Queensland Touch Football’s Junior State Cup to be held in Rockhampton in 2023, 2025, 2027, 2029, and 2031

The three-day event will attract hundreds of players and thousands of visitors. City power brokers talk about what it means here.

Rockhampton will host the Queensland Touch Football Junior State Cup for five years.

Rockhampton’s reputation as a touch football powerhouse has been further strengthened with the city scoring one of the sport’s major events.

Queensland Touch Football’s Junior State Cup will be held in the Beef Capital in 2023, 2025, 2027, 2029, and 2031.

Next year’s event will be played at the Cyril Connell Fields and Northbridge Park from July 6 to 8 and is expected to attract more than 3000 players in 230 teams from across the state, as well as thousands of visitors.

The cup had been held in Hervey Bay for the past 12 years.

QTF is in discussions with other local councils to determine where it will be played in the alternate years it is not in Rockhampton.

Queensland Touch Football CEO Greg Denny said since its inception in 1996, the event had continued to grow.

Queensland Touch Football's Junior State Cup will bring hundreds of players and thousands of visitors to Rockhampton.

He said Rockhampton would comfortably accommodate the Junior State Cup and provide further growth opportunities with more than 22 accessible fields, 12 of which are under lights.

“Rockhampton is a heartland for touch football, and we are excited to partner with the Rockhampton Regional Council to host our flagship junior event,” Mr Denny said.

“With its central location, we are hopeful many of our northern affiliates will be drawn to Rocky to attend the tournament, many for the first time, and provide growth opportunities for our event and draw more visitors to the region.

“This event showcases some of the best young talent in touch football and we’re excited about what the region can offer our touch football community.”

Rockhampton Region Mayor Tony Williams.

Rockhampton region Mayor Tony Williams said the council would work closely with QTF to ensure the city came alive for the anticipated arrival of one of the biggest junior events in the state.

“Rockhampton is home to national, international and Olympic standard sporting facilities that nurture beginners through to professional athletes, and we are proud to add the QTF Junior State Cup to our future major events calendar,” he said.

“Major sporting events like these are not only good for our economy, but they also evoke a sense of pride amongst our community.

“It will be great to see our region buzzing with markets and third-party events to complement the competition program and activate our public spaces during the event week.”

Advance Rockhampton’s executive manager Greg Bowden.

Advance Rockhampton’s executive manager Greg Bowden said hosting a sporting event of this size presented a significant boost to Rockhampton’s visitor economy.

“We’re continuing to put Rockhampton on the radar as a destination of choice amongst state and national sporting peak bodies, and are yet again providing a major event that will give an economic boost not only to Rockhampton, but neighbouring councils across Central Queensland as visitors choose to stay longer,” he said.

“This event is a significant boost to our visitor economy, expecting to attract between 8000 and 10,000 attendees per day, filling our hotel rooms, hospitality venues and tourism businesses.

“Promoting our region to peak bodies such as Queensland Junior Touch aligns with Advance Rockhampton’s economic development strategy, and we will continue to promote our world-class sporting facilities and advocate for events like these over the coming years.”

It is understood phones were running hot at accommodation providers across the region within hours of the announcement, with players and parents already booking ahead for the event.