During the winter break, a lot of conceptual work has happened in the Pinzgau and the first trend-setting projects have been put on track or are already being implemented. Since its inception in the 2011/12 season, the women’s team has enjoyed a very high status at FC Pinzgau Saalfelden and was the undisputed flagship in Salzburg in the early years. With the move of the home games, which take place immediately before or after the games of the fighting team, depending on the possibility, from the SK-Patz to the 1508 SaalfeldenArena, another important step has happened at the beginning of the current season. In spring 2023, a transmission via livestream is planned for all FCPS women’s games.
Strategically, the women’s team will play an even greater role in the overall organization of FC Pinzgau Saalfelden in the future. “In recent weeks, we have given quite a lot of thought to how we can take our club and the women’s team forward and raise it to the next level. Our goal is to gradually professionalize this area as well. We want to build something sustainable and install three women’s teams in the long term. Ideally, one team should play in the 2nd Bundesliga, one team should continue to be part of the Salzburg Women’s League, and an U16 team, which could then be incorporated into its own academy, should be created for young talent. We are aware that this will not happen overnight. But we face the challenge with conviction,” explains the board of FC Pinzgau Saalfelden.
That the goals can also be achieved in the future, the squad must increase in width for the first time, and that was also the first important internal task. “Our girls are doing really well and are very passionate about it, but the framework conditions are not always easy. The squad is small and we often have too few players in training and matches due to work and injuries. It’s hard to take a step forward. That’s why we want to bring in good quality players so that we can get the important stability and build a solid foundation. That way, the group can grow together and the young players can benefit,” reports women’s head coach Alois Innerhofer.
In the next few months, the FCPS women will have their first international exchange, which will run under the motto #ProjectAscend. With the experienced coach Sierra Cristiano, Alois Innerhofer and Angelika Amon Haas will get great support in training and match operations as well as in organization. But also on the players’ sector a lot has happened. With six collage players (Levandrea Williams, Gracie Armstrong, Makenna Gottschalk, Molly Myers, Erika Gonzales-Moreno and Amber Huff), who come from different US cities, the international exchange on a sporting and cultural level is started as a pilot project.
“It is very important to us that none of our domestic players will be displaced – we can promise that. Every player will have her place with us, and the structure will be rebuilt for this in the long term. We are convinced that our six newcomers will help us and that both the Austrian and the US players will benefit greatly from the exchange we are aiming for. Soccer is logically very important, but we are also pushing the cultural area – that is one of the core missions,” the FCPS board states in unison.