From the early colonisation of the Victorian Gold rush, mostly British migrants or students participated in a variety of ball games similar to British Association rules (soccer), rugby or the Australia game for recreation from late 1800s to the early 1900s. [1]
British migrants employed at the emerging industries took part in formal games in Geelong from at least 1914 when the Geelong City club was formed. World War 1 interrupted the establishment of the game in the region. [2]
A huge influx of the British migrants after World War 1 and the burgeoning industrial sector in Geelong aided the creation of the Geelong and District Soccer League in 1926. [2]
The 1930s saw the economic depression curtail recreational sport as jobs and employment take precedent. [2]
After World War 2 the arrival of European migrants from western Europe (Britain and the Netherlands), then later from eastern Europe transform football in the Geelong region. The emergence of ethic football clubs in the new multicultural society drive the game through the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.
In the early 2000s, strong population growth and growing football participation and the mainstream acceptance of the game establish a new dynamic of football in the region. Four new clubs emerge in the Bellarine Peninsula or southern region of Geelong from 2000 to 2009.
Football Geelong Region is the governing body for the game in the region, run by the Geelong Regional Football Committee (GRFC) and Football Victoria.
The timeline of association football (soccer) in the Geelong region of Australia.
1884
1914
1920
1923
1924
1926
1927
1929
1930/31
1934
1949/50
1952
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1963
1964
1964 and 1965
1965
1967
1975
1977
1978
1981
1983/1984
1986
1987
1989/90/91
1992
1996
1999
2001
2004
2008
2009
2011
2012
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2021
2022
2023
2024
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