President's Foreword

It has been a year unlike any other in recent history.

The global effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have impacted on the population in almost every corner of the world.

Yet while we often consider our relative isolation to be a hinderance to the development of football in the region, in a time of global disruption without precedent, our geographical remoteness has largely been a blessing.

Our biggest challenge has been the cancellation or postponement of international competition. This has disrupted the World Cup qualifying programme for our senior men, while our youth competitions have also been adversely affected.

While government responses have differed across the region, the swift reaction of most, and the vigilance they have maintained to curb the spread of the virus via speedily implemented border restrictions, has meant that most nations have been able to return to relative normality quickly.

Being COVID-19 free, or without community transmission allowed football to swiftly restart across the majority of our 11 Member Associations.

The Confederation-wide strategy is to see two competitive teams at the 2026 men’s and 2027 women’s World Cups. Remaining focused on this objective has been at the forefront as we have redeveloped our approach to football development in this unfamiliar environment.

With the on-going support of FIFA, OFC has played a significant role in keeping Member Associations focused on the big picture, quickly adapting its processes to maintain support and engagement.

Courses building capacity, fitness workshops, coaching courses, and developmental activities have been adapted to suit the expanding online environment.

A key priority during my term as OFC President, is to assist our Member Associations to build their knowledge and skills. This will be paramount to the success of our 2026 strategy and I am delighted that we have been able to maintain this during these difficult times.

OFC continues to build the foundation for success across the region by setting the standard for good governance, accountability, and transparency, not only in its leadership but through its willingness to bring our Member Associations along with us. The newly launched OFC Development Programme has been designed to ensure that this is the case, providing the funding required to build the capacity across key areas of development, both on and away from the pitch. The Confederation holds a deep responsibility for its people and its communities. Ensuring we build their capability is key to our collective longterm success. In the short-term, that has meant guaranteeing those people and communities are still active when we exit the worst of the pandemic. The OFC Solidarity Fund, with support from FIFA Forward 2.0, is one way we have maintained a high level of assistance to those most in need.

I would like to congratulate Australia and New Zealand for the success of their As One bid to co-host the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023.

This is an incredibly exciting achievement for these two nations, but also for our wider Asia-Pacific region.

It will be a tournament of many firsts.

For Oceania, the additional half-spot is a first of particular interest. A second Oceania team has the opportunity, via the newly introduced qualifying tournament, to progress to the Women’s World Cup for the first time.

The OFC Women’s Football Strategy is currently being developed for launch in 2021 and we can see that across the region, our Member Associations are taking this opportunity seriously.

I wish to express, once again, my thanks to FIFA for its support in ensuring the COVID-19 Relief Plan and Solidarity Fund were both available to Oceania. We are incredibly grateful to FIFA President Gianni Infantino and his staff for ensuring the swift and safe return of football.

I also want to acknowledge the support we have received via UEFA Assist to develop and implement our E-Learning Platform and Education Programme.

I’d like to welcome Lord Ve’ehala as the third Vice-President of the OFC Executive Committee and thank the entire committee for its forward thinking and proactive decision-making throughout this challenging year.

Finally, I wish to end by thanking you all for your patience and for your continued support over the past 12 months. It has been a challenging year but your response and continued drive and passion to push Oceania football to new heights has been seen and is greatly appreciated.

We are on the right track to achieve our collective vision to have two teams qualify for both the FIFA World Cup 2026 and FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027.

GENERAL SECRETARY'S FOREWORD

The global COVID-19 pandemic forced OFC to work better, smarter, and more efficiently in 2020 in the pursuit of our ambitious goal to qualify two teams for both the FIFA World Cup 2026 and FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027.

It was a difficult time for staff, football, and our communities across the region as all competitions and face-to-face programmes were either suspended or postponed.

OFC shifted its focus to online learning and workshops through video conferencing tools and concentrated on supporting Member Associations to implement strong management and governance systems.

The OFC Development Programme was introduced, through the newly created Member Associations Services unit.

It aims to enhance Member Associations’ development by linking OFC expertise, capacity building programmes, and funding with Member Associations’ strategic focus in the areas of, governance, management, football, and national team development.

OFC used the opportunity of relative onfield inactivity presented by COVID-19 to delve into cross-confederation cooperation opportunities, working collaboratively with colleagues across the globe while sitting on both the FIFA COVID-19 Relief Taskforce and the FIFA International Match Protocol Working Group. This allowed OFC to ensure Oceania had a voice at the table, while also benefiting enormously from the collaboration and support gained from UEFA, CONCACAF, CAF, CONMEBOL and AFC.

In addition to focusing on Member Association development and capacity building, the Confederation pressed forward with its vision to help create competitive teams at regional and global events, supported by the introduction of three new corporate strategies in 2020:

I. The Social Responsibility

Strategy 2020 – 2023 II. The Commercial and Communications

Strategy 2020 – 2023 III. The Finance and Services

Strategy 2020 – 2023

The Member Association Services and Women’s Football Development Strategy will be introduced in 2021.

Building on the support it already delivers across football development and high performance, OFC put particular focus on capacity building and governance in 2020.

The E-Learning Project, supported by UEFA Assist, made progress and will provide a platform filled with educational opportunities backed by quality, expertise, and support. A consolidation of the Confederation’s corporate governance practices was undertaken in 2020 with each department introducing operation plans and Key Performance Indicator (KPIs) frameworks.

OFC alongside the Asian Football Confederation, Football Australia, and New Zealand Football, lobbied throughout 2020 to achieve a major success when New Zealand won the bid to co-host the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 alongside Australia.

OFC will continue to strengthen its support for gender equality across the Pacific through the support and promotion of women’s football, developing the game at grassroots and elite level, building the foundation for future female footballers and administrators across the region.

Welcoming the FIFA Women’s World Cup to our region offers a unique platform for OFC and the Pacific to leverage the biggest women’s sports event in the world.

Plans are already being made to put in place a Legacy Programme to ensure the reach of this event is region wide.

I would like to thank OFC’s partners, the New Zealand and Australian Governments, UEFA Assist, UEFA Foundation for Children, UNICEF and Football Australia, for the continued support and confidence shown to OFC during 2020. I am proud of all we have achieved as an organisation in 2020.

We would not have been successful without the full support, commitment, and hard work of the OFC staff.

The vision ahead for 2021 and beyond is clear; we will reassess and realign the football strategy to ensure we are competition-ready once borders are open and restrictions on movement are lifted.

We will continue to focus on the implementation of the OFC Development Programme and the needs of the OFC Member Associations, while looking forward to the launch of the OFC Women’s Football and Member Associations Services Strategies.

Franck Castillo General Secretary