Should we have seen this A-League crisis coming?
Columnist By Adrian Musolino, 10 Apr 2010 Adrian Musolino is a Roar Expert
- Tagged:
- A-League, Adelaide United, Archie Fraser, Ben Buckley, Clive Palmer, FFA, football, Gold Coast United, North Queensland Fury, Robbie Fowler
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Gold Coast United club chairman Clive Palmer (right) and head coach Miron Bleiberg speak at a press conference at Skilled Park on the Gold Coast. AAP Image/Laine Clark
The A-League has suffered some pretty big kicks in the gut in its short history, yet few could compare to the wallop it copped yesterday when it was foretold that Gold Coast United was on the brink of extinction, chief executive Archie Fraser resigned from his post, and Robbie Fowler reportedly set to leave the beleaguered North Queensland Fury.
Even ardent supporters of the game couldn’t argue against the “A-League in crisis” headlines that swept through the media.
Only the news that Adelaide United’s new owners would take imminent control of the club and relieve the FFA of its controlling interest in the Reds dissuaded A-League fans from jumping off the proverbial bridge.
But none of us should have been shocked by the developments of the past 24 hours, particularly the struggles of the Fury and the Gold Coast.
Perhaps it’s hindsight talking, but the FFA should have foreseen the struggle of the expansion clubs to build a sufficient fan-base to sustain the clubs financially in areas that lack a substantial football following, in a climate in which the FFA is debilitated by no free-to-air coverage and almost non-existent levels of marketing.
Despite the comments made by Buckley and Gold Coast United CEO Clive Mensink that it was business as usual at the club, neither could give guaranteed assurances that the club would start its second season.
If Palmer has withdrawn his support for the club, it remains to be seen how involved the FFA will be in restructuring the club’s ownership model and propping it up if necessary.
At yesterday’s hastily arranged presser, Buckley stressed the need to gauge community support and local interest in the club for the FFA to step in and offer support for a franchise; an interesting point which seemed to indicate that the FFA remains unconvinced by the potential of a football club to survive in the long-term on the Gold Coast.
The shambolic first season of the club saw a catalogue of self-inflicted debacles, and it was always going to be very difficult for them to bounce back from those sorts of failings.
And the fundamental flaw in private ownership of football clubs means that clubs are at the whim of millionaires (billionaires, in Gold Coast’s case) who made their fortune and have skills in industries outside of the sporting world, and Palmer appears to have finally succumbed to the fiscal reality that the club would continue to bleed money.
The question now is whether Gold Coast United is a sustainable club.
Gold Coast may have been a strategic option in the A-League’s expansion, as Buckley said, but there remains little evidence to suggest it is a goldmine for Australian sporting codes.
Even when the FFA took charge of match-day operations, investing in marketing and promotion for Gold Coast’s home games, after the infamous crowd cap saga, crowd figures showed no signs of growing from their modest base.
Archie Fraser, who resigned as head of the A-League in the midst of Gold Coast’s soap opera, will now assume a new role in restructuring and revamping the Fury in addition to working with the Brisbane Roar and Gold Coast to help save the A-League’s three Queensland teams.
It’s a smart move.
The three clubs need all the help and assistance that they can get, and Fraser’s background suggests he works best at club level; allowing the FFA to find someone more suited for the leadership role in what is a challenging environment.
But the FFA cannot continue to prop up these clubs. It needs that money and effort to be invested in the wider areas of grassroots development, marketing, promotion and the like.
After such a chaotic day of developments, so many questions emerged.
Was the World Cup bid, with the time and investment it has gobbled up at FFA offices, a mistake considering the A-League’s foundations were still too weak to be left so exposed?
Was it too much of a risk to expand into Townsville and the Gold Coast, hardly football heartlands, especially when relying so heavily on the personal investment of so few individuals?
Should the FFA have done more to support these clubs at inception and in their infancy to build a fan base, perhaps awarding them the types of concessions other codes have given to their expansion franchises?
Should the FFA have gone with the safer options of Canberra and Wollongong, two areas with football backgrounds?
Or should the A-League have expanded sooner into Melbourne and Sydney with second teams?
The FFA understandably delayed on expanding with second teams in those cities to ensure the Victory and Sydney FC had time to evolve and develop – and the FFA needs the rivalries in these cities to develop when these second clubs enter to give the competition a much needed boost.
