Newcastle needs a World Cup Qualifier
Roar Rookie By Cappuccino, 30 Jan 2012 Cappuccino is a Roar Rookie
- Tagged:
- football, Socceroos, World Cup qualifier
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On the 9th of March, the draw for the fourth round of Asian qualifying for the FIFA World Cup in Brazil will take place. Australia, which will be placed in one of the two groups of five, will host four matches in this round.
For the 2010 qualifiers, these matches were hosted in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne (Sydney hosted two games). The third round of 2014 qualifying saw three home games once again hosted in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.
The FFA must use the Socceroos as a vehicle to drive the popularity of football in Australia’s different cities, and thus increase the popularity of the A-League- this is something that, arguably, they haven’t been doing effectively.
Hosting Socceroos matches that matter in just three cities, when there are eight Australian cities with A-League clubs doesn’t make sense. Aside from our national cricket team, the Socceroos are arguably the highest profile sporting team we have, and have a level of national support unmatched by other codes.
The FFA needs to harness this, hosting matches in cities other than the ‘Big Three’ and so encouraging people to be active football fans on a more regular basis than every four years, when the World Cup comes round.
One city that deserves a World Cup qualifier when the FFA decides where the Socceroos’ four home games will be played is Newcastle. Since Nathan Tinkler’s takeover of the club (resulting in an agressive marketing campaign and the slashing of ticket prices) Newcastle Jets has been the third most attended club in the league, despite having had a very poor season and being placed in the 8th most populous city in the league.
A competitive Socceroos match (one that mattered, like a fourth round World Cup qualifier) in Newcastle would build on this fantastic support base and would surely attract at least 25, 000 people, perhaps even selling out the 33, 000 seater Ausgrid Stadium.
Considering this, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Newcastle could get a game each in the fourth round. In future World Cup and Asian Cup qualifiers, the FFA should look into holding matches in Perth (imagine the noise inside a packed nib Stadium), Adelaide, Canberra and even Hobart, for the same reasons.
Building support for football is important not just in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, but all the current, and possible future cities of A-League clubs, and the FFA must recognise the Socceroos as an integral part of building this support.
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The Crowd Says (14) | Page 1 of Comments
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- Explore:
- football, Socceroos, World Cup qualifier
January 30th 2012 @ 7:46am
John said | January 30th 2012 @ 7:46am | Report comment
Can’t agree. Newcastle would love a World Cup Qualifier, as would Perth, Adelaide, Canberra, etc.
However, if you can pack out 80,000 at Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane, that’s where you should play.
The money alone speaks volumes. It’s also less than ~two hours for Novocastrians to get to ANZ Stadium. Getting out is more of an issue, but it’s a world-class facility.
You can’t say the same about AusGrid Stadium in Newkers.
Keep the ideas coming, but I’ll need some more justification to believe it
January 31st 2012 @ 6:41pm
Cappuccino said | January 31st 2012 @ 6:41pm | Report comment
Thanks for the comment John. The problem is that Sydney doesn’t attract those kind of crowds. In th fourth round for 2010 qualifying, the games had 50, 000 and 40, 000 people respectively. This time around, in the third round, only 25, 000 turned up against Oman, If the FFA is interested in making money from tickets, they should have a game against one of the lesser teams in our group in Newcastle, the biggest match in Melbourne at the MCG (where we could easily see upwards of 80, 000) and the other two matches in Sydney and Brisbane. The long term benefits of having an attraction such as a Socceroos WC qualifier in a city like Newcastle surely outweigh the loss of 10-20 thousand extra tickets.
January 30th 2012 @ 8:32am
Fussball ist unser leben said | January 30th 2012 @ 8:32am | Report comment
Absolutely agree. This HAL season, the folk of Newcastle have turned up in huge numbers to follow their local football team. There will be 4 home games in the next round of 2014WCQs and I fully agree with the author’s preferred host cities for these matches.
I’d forgotten about the draw on 9 March – will we get Iran, I wonder? If we do, it’s a no-brainer – that game would have to be played in Melbourne.
January 30th 2012 @ 10:09am
super G said | January 30th 2012 @ 10:09am | Report comment
Newie’s probably missed the boat on this one. If anything, a third round tie could have been staged there (i.e. Thailand or Oman) but the final round of qualifiers will be against bigger teams and need to be staged at bigger stadiums in the major cities.
