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Relegation will condemn the A-League to a second-division future

Roar Rookie
23rd March, 2016
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David Gallop (AFP Photo/Peter Parks)
Roar Rookie
23rd March, 2016
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1654 Reads

Put your business caps on. The A-League must not introduce a promotion and relegation system. It’s all about money and risk.

Who doesn’t love a good underdog story of a lower league team defying the odds and giving the big clubs a run for their money?

But the A-League is not Europe and soccer is not even the biggest football code in Australia.

In spite of this, football has grown exponentially in recent years.

The number of avid followers has increased from 2.7 million people (2012), to 4.9 million people (2014) according to Octagon research. If the Socceroos continue to perform at the highest level, as they did in Brazil and the Asian Cup, the code will become a paradise for sponsors wanting to plug their products locally and throughout Asia.

However, at the A-League is still volatile. Brisbane Roar and the Newcastle Jets still struggle to attract and keep sponsors. The A-League has to compete with more sponsor friendly football codes and sports.

The introduction of the National Premier League (NPL) across-the-country relegation system incorporating A-League, NPL clubs and state league clubs, sounds enticing. However, it is not in the code’s best interests to have a relegation system. Or at least not yet!

Relegation creates uncertainty, something sponsors do not like. The A-League needs to continue growing and creating a long-term financial platform that will benefit relegated clubs and promoted clubs.

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English clubs promoted into the Premier league receive upward of $100 million. Yet, most newly promoted clubs struggle to stay in the EPL.

These clubs are fully professional. How much harder would it be for a semi-professional club without adequate sponsorship or resources to compete with established professional clubs?

Moreover, the idea of an A-League club dropping down into their respective NPL competitions is ridiculous.

After the crazy summer spree by Chinese clubs, the A-League now needs greater financial muscle to compete with its cashed-up Asian counterparts in the Asian Champions League.

A-League clubs must been given the opportunity to develop their financial bases ensuring their longevity.

Meanwhile, the FFA must continue to invest in NPL clubs to narrow the gap between them and their A-League counterparts. When the gap has been sufficiently narrowed, then introduce a relegation system.

We would all like to see a relegation system, but at this stage in soccer’s development in Australia, it would simply ruin the A-League competition.

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