If they are successful, perhaps when we look back as the history of the A-League is written, we will bemoan the fact it took so long for the FFA to expand in these areas.
In the meantime, for the sake of all those involved at Gold Coast United, and the Fury and Roar, let’s hope a workable solution can be found which doesn’t sap the FFA.
The A-League cannot afford a franchise failure during this lean period.
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April 10th 2010 @ 3:22am
moo cow said | April 10th 2010 @ 3:22am | Report comment
Well they probably should have expanded more teams into Melbourne and Sydney before doing other parts of Queensland or any other place for that matter. But in fairness it probably seemed like the right decision at the time for the FFA.
April 10th 2010 @ 7:07am
Kurt said | April 10th 2010 @ 7:07am | Report comment
As much as I would like to gloat over the predicament Australian soccer finds itself in, I suspect these problems relate more to the inherent difficulties in launching new sporting teams in untested markets than anything else. There seems to be a persistent belief within the owl-egg ball code that if only the right combination of ownership / promotion / ticket pricing / community engagement is found then vast hordes of fans will flock to watch the new teams. Much more difficult to accept is the fact that there are only about 5000 people on the GC interested enough to bother attending games. Throw in speculative private investors not prepared to put the hard yards in over the years / decades necessary to build up a solid support base and you have a recipe for disaster.
I have little doubt that the AFL will face similar challenges in their expansion into GC and GWS, but a key difference (apart from the fact that the GC is overrun with hordes of expat Vics) is that they will be in it for the long haul – not until a few short term cash flow problems cause the whole thing to fall over in a heap.
April 10th 2010 @ 8:45am
whiskeymac said | April 10th 2010 @ 8:45am | Report comment
good post and i think you are right. gc was made on the foundations determined by one man, not the fans. NQ on the other hand shows reasonable promise and the FFA was right to back it
April 10th 2010 @ 9:13am
AndyRoo said | April 10th 2010 @ 9:13am | Report comment
On the money Kurt.
I think in the first season of the a league it did seem to all happen over night but it’s pretty obvious that stage has passed and it will be much tougher from now on.
April 10th 2010 @ 10:24am
AndyRoo said | April 10th 2010 @ 10:24am | Report comment
But Kurt I do beleive that “the right combination of ownership / promotion / ticket pricing / community engagement” is important.
I want too see the teams well run so they meet their potential. If they are well run and people don’t want to watch then so be it.
I look at MV and think well theirs no real reason not to support them, their pretty close to reaching their potential support with the cards they have (job well done).
But that doesn’t mean they will forever be a 20k club, they will get a boost from their new stadium and would also get a boost from any FTA coverage.
I don’t subscribe to your “theirs only 4.5k people willing to watch them theory” because I am sure a team that was better run and on FTA would get more support. Maybe it still wouldn’t be enough but it would be nice to know.
Of course even if your well run it doesn’t happen overnight.
April 10th 2010 @ 7:51am
sportfreak said | April 10th 2010 @ 7:51am | Report comment
very bad state affairs for the game in general. This does not bode well and the fact that Sydney FC is going to post a $7 million loss in a season where the won the minor and major premierships is astounding.
Is the competition sustainable?
Aus loves the socceroos but many do not care a hoot for the A -league – is the whole comp in serious trouble?
April 10th 2010 @ 7:56pm
Alders said | April 10th 2010 @ 7:56pm | Report comment
If ManU can do it surely Sydney Fc can.
April 11th 2010 @ 12:40am
ted said | April 11th 2010 @ 12:40am | Report comment
$7 million? Surely that cannot be so?! If it is, then the only Sydney FC in 10 years from now will be the Sydney Football Club, also known as the Sydney Swans.
April 10th 2010 @ 7:51am
AndrewMc said | April 10th 2010 @ 7:51am | Report comment
Zero free-to-air coverage means zero growth. The game just can’t reach new people
April 10th 2010 @ 8:08am
Worldgame said | April 10th 2010 @ 8:08am | Report comment
I truly fear for the comp. The FFA must be spending millions and millions on propping these clubs up every time an owner hands back the keys. This cannot go on forever when some of the novelty factor of football wears off with the fair weather football supporters.
