William Buck extends long-running partnership with the VAFA
The partnership between the VAFA and professional services firm William Buck will now span at least a decade, with the pair signing a three-year extension – including ongoing Premier division naming rights.
Mid-tier accounting and advisory firm William Buck has extended its partnership with the Victorian Amateur Football Association, better known as the VAFA, until the end of 2025.
As part of the deal, William Buck will retain its status as naming rights sponsor for the men’s and women’s premier leagues for the current and following two seasons, with the top level competitions to also use William Buck-branded match-day Sherrins.
“We are extremely proud to announce the extension of this wonderful partnership with William Buck, which is based on our shared values of integrity and inclusion,” commented VAFA CEO Jason Reddick, himself a one-time accountant with PKF. “The longevity of this partnership has certainly cemented William Buck as the professional services firm synonymous with the VAFA brand, and we are thrilled to have their continued support.”
Founded in its earliest guise in 1892, the VAFA is Australia’s oldest and largest senior football league, with some 70 clubs currently fielding over 300 teams across the seven men’s and women’s divisions – the latter first established in 2017. Today, there are roughly 3,000 female players and more than 12,500 amateur footballers registered in total, who together compete in more than 2,600 home and away and finals matches across Melbourne every year.
In addition to retaining its naming rights sponsorship of the Premier men’s and women’s competitions and branded footballs featuring in those and the Premier B and C leagues, William Buck will also continue its naming association with future VAFA season launches, the VAFA’s flagship corporate event, and the Grand Final Lunch in September. It wasn’t specified if the firm would also continue to be associated with the annual VAFA awards night.
The new three-year partnership deal extends William Buck’s support of the league to a decade in total, including the canceled 2020 season. “William Buck is very pleased to continue the relationship with the VAFA as their Premium Partner,” said Victoria managing director Lindsay Holloway. “The partnership brings together two long standing institutions that share the same commitment to their local communities, which is creating a genuine positive impact.”
In addition to William Buck, the VAFA also has some in-house consulting expertise it can tap via the addition of two recently appointed board members; PwC leadership & partner development senior learning lead Sarah Delbosc, and former Deloitte mergers & acquisitions professional Oliver Gilbert, who was recently appointed head of strategy & insights at the Geelong Cats. The pair will help oversee the VAFA’s recently released four-year strategic plan.
