Eagerly awaiting the announcement of the A-League 2013-2014 draw, we were left to ponder which teams would be favoured upon the commencement of Friday night live free-to-air football.
On Wednesday, Football Federation Australia CEO David Gallop revealed the A-League 2013-2014 draw and I believe it is fair to say many were surprised as to the scheduling, especially on Friday nights.
David Gallop on the other hand, felt the draw had been crafted well enough to ensure avid supporters and new fans discovering the A-League would always have something to look forward to in every round.
Throughout the 27 rounds of A-League action, not one Friday night will have a Melbourne or Sydney derby, Big Blue or even an F3 derby.
Here is the list of free-to-air appearances for each team both home and away:
Home
Adelaide (6) Brisbane (5) Heart (5) Victory (3) Sydney (2) Wanderers (2) Jets (2) Mariners (2) Glory (0) and Wellington (0)
Away
Sydney (4) Brisbane (4) Jets (3) Victory (3) Wellington (3) Adelaide (2) Heart (2) Wanderers (2) Glory (2) and Mariners (2)
As expected we will see Perth Glory and Wellington Phoenix the least on free-to-air, which is mainly due to their time difference.
As Premiers and Champions respectively, Western Sydney Wanderers and Central Coast Mariners played the most consistent and appealing football last season but between the two will only make a total of eight appearances on free-to-air.
It is always hard to know what is best to schedule a season in advance and nor will all fans be happy with the outcome. These are the questions that come to mind when planning a draw on free-to-air:
Should one team from the major three cities as well as Western Sydney – (Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne) be included in the Friday night free-to-air?
Given the draw includes Roar, Victory, Sydney FC and Wanderers in 24 out of the 27 free-to-air rounds, it would seem as though the FFA have planned this purposefully.
There are only three rounds that don’t include one of these four teams on Friday night free-to-air, these are: Round 19 – Adelaide United vs Mariners, Round 20 – Mariners vs Wellington and Round 27 – Newcastle Jets vs Adelaide United.
Should our blockbuster matches – consisting of the Sydney derby, F3, Melbourne derby and Grand final rematches – be shown on Friday night free-to-air?
Looking at the draw the answer is a unanimous no and I believe this to be Fox Sports’ biggest mistake in the process of scheduling.
Being the major holder of the rights for coverage to the A-League, it is understandable as to why they would wish to keep the blockbuster matches.
These matches tend to draw higher ratings and above average to phenomenal attendances. The drama, excitement and passion shown in these games can or could be seen as the bread and butter for ratings on Fox Sports.
It can be easily identified that the positives of showing these matches quite possibly outweigh the negatives.
If people want to watch more than one A-League match, then they’ll have to purchase Foxtel and get the Fox Sports package. Given Fox Sports is an extra on the normal package, Foxtel already make money just as easy as that.
Currently, Foxtel have a six month deal in which the first three months are free and the last three months are full price at $50. With just the normal package, I would look at paying an average of $25 per month over the course of the six months.
Though because I am a football fan and wish to watch more of the A-League, I now have to purchase the sports package – an additional $25 per month.
Before you know it you are now paying an average of $50 per month over the course of six months (3months free + 3months full price $50 + $25 per month for sports pack).
The A-League goes for longer than six months and you won;t want to miss a minute of the action therefore you’re already going to own Foxtel for more than the six months you signed up for.
Take into account a deals like this may not pop up around the time of the A-League.
That means you could be paying $75 per month over the course of seven to eight months, totaling in pay-tv costs of $600.
The only negative I can see from this is the fact that the majority of matches being shown are not showcase pieces of our game and the fact that Roar and Heart play in stadiums not even close to half-filled capacity, doesn’t really paint a good picture for those wondering if the A-League is well supported.
This leads to a question I asked some time ago – Should the A-League on SBS2 be quality, quantity or a mixture of both?
In broader terms I seek to ask what is more important for free-to-air: Quality of a football match, quantity in the form of viewers or finding the right mix in order to satisfy the needs of all football fans.
Out of the 27 scheduled free-to-air fixtures, 17 include teams that finished inside the top four at the conclusion of the 2012-2013 premiership season.
Now these teams are not a given to produce the quality of last season.
But when scheduling, consideration as to the quality being shown is important for many people that do not fully understand football and the quality on offer may find it easy to switch off. Especially if performances like Wellington and Heart are replicated again this season.
Surprisingly Melbourne Heart are afforded a total of seven free-to-air matches.
Hopefully there is enough quality on show each round for fans to grasp the taste of football in Australia and allow that to transition into attendance or purchasing of Foxtel to watch more of the product.
Although ensuring quality on the pitch is healthy, the amount of potential viewers needs to be taken into account.
With 24 out of the 27 matches including Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Western Sydney, that should quite easily be covered.
Though with Adelaide not far behind in time zone difference it is easy to see why they are afforded the second most Friday night free-to-air matches.
Do we want to showcase different styles of football each Friday night on free-to-air?
It should be noted that despite the top four teams from the previous season playing part in 17 out of 27 free-to-air matches, each other team has a unique style of play that each football fan may find more appealing that the last.
Some may prefer a more conservative style comprising of a high pressure/tight defence and an effective counter attack – Wanderers.
Perhaps the possession-based game in which you want your side to seem as though they are in control the whole match – Roar.
What about flair, enthusiasm and ability to excite in the form of constant attack – Sydney FC and Victory.
Or an overall ability to perform in attack and defence, counter and maintain possession – Mariners.
Whatever your style, each team does possess a unique ability to perform.
Time will tell as to the effect free-to-air will have on continuing the rise of football in Australia, but at the end of the day the most important aspect to all of this is the simple fact the A-League is now able to reach even more people, even if it is only one game out of five.
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