April 10th 2010 @ 8:36am
Realfootball said | April 10th 2010 @ 8:36am | Report comment
What is worse? A failed franchise or an unsustainable franchise? The latter, surely. The key point with Gold Coast is that the ticket prices were seen to be the key issue early on but when they were almost halved there was STILL no boost in crowds. That, I think, is the key indicator of that market, and in those terms it is unsustainable. Like many other GCU members, I expected a significant spike in crowds with the reduced prices, and so, I am sure, did the FFA. Certainly a number of factors played their part, not least the active dislike for Palmer and Bleiberg so prevalent among local football fans, but GCU had a fine team, and if the potential was there surely the attendances would have bumped up with ticket prices on a level with the Mariners.
As we know, the malaise is over most of the League. The Mariners, the model for the first 3 seasons, have lost their traction with their local community. The only club that didn’t disappoint with attendances was Adelaide. We have to look at the FFA here. How can a code succeed when its governing body spends nothing in promoting it, with no FTA coverage, in a market where the other codes spend heavily on promotion WITH free to air coverage. Are the crowd issues surprising? I think not. As someone who has worked extensively in advertising, marketing and public relations I can tell you that what happened was entirely expected.
For this attention has to turn to Buckley and, yes, Frank Lowy. Mr Lowy saved the game in this country, but now, bewilderingly, he seems to presiding over its demise. Buckley, it is clear, isn’t up to the job. The contrast with O’Neill is stark. Buckley’s heart is stilll with AFL, and the best outcome of this last season is that he returns to it. But what is Frank Lowy thinking? He is one of our most successful businessmen. He can’t possibly not understand that a business will not prosper without investment in marketing. How can he stand by and watch the A-League atrophy for the want of a marketing budget?
Without active, aggressive promotion leading into next season, the A-League will continue its slide into irrelevance in this country. Its time for Frank Lowy to take control of this rudderless ship, move Buckley on and appoint a management team not only up to the job, but also with a budget to make it work.
April 10th 2010 @ 9:08am
berra boy said | April 10th 2010 @ 9:08am | Report comment
I reckon it’s a difficult comparison between O’Neill and Buckley.
In lots of ways being a “start-up” CEO is much easier than presiding over a business as usual and expansion role. O’Neill had the engagement of government at all levels, a successful world cup campaign, a promotable national team made up of household names and the luxury of starting small.
He then got out before any of his business plans were actually tested over a 3- 5 year period which is when the rubber really hits the road.
Buckley is presiding over a much more difficult period.
Case in point – how’s rugby gone over the past couple of years!
April 10th 2010 @ 11:01pm
JamesP said | April 10th 2010 @ 11:01pm | Report comment
Agree with those points. Buckley came from the most professional sporting organisation in the land. As indeed did Archie Fraser. That said, it must be easier being a CEO of AFL clubs, when there are 600,000 paid up members bringing in a massive chunk of revenue.
Can we please stop harping on about FTA coverage. The A-league did the deal with Fox sports which was a good deal at the time….up unitl this season, crowds were growing. Now they are going backwards and everyone is bleating that there is no FTA. Problem is, when the A-league rights are due to be negotiated in a year or so’s time, the FFA would better hope that crowds and interest spike up, otherwise there wont be much of an increase over the present arrangement, and most likely still no FTA.
April 10th 2010 @ 9:38am
AndyRoo said | April 10th 2010 @ 9:38am | Report comment
From a QLD perspective (where most of these issues are centered) I don’t fully understand the negativity.
Frankly I thought Gold Coast were embarassing throughout the season. They gave us plenty to talk about and I feel for the Beach and their fans but I really think that team looks set to struggle for support for a long time. Even if Palmer reduced his role theirs still the fact the stadium rent means they will lose money for a long time.
Letting them go and giving the Roar a boost with players and a few fans seems better than the current course of GCU and Roar both struggling through the season. It should be a better seasont han last for QLD crowds.
In a few years hopefully someone else takes up the flame for the idea of a Gold Coast team and they build a club that’s more sustainable. Perhaps a small 10k ground at Helensvale which would be a better location to take advantage of Gold Coasts northern suburbs than Robina or Carrara.
At the moment it’s a bit gloomy around Nth Qld with them likely to lose players over belt tightining but the fact that Archie Fraser is the CEO gives me hope the FFA will give him something to work with. Hopefully the talk of Williams to a long term deal is an indication of their plans (good young players to long term deals).
