls participating in the Total Girl Tournament in 2005 to 300 in 2006. This number will increase to 400 in 2007. This has had a flow on effect to participation rates locally which enabled the Association to start a 10 team junior girls’ competition in 2006. 

The feedback received from teams all around Victoria is that one factor motivating  girls  to re-join teams at the commencement of the season is the desire to attend the  Total Girl Tournament. The outcome has thus been an outstanding success. Another  motivation for putting on an event the size of Total Girl is the benefits to the local community, particularly tourism.


7. In 2005, 2,000 people in total attended the event. This rose to over 3,000 in 2006 and 4,000 people attended in 2007. Figures show 1/3 of these are local, 1/3 are from Melbourne and 1/3 are from Country Victoria. So with approximately 2/3 of those attending having to travel to Ballarat to stay for the weekend there is a significant impact on the local economy.

Total Girl Magazine are the major sponsor and provide extensive support in marketing and promotion as well as providing the very popular tournament show bags to all participants.


8. The City of Ballarat has been a major sponsor and provides both financial assistance and in-kind support through Council staff and resources.

 
9. The organisers of the Total Girl Tournament really put an emphasis on girls coming along to have fun. The tournament encourages girls to realise they can still be feminine whilst playing a male dominated sport.