Capital Football chief executive Ivan Slavich quits amid Canberra United Academy furore

The Canberra Times can reveal Capital Football boss Ivan Slavich has quit in the wake of a women's academy controversy and after he publicly criticised the board for axing the Canberra United Academy.

Slavich is redirecting any inquiries about Canberra soccer to the Capital Football front desk, while the board is expected to meet later this week to finalise the process.

It exposes a significant leadership gap for the organisation less than 12 months after Slavich took the reins to lead the game into the future, including chasing more funding for the $33.5 million Home of Football at Throsby.

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Slavich replaced Chris Gardiner, who was the Capital Football interim chief executive after Capital Football failed to find a permanent successor to Phil Brown at the end of 2021.

Slavich's exit comes less than two weeks before Canberra United begins its A-League Women's campaign, while the Australian Professional Leagues is also still trying to find a financial backer for an A-League Men's team in the capital.

Slavich's position effectively became untenable after he used his speech at an end of season function to question the board's decision about the academy, and threatened to resign if they refused to reinstate the program.

It's understood Slavich had sought consultation from Football Australia technical directors before fronting the board and declaring his support of the academy.

The board ignored Slavich's advice and decided existing Canberra NPL clubs were well equipped to handle development duties for junior girls and women.

It's understood Slavich has told those close to him of his decision to quit. The board has not commented on Slavich's criticism.

Slavich did not return calls on Tuesday, but his voicemail message is redirecting callers to the Capital Football switchboard for all inquiries. The board also declined to comment until after a planned meeting later this week.

It's unclear if Slavich will continue in his role in the short-term and serve his notice period before his departure, or if he has quit with immediate effect.

"As a leader of football in Canberra, I really have a significant problem with the decision that's been made with [the Canberra United Academy]," Slavich said at the Capital Football awards function last week.

"Unless we reverse that decision, I feel that I may have no choice but to resign as CEO and give my three months notice."

The decision to disband the paid-for academy system has divided the Canberra soccer community, but Capital Football says it will create a talented pathway program.

It also puts pressure on the board to find a new leader as plans to build a soccer base at Throsby edge closer to being finalised more than three years after the funding was first announced.

Gardiner and Slavich had both been attempting to secure an increase in funding, with fears the costs could blowout to close to $50 million.

The ACT government has already increased its commitment to $29 million, with Capital Football to pay an additional $4.5 million for the facility.

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