January 30th 2012 @ 10:24am
Futbanous said | January 30th 2012 @ 10:24am | Report comment
Unfortunately for the smaller cities,money is what counts for the FFA,simply because there not flush with it.
You have to ask whats more important more money coming in to be ploughed back into coaching ,the grassroots & even A-League advertising or reducing gate takings by at least half to take games to cities with smaller stadiums.
Surely Newcastle would get reasonable crowds for Asian cup qualifiers?
January 31st 2012 @ 7:10pm
Nathan of Perth said | January 31st 2012 @ 7:10pm | Report comment
As an aside, apparently the 2015 Asian Nations Cup will be hosted at four or five grounds to be picked from a list of eight grounds. Of these, three are in Sydney, two in Melbourne and one each in Gold Coast, Canberra and New South Wales.
The fact that Perth and Adelaide are excluded here is… Oy vey.
February 1st 2012 @ 7:52am
Lucan said | February 1st 2012 @ 7:52am | Report comment
The organisers have stated they like the idea of playing all matches in a single timezone for the international market.
Keeping matches on the eastern seaboard will also keep operating and travel costs down. Probably a smart move considering the fallout of the failed World Cup bid.
January 30th 2012 @ 2:05pm
Griffo said | January 30th 2012 @ 2:05pm | Report comment
I live in Newcastle and would love for there to be a World Cup Qualifier here but can’t disagree with some comments here – the FFA make most of their money out of the qualifiers.
That being said, spreading the Socceroos around the place a bit might actually increase revenue somewhat down the track in merchandise sales and the like. The Socceroos do represent the whole country, not just a few cities
Perhaps where the FFA can spread the Socceroos around is with lesser games and friendlies. Some of these games in recent time have struggled to fill the grounds in the major cities.
Maybe Newcastle will get a few Asian Cup games in 2015.
Until then, the FFA will need all the money it can get, and the big three cities will get most of the (big) games to help fill the FFA coffers for grassroots and representative teams’ travel expenses.
January 30th 2012 @ 8:02pm
Football United said | January 30th 2012 @ 8:02pm | Report comment
no newcastle is two hours from sydney, it’s not that hard to get down there. play where the crowds are in the big citys and make the games as intimidating as possible for opposition
March 21st 2012 @ 8:48pm
Cappuccino said | March 21st 2012 @ 8:48pm | Report comment
Sure, the most dedicated Novocastrian football fans may make the trip down to Sydney, but the point of hosting a WCQ in Newcastle is to attract people who aren’t serious fans. By hosting a WCQ in Newie, we’ll be encouraging many people on the ‘periphery’ of football fandom to get out to more games. Those who are potential fans, but not dedicated ones, aren’t going to drive down to Sydney midweek to watch the Socceroos.
January 30th 2012 @ 9:14pm
oly09 said | January 30th 2012 @ 9:14pm | Report comment
Deals are in place for all fourth round qualifiers with state governments already.
Asian cup qualifiers should go to smaller cities, but not much FFA can do until the 2019 qualifiers.
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January 30th 2012 @ 10:55pm
apaway said | January 30th 2012 @ 10:55pm | Report comment
Newcastle got a World Cup qualifying game in 1989 when Australia beat Fiji 5-1 in the second leg of a two-legged tie, after going down to a shock 1-0 loss in Suva. the match was played at Speers Point and attracted a healthy crowd that packed the Macquarie Field.
I agree that WCQs need to be spread but I think there should have been a game in Newcastle in the first round of qualifying against, say, Thailand. Not to say the Steel City doesn’t deserve a game in the next round but as other posters have opined, FFA are looking to maximise crowds in the latter stages.
January 31st 2012 @ 7:05pm
Nathan of Perth said | January 31st 2012 @ 7:05pm | Report comment
” the FFA should look into holding matches in Perth (imagine the noise inside a packed nib Stadium)”
Can hear it now
“We hate the Blue Samurai
We hate the Red Devils too; We…!”
Ahem.
But yeah, the fact these are held time and again in the same very limited set of grounds is just foolish. Even if it costs an extra ten thousand seats for being in a smaller ground, having them showcased to more of the country will more than offset the cost.
February 1st 2012 @ 7:59am
Lucan said | February 1st 2012 @ 7:59am | Report comment
The national body needs to spread around the Olyroo, Young ‘Roos, Joeys, Matildas, Young Matildas matches.
Get in the local media to promote these games, and dangle the carrot to fans “If these matches are well attended and the cities support the ties they will move up the pecking order for hosting Socceroo fixtures”.