April 11th 2010 @ 11:24am
TheMagnificent11 said | April 11th 2010 @ 11:24am | Report comment
Halving the ticket prices half way through the season is not enough. You alienated fans by having high prices and some a not going to forgive you so easily. As for the ones that will, it’s not enough to halve the prices, you need to advertise the fact that you’ve halved them. Website and newspaper ads are not enough; you need TV and radio ads to let people know what’s on offer. Both the Roar and the G.C. made this mistake. Clubs can’t really afford this so the FFA should help with marketing.
Secondly, community engagement by the Roar and G.C. is very poor. They should have greater presence at junior sign-on days offering junior passes that get kids under 12 in for free. You automatically get a paying adult with that and they may enjoy the experience and word of mouth may lead to more first-time customers (like what Adelaide did by allowing members to bring guest for free to their Friday night games). They should be doing free clinics at junior clubs and primary schools. Win over the kids and they’ll win over their parents. Football is the biggest junior sport, clubs should leverage off this.
April 10th 2010 @ 8:49am
whiskeymac said | April 10th 2010 @ 8:49am | Report comment
be interesting to see if post WC as to whether FFA experiences a bit of a boom or not. next 2 years, which have > internationals etc, can re translate down to the HAL.
April 10th 2010 @ 9:03am
Realfootball said | April 10th 2010 @ 9:03am | Report comment
Whiskeym
Given the lacklustre qualification and the lack of “bounce” from it for the local game, the Socceroos would have to progress past the group stage, I suspect, for any positive benefit for the A-League. I would like to believe this will happen, but like many others I doubt it. We may scramble a couple of draws, but we lack the firepower in our aging team to trouble the other teams in our group.
Which makes a strategy for the active promotion of next A-League season all the more crucial. And that takes money – particularly when it is very clear that there is an active agenda in the media – with their investments in NRL and AFL – to diminish football in their coverage. The only way to get decent media coverage in this country, unfortunately, is to buy it – which is entirely possible.
I don’t think I am being paranoid about the media here. Even the most cursory analysis of coverage in the city newspapers, for example, shows the degree to which the A-League coverage is buried in inaccessible corners in the minor pages. The journalists who run the papers are NRL and AFL and RU fans, and they will, quite naturally, make decisions on coverage that promote the interests of their codes. This will not change in the forseeable future, so the FFA has to move aggressively into alternative strategies.
April 10th 2010 @ 10:34am
Axel V said | April 10th 2010 @ 10:34am | Report comment
I don’t think that the Socceroo’s need to necessarily progress out of the group stage, we just need to pull off an amazing match or 2 and that will generate alot of interest.
It wasn’t so much that we beat Japan or Croatia in 2006, but it was how we beat them (or draw), came from behind to steamroll Japan in the last 10 minutes, came from behind twice to draw a serious footballing nation against Croatia, and competing against the world champion Italy and to only go out to an iffy penalty in the last second.
And our style under Guus was really attractive, competitive and efficient! Not sure if i can say the same for the current team but hey, who knows!
April 10th 2010 @ 11:04pm
JamesP said | April 10th 2010 @ 11:04pm | Report comment
Lets just clear one thing up….News Corp owns half the NRL. The AFL is not owned by anyone expect the 600,000 paid up Australian members. Actually, the Age in Melbourne is a major supporter/sponsor of the Melbourne Victory and devotes plenty of newspace/articles accordingly
April 10th 2010 @ 9:08am
Brian Peppers said | April 10th 2010 @ 9:08am | Report comment
I can’t smell much fear anymore
April 10th 2010 @ 9:23am
Mahony said | April 10th 2010 @ 9:23am | Report comment
Short term thinking will not get football anywhere. I have more faith in the FFA and Lowy than most. As I wrote in another thread – the governance trend across the league is to broad based ownership models. This is a good thing IMO and in combination with the next TV deal will put the league on a more stable footing. Having said that I agree with the challenges that Kurt referrs to – now I have to go have a shower having agreed with him on anything.
April 10th 2010 @ 11:07pm
JamesP said | April 10th 2010 @ 11:07pm | Report comment
Mahony I hope you are a paid up member of the A-league club that you support. Becuase that is the only way you can successfully/profitably run a broad based community club, without private investment. As i mentioned above, dont rely on the next TV deal being much higher or having an FTA component if crowds/interests are going backwards.