International guests are from Argentina, Canada, Denmark, England, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Nigeria, Scotland, USA
Authors, journalists, broadcasters, and commentators from eleven
countries form the international line-up for the 2023 Football Writers’ Festival which will take
place at Tar-Ra/Walsh Bay in Sydney from 15th to 17th July, days ahead of the opening match
in Australia of the Women’s World Cup.
The international guests include three former players:
* Thomas Hitzlsperger is a 52-game German international who played for Stuttgart
and Aston Villa (amongst others) who was until recently chief executive of Stuttgart.
He is now a football commentator for German TV and a Diversity Ambassador for the
German FA, as well as the co-founder of Future4Nepal, the football charity partner of
the Football Writers’ Festival.
* Ciara McCormack of Canada played eight games for Ireland, and who had a
professional career in Denmark, Norway, and Australia. Her whistle-blower testimony
was critical in legal investigations into how a professional club and national federation
responded to allegations of sexual abuse by high profile coaches.
* Clare Shine is a 27-year-old described by commentators as “a prodigious underage
talent” for Ireland who is no longer a professional player. She has written a book
about her struggles with alcohol and drug addiction entitled “Scoring Goals in the Dark”.
They are joined by some of the most prominent football journalists and authors from around
the world including Philippe Auclair (France Football and Josimar), Faye Carruthers
(talkSPORT and more), James Corbett (Off the Pitch), Nick Harris (Mail on Sunday), Tariq
Panja (New York Times), ), Laura Williamson (The Athletic), and high profile freelancers
such as Marcela Mora y Araujo of Argentina – one of the few people alive to have
interviewed Alfredo Di Stéfano, Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi – Osasu Obayiuwana of
Nigeria, and Jens Weinreich of Germany who is one of foremost sports investigative
journalists in the world.
Also attending from Denmark is Jens Sejer Andersen of Play the Game, a journalist and
prominent sports governance expert and adviser to the Council of Europe and UNESCO.
Completing the international guest list are author and former football executive Sally
Freedman whose book “Get Your Tits Out for the Lads” is being launched in July, multi-platform journalist Annesha Ghosh from India, and Australian expat journalist and author
Matthew Hall who predominantly writes for The Guardian.
Nick Harris will anchor one of the highlights of the festival via a Geoffrey Robertson style
‘Hypothetical’ that canvasses issues around the future of football and clubs in an evening
session at Wharf 2 of the Sydney Theatre Company entitled What matters in football in the
21 st century?
With the festival program built around five themes, early bird ticket packages have also been
released with 25% of all ticket sales to be shared equally between the festival’s two charity
partners, the Literacy for Life Foundation and Future4Nepal.
The early bird packages are for the entire three days of the festival as well as the
Hypothetical, with individual day tickets to be available at the end of March.
The themes are:
* Hear Us Roar! – a look at women’s football and the role of women in football
* First Nations Football – curated by Emeritus Professor John Maynard
* That’s A Fact – for stats and data nerds
* Big Ideas – from governance to human rights to a ‘better World Cup’, what can
football do?
* Everyone has a Story – we hear from those with their own story as well as the
growing genre of football fiction writers.
As with previous editions of the Football Writers Festival, panels and sessions will feature in-
depth analyses and debate on the biggest issues affecting football at grassroots, club,
national and international level, as well as some more light-hearted sessions accessible for
even the most casual observer of the game.
Looking to uncover new female talent of tomorrow off the field, the Football Writers Festival
will also feature winning entries and authors selected from the Emerging Women Writers
program that was launched last year. The Emerging Women Writers program is a global
initiative to find and nurture future female football authors and journalists and is supported by
sports performance lab, eo.
The Australian guest authors and writers who will be joining the international line-up will be
announced next month.
Information on ticket packages and the international speakers can be found at
www.footballwritersfestival.org.au.
* Biographical Notes on the international speakers are attached. Ticket packages are
set out below.
www.footballwritersfestival.org.au
* Further information including interviews with speakers: Contact Bonita Mersiades,
0416 071 000, Festival Founder & Curator
Early Bird Ticket Packages
* Early Bird ticket packages are available until midnight AEDT 17 th March 2023
* The Festival Friend package is only on offer until midnight AEDT 17 th March 2023
* 25% of all ticket sales will be shared equally and donated to the festival’s charity
partners, the Literacy for Life Foundation and Future4Nepal.
* Tickets are available only at www.footballwritersfestival.com.au
Attend all
3 days
Happy
Hour &
Hypotheti
cal
Books #FWF23
baseball
cap
Curry &
Trivia
3-day pass $75 ✔️
Festival Night Owl $49 ✔️
Festival Fan $110 ✔️ ✔️
Festival Friend $199 ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Football Literary
Curry & Trivia
$55 ✔️
About the Football Writers Festival
Writers’ festivals are much more than a gathering of writers and book lovers; they bring
together people who share common passions and who have ideas to discuss about them.
Now in its fourth year, the Football Writers Festival is more than football, and more than
writing and reading. It helps put the ‘game of opinions’ into action in a fun, relaxed and
stimulating environment with other people who know and love football.
The Football Writers Festival is an initiative of Fair Play Publishing with the support of the
Johnny Warren Football Foundation.
We aim to bring together a melting pot of writers, readers, thinkers, and dreamers in a
Festival that encourages and inspires meaningful and respectful debate and discussion.
For more information visit www.footballwritersfestival.org.au
www.footballwritersfestival.org.au
Facebook: @footballwritersfestival
Instagram: @footballwritersfestival
Twitter: @FbalWritersFest
2023 Football Writers’ Festival venues
Day Sessions Happy Hour & Hypothetical hosted by Nick Harris
View by Sydney The Atrium & Wharf 2 Theatre
13 Hickson Road 15 Hickson Road
Tar-Ra / Walsh Bay Tar-Ra / Walsh Bay
Football Literary Curry & Trivia
Manjits Wharf Restaurant
49 Lime Street
Barangaroo
