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Here I go again, once more into the breach of A-League expansion and promotion-relegation.
The biggest problem when deciding where A-League teams should be based is trying to balance representation of the major cities with that of the regions.
The best solution is to limit the number of teams in the major cities to just two in each, with the exception of three in Melbourne.
This would mean adding one more team each in Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.
In addition, there should also be another two teams from the regions to bring the A-League to 16 teams.
Then a second division should be created with eight more regional teams who would play each other four times a season.
This will create a 30 round A-League and a 28 round A2 League.
This guarantees at least five places in the A-League for regional teams, while preserving big derbies in the major cities without diluting them.
The obvious temptation for broadcasters is to cram the major cities with more teams, but this would diminish the value of a big derby between just two teams that divides the whole city.
If another team was introduced in Sydney it would no longer be ‘The’ Sydney Derby but just ‘a’ Sydney derby. Do we really want to do that?
Limiting the supply of teams in the major cities increases demand for their licences, which in turn drives up the value of the clubs.
Since there would only be two teams in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide and three in Melbourne you have to place them well to make sure that they count.
The best derbies are the ones that divide the city, so in Brisbane the best place would be South Brisbane, in Perth it would be Fremantle and in Adelaide it’s Port. As for Melbourne, the southeast is the place to go.
Once these teams are in place, you can build the A-League around the big derbies.
The Sydney Derby has become one of the world’s best, and if this can be replicated in Australia’s other major cities the A-League will go gangbusters.
The rivalries
These rivalries should dictate where new teams should be based and the ALeague should be built around the big derbies between them.
Brisbane
The biggest rivalry In Brisbane is north-south. It goes back to when the northerners heavily taxed the southerners when they wanted to cross the bridge to bury their dead at Milton.
Maybe the team could play at QSAC if it is redeveloped, or a new stadium could be built at the Rocklea Trotting Track, which is closer to a railway station.
Augsburg Arena would be a good stadium design for south Brisbane.
The 30,000 capacity stadium cost 45 million euros in 2009, which is about $AUD75 million today adjusted for inflation.
That’s a quarter of the price of the new stadium in Parramatta.
Adelaide
When it comes to Adelaide, the biggest rivalry in the AFL is ‘The Showdown’ between the Adelaide Crows and Port Power.
But Port aren’t allowed to wear their traditional black and white ‘Wharf Pylon’ guernsey because of objections by Collingwood.
Maybe this design could be used by an A-League team instead? Could the Port Adelaide Pirates make a comeback?
Perth
In Perth the biggest rivalry is with Fremantle and it would be great to see the new Perth Stadium packed out for a derby.
Melbourne
Dandenong has the most nationalities of any council in Australia and it’s places like this that the A-League was made for.
With urban planning focussed on creating 30-minute cities, Dandenong will become Melbourne’s second city. This will create a rivalry with both teams in the old city.
Dandenong might not be a Wanderers in the waiting, but they are a Wanderers in the making.
The regions
The two regional teams to round out the A-League should be Tasmania and Wollongong.
Tasmania will form a rivalry with every team from the mainland or, as they call it, ‘the big island’.
Wollongong will have rivalries with both Sydney teams, Central Coast, Perth and Canberra.
The second division
I would include teams from Geelong, Gold Coast, Canberra, Sunshine Coast, Townsville, Cairns, Darwin and Ballarat.
So these would be the teams in the A-League:
Sydney
Western Sydney
Melbourne Victory
Melbourne City
Dandenong
Brisbane
South Brisbane
Adelaide
Port Adelaide
Perth
Fremantle
Newcastle
Central Coast
Tasmania
Wollongong
Wellington (could be replaced by mid-north coast)
These would be the teams in the A2 League:
Canberra
Gold Coast
Sunshine Coast
Geelong
Townsville
Cairns
Darwin
Ballarat
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