Kick start your entrepreneurial career with an exciting new franchise that’s perfectly placed to harness the booming interest in football.

While the franchise offer is brand new, Kikoff Football is a seasoned business. The family firm started in 2008 when co-founder Oli Brambley joined forces with his soccer-mad uncle.

“It was a bit of a passion project,” Oli says. “My uncle has always been a massive Manchester United fan, and he was involved in state league soccer for years. We wanted to build a business based on our love of the beautiful game.”

The founders launched Kikoff on Sydney’s northern beaches and then added more sites, operating the locations themselves.

Now the pair are ready to kick some goals with the newly-launched franchise model.

Kikoff launches unique franchise model

So what’s different about Kikoff? The concept is a football destination, an outdoor sports facility offering seasonal 5-a-side football competitions, coaching programs and birthday parties.

Competitions and coaching deliver the greatest revenue share, with parties also a significant income source.

“Last year we hosted almost 500 birthday parties over two venues,” says Oli.

In summer there is kids coaching from 4pm till 6.30pm and adult leagues running from 6.30pm till 10pm. 

“The target is to get all facilities booked every night,” he says.

“The joy of this business is giving back weekends to our customers. They can play local competitions or social soccer during the week at a reasonable cost, and still have the weekend free for friends and family.”

While the focus is football, the all-weather pitches suit a wide variety of sports. “We cater for hockey groups, dodgeball and AFL teams,” he explains.

Other sports businesses, including kids coaching franchises such as Little Kickers, hire the facilities during the day.

Oli believes Kikoff is a brilliant business opportunity for training young football players. And there is no better time to get involved.

Booming interest in football pays off for Kikoff

Australians’ interest in soccer has been growing for 12 years. Statistics from AusPlay reveal more than 1.7 million players participate in the game, almost double AFL participation rates.

Last year the FIFA Women’s World Cup shone a spotlight on the sport. The record-breaking viewer numbers (11.15 million) for the Matildas semi-final made it the most watched tv show in Australia on record. The success of the Matildas is reflected in increased participation at grassroots level, with more young girls joining football teams, Oli says.

“We are going to start a few initiatives such as free sessions for girls and women to try out the sport,” he adds.

The booming interest in football has paid off for Kikoff which had its best six months from July to December 2023.

Now Kikoff has a new game plan; it is ready to share its success through its newly launched franchise.

“We want people with a passion for football. We want to enable keen soccer aficionados to do what they love. And they can keep their day job because the hours are mostly afternoon and evening.

“We plan to have three franchisees by mid-year, and five by the end of 2024.”

Franchisees sign up for a five-year term, with options to renew, and operate within an exclusive territory.

Investing in the location

The first stage in establishing the business is sourcing the right location to build the football facility. Typically the space accommodates four 5-a-side football pitches although smaller areas that can yield two fields are a viable option.

“We can consult on the best location, costs, major planning considerations as well as council or landowner issues,” says Oli.

Investing in the facility is a significant investment, but one which he suggests will be recouped in a single year of trading.

“A four field facility generates about $500,000 a year – the cost of building it,” he says.

Once the location is set, Kikoff brings in its building partners to handle the site build.

The franchisor will also provide support for the franchisee’s business opening.

“It starts with planning opening events and training on our systems,” Oli explains. “In the first two weeks prior to opening, a franchisee gains experience at other Kikoff facilities. In their first week in business, we shadow them as they learn the ropes.”

Kikoff franchise launch reveals a refined business model

Oli says 15 years’ experience in the industry has given them unique insights in the business challenges.

“We have spent the past two years refining and building the model to work with minimal staff and still bring in the same revenue,” he says.

“This is a very simple business to run, whether someone wants to do it themselves, or invest,” he says.

“This is the perfect business to franchise because it is easily replicable. If you work full time on this business, you can run two or three facilities with support staff.

“Franchisees can buy one territory, then expand. There is plenty of room to grow with Kikoff.

“We have all the systems in place, from marketing and sales to operations and HR. We are all ready to go.

“It’s time to let other football fanatics on board to kick some goals!” he says.