What Are the Win Well and Play Well Strategies on the Australian Sports Commission Website?

Updated

Win Well and Play Well are the two national sport strategies published on the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) website. Win Well is Australia's High Performance 2032+ Sport Strategy — the roadmap for elite and high-performance sport through and beyond the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Play Well is Australia's Sport Participation Strategy, focused on getting more people involved in sport at every level. Both are described on the ASC homepage and link to dedicated pages.

Win Well: Australia's High Performance 2032+ Sport Strategy

Win Well is framed as the plan for delivering the best outcomes for Australia's athletes, its sports, and the country as a whole. The "2032+" in its name signals that its horizon extends past the Brisbane Games rather than ending with them.

The strategy sits alongside the ASC's high-performance work, which on the same site includes:

  • AIS Podium Project — described as a once-in-a-generation upgrade of the Australian Institute of Sport to support athletes for Brisbane and beyond.
  • AIS FPHI — raising awareness and understanding of female athlete performance and health considerations.
  • Para Uplift — referenced in ASC news coverage, including the inaugural Libby Kosmala Para Futures Cup held at the AIS.

If you work in high-performance sport, coach at an elite pathway level, or follow Australia's Olympic and Paralympic preparation, Win Well is the strategy page to read first.

Play Well: Australia's Sport Participation Strategy

Play Well is the participation-side counterpart. The ASC describes it as co-designed with the sport sector, and its stated aim is to welcome individuals of all ages, backgrounds, genders, and abilities to access the benefits of sport.

That breadth is the key difference from Win Well: Play Well is not about medal outcomes but about who takes part and whether they can access sport at all. It connects to participation-oriented topics on the site such as:

  • Participation — "Everyone has a place in sport."
  • Sporting Schools — resources and ideas to help kids get active.
  • Volunteering — support for volunteering across the sport sector.
  • Concussion — advice for athletes, parents, teachers, coaches and healthcare practitioners.

Clubs, schools, local councils, and community coaches are the natural audience for Play Well.

How the Two Strategies Compare

Win Well Play Well
Full name Australia's High Performance 2032+ Sport Strategy Australia's Sport Participation Strategy
Focus Elite and high-performance sport outcomes Participation across the community
Timeframe 2032 and beyond Not tied to a Games cycle in the site description
Stated aim Best outcomes for athletes, sports and Australia Welcome all ages, backgrounds, genders and abilities
Typical audience High-performance programs, elite pathways Clubs, schools, community sport, volunteers

The two are complementary rather than competing: Play Well widens the base of people in sport, while Win Well supports the top of the pathway. The ASC's own vision statement — "Sport has a place for everyone and delivers results that make Australia proud" — maps directly onto that split.

Where to Find Them

Both strategies are linked from the ASC homepage under the headings Win Well and Play Well, each with a "Visit" link to its own page. The homepage also groups related material under Key Topics (Participation, High performance, Sporting Schools, Grants and funding, Clearinghouse for Sport, Volunteering, Concussion, AIS Podium Project, AIS FPHI) and News, which regularly carries updates tied to both strategies.

Start with Win Well if your question is about elite pathways, AIS facilities, or Brisbane 2032 preparation. Start with Play Well if your question is about getting more people — or a specific group — active in sport.