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Changing the A-League calendar to make us great in Asia

Roar Guru
23rd February, 2017
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How can we make Aussie sides more competitive during the AFC Champions League? (AAP Image/Paul Miller)
Roar Guru
23rd February, 2017
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Currently, the A-League’s premiers and champions gain automatic entry to the Asian Champions League, but with those trophies being awarded in April and May, our best clubs must wait nine months before they are tested in Asia.

If the old cliché that ‘a week is a long time in football’ is true, then nine months is an eternity.

In the English Premier League, Leicester City were champions in May 2016, and nine months later they’re set to be relegated.

At home, Adelaide United were premiers and champions in May 2016. Nine months later they’re at the bottom of the table and likely to finish the season last.

Only one match has been played in the 2017 Asian Champions League group stage, but the Western Sydney Wanderers (2015 Asian Champions) and Adelaide (2008 Asian runners-up) look totally out of their depth.

So, could a significant change to the A-League schedule, so that the season ends in December rather than in May, make our clubs great in Asia?

In Europe, many leagues have a mid-season break to avoid the harshest winter weather and to allow players time off over Christmas. In some Latin American countries, the league calendar is split into two seasons: apertura (opening) and clausura (closing).

In the second tier of USA football, the North American Soccer League (NASL), the season is split into two competitions: spring and fall.

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In Australia, the A-League season suffers significant drops in attendances and TV viewing during the Christmas holidays. This occurred well before the Big Bash League gained popularity, so it has nothing to do with competition from other sports.

Even committed A-League fans would find December and January weekends filled with family activities that take precedence over attending football, or vacations which take people far away from their team.

So, why not schedule the A-League to take a break over December and January?

My proposal is for the A-League season to be restructured as follows:

Opening season: February, March, April, May

  • Each team plays each opponent once at home, meaning 18 matches for each club during 16 weeks.

Mid-season break: June, July

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  • International commitments: World Cup, Asian Cup, international friendlies for national teams and clubs.

Closing season: August, September, October, November

  • Repeat of the openineg season, with each team playing each opponent once at home.

Play-offs: December

  • Three weekends before Christmas for three rounds of finals.

As the league expands and when Promotion/Relegation is introduced, we could abandon the finals and just have play-offs for additional qualifying spots for the ACL, and relegation play-offs.

There would be numerous benefits to changing the calendar.

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Firstly, each club gets to play 18 home matches, which will be a 33 per cent increase. Plus the FFA will sell 185 matches of content – 180 home-and-away matches, plus five finals.

Secondly, we’d have every team playing the same number of home matches against every opponent, which removes the current bias in the fixture.

Thirdly, the FFA Cup and its final would align with state league competitions, meaning A-League teams would be able to use the NPL as a proper competition for players who don’t feature in their matchday squad. No more NYL, but a proper, full season playing against adult opponents.

Most importantly, the teams that qualify for the ACL would be in optimal shape when the competition starts, two months after they hit their peak form domestically.

The only disadvantage I envisage will be some grassroots football will clash with A-League fixtures, which will prevent some fans from attending or viewing on TV. But this is a small price to pay.

Let’s be bold and make big changes to the A-League calendar.

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