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So it has come to this, the once obscure scenario that the A-League’s preferred grand final venue Etihad Stadium would be unavailable should Victory win hosting rights has come to pass.
There is something of a blame game occurring, but there are multiple reasons for why this scenario has occurred and negotiations over avoiding a repeat still rumble on.
Personally I don’t blame the AFL at all. We live in a society where multiple sports hold high public appeal and all play out of predominantly third-party stadiums. At a governing body level, the respective sports administrators are not just administrating sports which hold public good value, they are also managing competitive sports businesses.
Firstly, we have to delve into the fact that there is a rotating grand final in the first place.
There are predictably some calls saying it should be more fixed, but this author counters that firstly this conflict has predictably arisen because of pushing the start of A-League until after the AFL and NRL finals and the finish deeper into Autumn.
Secondly, the rotation system where the highest rank finalist earns hosting rights need to be preserved.
The rotating grand final and the fact that there is no clearly defined home ground suits the strategy where football can make for a strong number two sport in each state to the point where it has a strong aggregate effect.
The signs football has been slowly developing a strong undercurrent in each state over the A-League’s inaugural ten years can be seen perhaps in the healthier than expected Asian Cup crowds across all the hosting states and venues.
This brings us back to the 2015 finals series and their role looking ahead. It is fitting that this debate should take place in the same season in which the inaugural FFA Cup was a part of the football calendar as this then brings into focus the role of the finals as a de facto Cup competition going forward.
In the inaugural ten years of the A-League the finals have been considered a great way to promote the sport to general sports fans and big-event goers.
Thankfully the staging of a Melbourne derby semi-final at Etihad ensured the FFA got their big 50,000-plus showpiece event that this demographic were able to attend. This means a members-only (in effect) grand final at AAMI Park is less controversial.
It also ties in nicely with the challenges for the sport going forward. That is to say the focus is changing from being geared towards mass appeal to one of consolidating and strengthening the foundation of the football fraternity.
Namely whereas the FFA Cup serves a useful role in linking the strong grassroots to the strengthening professional tier in such a way to strengthen the bond between the two and smoothing over any ruffled feathers over the transition from the NSL era to the A-League era.
Similarly, whereas previous grand finals have been useful in having a big event vibe, there is nothing wrong with adjusting its focus in 2015 and taking on a quality event vibe.
Sydney FC CEO Tony Pignata has lamented the fact the game will not be played in front of a larger crowd.
In this case, however, there is much value for the sport in firstly having a ‘hottest ticket in town’ aura to the grand final as this serves to strengthen the prestige of the A-League showpiece event.
Secondly, the fact the stadium will be effectively inhabited exclusively by fully committed hardcore fans of both teams means the vibe of the event will be less celebratory and more intense and parochial.
The fact it is in the stadium most conducive to atmosphere means it should be an event to remember and perhaps even a once-in-a-lifetime event.
Frankly there is no better way to promote the value of being an A-League club member, and so the 2015 A-League grand final will serve to teach the value of being fully committed to an A-League club to already engaged fans.
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