00:01In both New Caledonia and Vanuatu,
00:03Infantino promoted the launch of the region's
00:06OFC Professional League,
00:08a vital component in the creation of a football economy.
00:14We also want to bring professional football
00:17in the Pacific, a Pacific League,
00:20of which one club has to be in Vanuatu,
00:24which gives, again, opportunities for the talented children
00:28of this country to shine.
00:30And then maybe, of course, they are good enough
00:34and become even better to be transferred
00:35to some of the top clubs in Europe.
00:40When I was elected,
00:44and one of the most important projects
00:47that I wanted to do during my mandate
00:50is to create this Professional League in Oceania.
00:54I think this is one of the most needed platform
00:57of competition that we need to prepare,
01:00you know, to be competitive in the international level.
01:04So this is where I think Oceania needs that platform.
01:08In 2019, the Oceania Football Confederation
01:12formed a task force to determine the viability
01:14of a professional football league for the Oceania region.
01:17The first attempt in 2021 was aborted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
01:24Then a second attempt was delayed to 2026.
01:28You know, the potential in Oceania is huge,
01:31but it's very little untapped,
01:34because we had no this level of competition in Oceania.
01:41This is why there is no much attention from the rest of the world
01:46that, you know, there are good players in Oceania.
01:49But we believe that with that competition,
01:53there will be more window showcase about our potential players,
01:59and there will be a chance that, you know,
02:01they can join other professional clubs in the rest of the world.
02:07So this is why my ambition.
02:13The region is the hardest in the world
02:15to establish a competition of this nature.
02:18The lack of existing infrastructure,
02:21the economies of scale,
02:22and the start-up costs mean long-term success
02:25will require a major financial partnership with FIFA
02:28and the governing body's commitment
02:30to riding out some early speed humps.
02:36I always dream for it is to create this Oceania Confederation
02:41become the last professional confederation
02:46among the six confederations.
02:49It is the only imagine,
02:51and we want changes to become professional.
02:53And with this professional league ambition,
03:00we want to also change the management,
03:02to become more professional.
03:04So these two have to go parallel.
03:06If you don't start to put professionalism in Oceania,
03:10there will always be some weaknesses
03:11in developing professional administration
03:14so that it can back up the professional league.
03:18So this is what I believe,
03:21is that the professional league is the main driver project
03:24for the whole Oceania.
03:29To further embed the OFC within FIFA,
03:32delegates from the region are now regular visitors
03:34to international gatherings,
03:36encouraged to return to their member associations
03:39and share examples of best practice from around the globe.
03:47It is important to be able to make comparisons,
03:50to be able to learn from other countries,
03:52cultures and organizations,
03:54to be able to improve,
03:57to see our differences at a technological level,
04:00to see what kind of technology we use,
04:03what is different,
04:04what we can improve,
04:07what we can do or not do.
04:11That's what is really interesting, in fact,
04:14is seeing the tools that everyone uses
04:17and seeing that if something works
04:19in someone else's situation,
04:21then why not try it for us?
04:30I think one of the key improvements that we've seen
04:34is the increase of women in leadership
04:36and I think it's a key area to work on.
04:41You know, in the past, you know,
04:42everybody knows football is a very male-dominated industry,
04:46so having women in decision-making really helps,
04:50you know, to balance the decision-making in that sense.
04:53So, and then it trickles down to, you know,
04:56women in football and women footballers.
04:59So, it helps us, you know,
05:01in a more holistic decision-making process.
05:03So, you know, if you take example of, you know,
05:06looking at other interests in terms of football.
05:08So, you know, we look at, say, a football player,
05:11you may be just looking at their contract,
05:13but then women think differently.
05:15They think about their personal life, their family,
05:18what keeps them happy.
05:19So, you know, it's kind of like bringing in everything together.
05:22So, you have men and women both sharing the decision-making,
05:25that I feel, you know, is a good progress forward.
05:29There is no question the OFC is a long way behind the rest of the world.
05:34But at the highest level of the game,
05:36the building blocks of progress are being laid.
05:40And with the amount of money circulating in football,
05:43some of which can go towards supporting the rise of the OFC,
05:47it is surely only a matter of time before this football-mad part of the world
05:52becomes another nursery for the next generation of superstars.
05:57of the United States.
05:57of the past in a first generation of superstars
05:57and human rights.
05:57of the United States.
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