Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) is pleased to announce Matildas and Melbourne Victory midfielder Alex Chidiac as the recipient of the prestigious Beyond Bank Community Medal for 2024.
The Beyond Bank Community Medal recognises the contribution of a PFA member to the community, their commitment to a charitable cause, and impact off the field.
Chidiac works with several community and charitable organisations including Common Goal, the Big Issue Street Soccer Program, and NDIS registered disability support service WhatAbility.
The 25-year-old is also a member of the PFA’s Greener Pitch and Front Runners, which provide platforms for athletes to advocate for environmental action in sport.
Reflecting on the receiving the Beyond Bank Community Medal, Chidiac said:
“I’m delighted to be the recipient of the 2024 Community Medal.
“Football for me has always been bigger than putting on my boots and playing. Every time the Community Medal has been awarded, I have read all the stories of the players who have done so many amazing things in the community, and that has been quite inspiring and pushed me to do more.”
As the recipient of the Beyond Bank Community Medal, Chidiac receives a $2,500 donation from Beyond Bank to allocate to a charity of her choice, further supporting her efforts to create positive change.
Commenting on the award, Beyond Bank’s Community Development Manager Marlaina McPhillips said:
“Community is a huge part of what we do here at Beyond Bank. I’m really excited that this is the second year that we have partnered with Professional Footballers Australia and excited that we are the partner for the Beyond Bank Community Medal.
“Alex is an incredible human and an incredible player, but to see her step beyond that and make this huge impact in the community is really well deserved.”
Chidiac selected OneBall, a community football program for children aged between 5-17 years from CALD (culturally and linguistically diverse) backgrounds across Melbourne, for the Beyond Bank donation.
Chidiac made the presentation to OneBall founder, and former Melbourne Heart player, Kamal Ibrahim.
“Alex is amazing. She loves the community, and she understands the benefits of children playing sport,” Ibrahim said.
“It’s a great opportunity for One Ball, especially to partner with Beyond Bank and we want to say thank you to Alex for donating the money. One Ball is passionate about making football accessible for children. We are not for profit, so for us to make the program cheap, and sometimes free, we need support from grants and sponsors. We are very grateful for this partnership.”
About the Beyond Bank PFA Community Medal
The Beyond Bank PFA Community Medal, first introduced in 2017, recognises the outstanding contribution PFA members are making within their communities and reflects the PFA’s commitment to ensuring football creates positive social impact. PFA Community Medal winners include Aivi Luik (Mark Hughes Foundation), Rebekah Stott (Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre), Robbie Cornthwaite (Beards of Hope), Nigel Boogaard (Hunter Life Education’s Ocsober campaign) and Luke Brattan (Leukaemia Foundation).
About Beyond Bank
Beyond Bank is one of Australia’s largest customer-owned banks with branches and offices in New South Wales, South Australia, Western Australia, ACT and Victoria. They partner with more than 5000 community organisations around the nation to create and return value for customers and communities and, through this, change lives. Beyond Bank is a B Corp, a business that is certified as meeting high standards of social and environmental impact, ensuring their practices and outputs benefit all people, communities and our planet. To learn more, visit beyondbank.com.au .
