Football Victoria (FV) mourns the passing of former Victorian Soccer Federation (VSF) Secretary Gerald Edgar, who passed away last month, aged 97.
Born in Liverpool, England in 1927, Gerald Edgar’s love of football was evident from a young age. While not a regular supporter of either Everton or Liverpool, his interest in the game flourished as a schoolboy where he played as a full-back, and continued into adulthood, representing the Cameron Highlanders infantry team while completing his national service.
Edgar arrived in Australia in 1963, along with his wife Marguerite and four children, settling in the northern suburb of Preston. After a brief stint working as a salesman, he was appointed the General Secretary to the VSF in June 1965, replacing the long-standing Stuart Beaton.
Upon Edgar’s appointment, he was interviewed by local football publication Soccer News and delivered a message which would embody his tenure.
If nobody puts any effort into Soccer in Australia it will expand despite this. But if we all pull together and promote it, the game has the biggest future of any sport in the country.
It speaks volumes of Edgar’s philosophy towards the game that those words are as relevant today as they were some six decades earlier.
Edgar was instrumental in overseeing the restructure of the Metropolitan League competition, which had opted for a simplified four-tier league a year earlier, replacing the antiquated zonal system which had been in place for well over a decade. He assumed the day-to-day administration of five leagues and sixty clubs, ably assisted by the legendary “Mrs Kevan” and together, they implemented a reorganisation of the VSF’s filing, registration and accounting systems.
Edgar was also a tireless promoter of the game, often responding to the game’s issues via Letters to the Editor in Soccer News and fastidiously compiling the weekly results and ladders which appeared in the publication in immense detail. This extended to regular appearances on Radio 3KZ where Edgar would confirm the “Soccer Scores” with Ken Johnson and Jim Cook.
Edgar navigated the competing demands of a culturally diverse membership, often dealing with issues in a conciliatory manner, but upholding the game’s integrity at every turn. Brian Edgar recalls his father’s influence, and how he approached his role with a mild temperament an even-handed manner.
At that time the association faced the difficulties (as well as the benefits) inherent in ethnic diversity. The differences frequently extended beyond the usual level of sporting rivalry. He worked towards holding onto the benefits of the differences while persuading clubs to not primarily define themselves ethnically. I believe he played a calm and careful role in this.
Edgar presided over tremendous growth during his three-and-a-half-year tenure. Upon his resignation in November 1968, the number of member clubs had grown to over ninety, with the creation of the regionalised District Leagues witnessing the birth of a multitude of clubs all gaining admission to the VSF, many of which thrive in the present day.
Upon concluding his tenure with the VSF, Edgar served a long and distinguished career with several community-based organisations, most notably as the Head of Youth Services with the Fitzroy City Council, where he was co-awarded the Victorian Youth Worker of the Year.
Edgar also played a key role in the establishment of the influential Fitzroy Legal Service, which served as a forerunner to the hundreds of community legal centres which now exist throughout Victoria and Australia.
In retirement, Gerald and Marguerite Edgar ultimately settled in the Bellarine Peninsula, but he continued to play a strong voluntary role with several church groups, sporting clubs and emergency services.
Football Victoria CEO Dan Birrell remembers an influential figure with a strong lineage.
It seems poignant to remember Gerald Edgar as a contemporary, given that he held the equivalent role of CEO at Football Victoria over sixty years ago now. His legacy in ushering in a period of tremendous growth and change is significant given the very league he presided over now enters a new era in 2026. Football owes a debt of gratitude to Gerald, who was a selfless custodian of the game that left an everlasting legacy.
Gerald Edgar passed away on December 13, a mere ten days shy of his 98th birthday. Gerald is survived by his wife, Marguerite and his three living sons Keith, Brian and Colin.
The FV Board of Directors, Executive, staff and broader Victorian football community send our sincere condolences to Gerald Edgar’s family and friends.