Football Queensland clubs push back on governing body's fee changes

More than 100 clubs join forces against Football Queensland's planned 2027 fee changesTopic:SoccerPosted Wed 7 Oct 2026 at 6:07pmWed 7 Oct 2026 at 6:07pmTeams have requested Football Queensland pause its new Competition Access Fee, citing concerns over affordability for families. (ABC News: Lily Nothling)In short:Football Queensland and more than 100 of its member clubs are in disagreement over changes to 2020 player registration fees.Member clubs have written to the governing body expressing concern of the severity of increases in fees.A spokesperson for Football Queensland refuted claims fees have gone up, and noted the state has the lowest fees nationally.More than 100 Queensland football clubs have called on the state's governing body to be more transparent regarding major decisions about player registration fees.In a group statement, the clubs called on Football Queensland (FQ) to pause its new Competition Access Fee (CAF), saying an increase in fees could make the sport unaffordable for families.Football Queensland is disputing the clubs' claims that player fees have dramatically increased, adding it has the lowest fees in the country."FQ's illustrative modelling shows that, where a club passes the CAF through directly, the total paid by a participant is broadly comparable to 2026," a spokesperson from Football Queensland said.Wynnum Wolves Football Club president Rabieh Krayem penned a letter to Football Queensland petitioning against what he said was an unjustified increase in fees and expressing concern about the effect this could have on participation.Wynnum Wolves president Rabieh Krayem penned a letter to Football Queensland. (ABC News: Curtis Rodda)"The consequences for participation in 2027 may be significant," he said in the letter."Families—particularly those registering multiple players or managing cost-of-living pressures—may decide that football is no longer affordable."Queensland Premier David Crisafulli urged all sporting governing bodies to lower costs for families."We want to see more kids in sport and anything that administrations can do to follow suit and lower costs is something that we should be backing," he said.'Serious shock to clubs'Mr Krayem sent the letter on behalf of 71 football clubs."The scale of the increase introduced through the 2027 CAF model was therefore unexpected and has come as a serious shock to clubs across Queensland," he wrote.Mr Krayem applied Football Queensland's new fees to his club in Wynnum and determined charges from the governing body would increase by 64.6 per cent for 2027."An increase of this magnitude cannot reasonably be treated as routine without a detailed cost justification," he said."Clubs do not have the financial capacity to absorb an increase of this scale, and the additional FQ cost will therefore be passed on to players and parents through higher registration fees."In a statement, Football Queensland said the "inflation adjusted changes" within the CAF reflect less than a $10 per person increase.The governing body provided its own modelling that shows in 2026, a senior player would pay a total of $1,417.26 in total fees to play. For 2027, after all fees are consolidated into the new CAF, a senior player would be charged $1,415.88."We note that between 90 per cent and 97 per cent of fees paid by participants are received by clubs and not Football Queensland," the spokesperson said.The spokesperson added the new fee structure "will provide a reduction in administrative complexity and a significant lowering of administrative transaction volumes across the ecosystem".