Clubs from across NSW celebrated top honours at the 2025 ClubsNSW Clubs & Community Awards Night on Thursday 19 June at the ICC Sydney.
More than 900 guests filled the ballroom for the black-tie event, including Minister for the Night-Time Economy John Graham, Minister for Jobs and Tourism Steve Kamper, and Shadow Minister for Gaming and Racing Kevin Anderson.
The annual event honours the incredible ways registered clubs give back to their communities, from supporting veterans and vulnerable families to championing the arts and grassroots sport. This year, winners and highly commended finalists were celebrated across nine categories: Arts, Culture & Entertainment; Education; Emergency Services; Environmental Sustainability; Fostering Grassroots Sport; Health Care; Heart of the Community; Mental Wellbeing; and Social Inclusion.
ClubsNSW CEO Rebecca Riant said the record number of finalists in 2025 reflected the depth of commitment from clubs across the state.
“Clubs exist to make their communities a better place to live and that was certainly on show last night, with the causes they’ve championed over the past year truly inspirational,” she said.
“We had a record number of finalists in 2025 — 142 in total — so the judges had their work cut out for them separating the outstanding from the extraordinary. I’m incredibly proud of our industry, with clubs again showing their unwavering commitment to shaping and strengthening local communities.”
NSW Minister for the Night-Time Economy John Graham acknowledged the critical role clubs play not just in social support, but also in building vibrant communities.
“As a government, we know you’re the backbone of the community,” he told the audience.
“That’s why the government is keen to back you, and do more outdoor dining, make it easier to have music in your clubs, and scrap red tape like the five-kilometre rule that is gone, gone for good now, as we back you.”
Several categories had joint winners. The Health Care category was shared between Wagga RSL and Bankstown Sports; Club Taree and Revesby Workers’ Club took home joint honours in the Heart of the Community category; and the Social Inclusion award was shared by Wests Leagues Club and South Tamworth Bowling Club.
For Club Taree, it marked the third time in seven years it has won the Heart of the Community category. Club Taree CEO Paul Allan took the opportunity to acknowledge the team behind the club’s ongoing work.
“I’m so incredibly proud of them and the people that they represent,” he said.
“I’m so blessed to have such an amazing team doing amazing things, who just say yes, say, ‘How can we make that better?’”
Another standout of the night was Broken Hill Musicians Club, which took out the Emergency Services award. CEO Michael Boland accepted the honour and called on the government to formally recognise the role clubs play during crises.
“When there’s an emergency, they go to your local club … and that’s what this industry does all the time,” he said.
“People don’t call emergency services, they don’t trust them, they call your local club, because that’s what we do. Now the attacks have always continuously been coming for this industry, but I know this industry will stand tall, and it is always going to look after the people. We’re always going to look after the members. We’re always going to look after our community.
“I gave evidence to the parliamentary inquiry into the power outages in Broken Hill, and one of the recommendations was to make sure clubs are officially recognised as emergency evacuation centres … because that’s where our community goes.”
The night also raised funds for flood recovery efforts on the NSW mid-north coast, with proceeds from the night to support clean-up efforts at the Taree “Sailo’s” Aquatic Club, which was recently damaged in severe weather.