FDA Team

Cormac Begley, FDA founder and Director
Cormac was born in Dublin, Ireland where he developed a passion for the game of football from an early age. At the age of 16 he played for the Republic of Ireland U-18 side. Later his career brought him to France and Italy where he played professionally for a number of years.

He holds an Honours degree in Modern Languages from the University College Dublin and speaks French, Italian & Spanish fluently.

In addition to playing football Cormac has spent over 7 years in the IT Industry working in Sales Management roles for companies such as Digital, Compaq, Hewlett Packard and SurfControl. Cormac founded Football Development Australia in 2006 with the vision of creating a unique football education environment where players of all ages and abilities can nurture their passion for the game under the guidance of expert coaches.


Petra Markova, FDA Marketing Manager
Petra is a native of the Czech Republic and started her professional working career as a Marketing & Events consultant and later PR manager with Dell Computers in Prague.

She moved to Sydney in 2000 and spent 5 years working in the IT sector as a Channel Marketing Manager. She joined FDA in 2007.

Petra holds a Masters Degree in B2B Marketing from University of Western Sydney.


Omar Melizza, Events & Programs Manager
Omar was born in Rimini - Italy, where he started playing football at the age of 5. In 1995 he signed his first contract as a professional football player for AC Cesena, an Italian Serie B team. His professional football career lasted ten years during which he got to play with and against some of the most famous Italian football players.

Omar holds a degree in Economics Management and a Master Degree in Logistics Management.