Heather Reid moved to Canberra in 1974. While working at the ANU she became a foundation member of the ANU Football Club in 1978 and the ACT Women’s Soccer Association the following year.
Her roles at the ACT Women’s Soccer Association were many and varied. From 1984 to 1986 she was President before becoming the National Executive Director of the Australian Women’s Soccer Association from 1986 to 1993. She would return to local women’s football administration as President from 1997 to 2003, serving also on the Olympic Football Taskforce (Canberra) from 1999 to 2001 and being an ex-officio member of the ACT Soccer Federation from 2000 to 2003.
By the early 2000’s Football in Australia was changing and Heather Reid was a big part of this.
As Chief Executive Officer from 2004-2016 she delivered a new local structure and financial model, bringing Soccer Canberra together with the ACT Women’s Soccer Association, ACT Futsal and the Canberra Referees. This single entity became the ACT Football Federation in 2005, known as Capital Football.
In her time at the helm the sport grew significantly, highlights including the awarding of a W-League license for Canberra United and the annual Kanga Cup exploding from 67 to well over 300 teams.
She was awarded an Australian Sports Medal in 2001, made a Life Member of the ACT Football Federation in 2004 and inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2007. Later, she would serve as a Board Member and Deputy Chair of Football Australia from 2018-2021.
Her commitment to women’s participation extended beyond football. She helped establish the ACT Association for Women in Sport and Recreation in 1991 and was Executive Officer of Womensport Australia from 1993 to 1996.
Heather Reid was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 2015, awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Canberra in 2017 and was included on the University’s Sport Walk of Fame in 2022.