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Football fans must support the Asian Champions League

Roar Guru
18th April, 2014
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James Troisi of the Victory celebrates a goal with fans. Why do the fans not want to celebrate the ACL with him? (AAP Image/Mark Dadswell)
Roar Guru
18th April, 2014
45
1284 Reads

Melbourne Victory’s 2-0 win over Guangzhou Evergrande at Etihad Stadium on Tuesday night was a monumental step for the growth of football in Australia.

Melbourne’s win against the reigning champions of Asia was watched by over 10 million people across the world. Even better, it was a thoroughly entertaining game of football.

These Asian Champions League games are of very high standard and seem to bring the very best out of the Australian teams.

However, crowds at the various games seem to be low when comparing them to the domestic competition.

Melbourne Victory’s average crowds are just over 21,000 for the domestic competition, whereas only a little over 8,000 for the Champions League games.

While there are encouraging signs that people are beginning to show up to the midweek games with 13,120 in attendance on Tuesday night, over 2500 of those in attendance were Guangzhou fans.

Similarly, the other two Australian teams, the Mariners and the Wanderers, in the competition are averaging slightly lower attendances in comparison to their domestic crowds. A crowd of just over 2000 showed up in Gosford to open up the Mariners home ACL campaign.

Why do fans not show up to these games? If you are a true fan of football in Australia, these games should be your bread and butter.

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They are top opponents that produce high quality football to really entertain the average football fan. The lack of mainstream media coverage has significantly hurt the interest to football fans in Australia.

Now however, the media are beginning to notice how big of a success it was for Melbourne to beat the cashed-up champions of Asia, Guangzhou Evergrande.

With all teams on the verge of possibly qualifying for the round of 16, the competition could become the main event for football fans after the domestic season.

The promotion from the mainstream media may have been the boost the competition needed to capture the interest of football fans in Australia and for them to support the prestigious tournament.

Football fans of Australia, get out there and support the Aussie teams in the ACL!

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