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Joined May 2011
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It has been a frustrating couple of weeks for football fans and journalists who have had to suffer the embarrassing machinations of the world…
Over the past few weeks, the governance of Australian football, specifically the struggles of the A-League and how to address them, have been hot…
BSG,
I’m talking about fans who abandoned (for lack of a better word) their teams long before Frank Lowy became involved with the game and disillusioned a lot of fans about its future. They had little excuse for failing to follow their teams before the A-League was even on the horizon and the mantra that “I won’t support Lowy’s club/Lowy’s league” is just an excuse to justify their lack of interest/effort/passion for their club, despite any credibility that the argument might actually have.
What lies ahead for the former NSL clubs?
Uncle Bob, thanks for the comment.
Whilst I don’t disagree that the changing character of migration has had some impact on these clubs, to say that it is the main reason for their downfall is to excuse the poor management that undermined them throughout their existence. During the 1980s when Sydney Olympic had thousands cramming into Pratten Park, amongst the fans of Greek descent sat those of Scottish and English ancestry who attended out of a love for football and a desire to see their selected local representative. Why did they attend – when they supposedly had no logical reason to, given they weren’t Greek – while others did not? Why didn’t their children carry on the tradition? Why didn’t the second generation migrants do the same at such clubs? Some of the biggest clubs in the world were formed by migrants, for migrants, because they were migrants and yet they exist and flourish to this day despite migration patterns having transformed completely in those respective countries.
What lies ahead for the former NSL clubs?
Uncle Bob,
Don’t disagree about the impact television, internet and a generally greater access to the game people have today. It’s an argument I’ve used many a time to explain why A-League clubs such as Sydney FC have vast expanses of empty seats at their home games.
But why are the ex-NSL clubs so different to their migrant equivalents overseas? When those clubs (overseas) first started, they would have been about the same size, with similar visions for the future, utilizing similar tools (perhaps even less advanced, given the absence of electronic media when they began) to build their fan bases. Fact is, where those fans showed an unyielding passion and in some cases fanaticism for their clubs, the vast majority of younger fans didn’t do the same with NSL clubs.
Of course, they are a product of the society and media environment in which they were raised and your point about increased globalization of football coverage is extremely relevant in that respect. However, it doesn’t stop people from going out and supporting their team – it just becomes a convenient excuse.
What lies ahead for the former NSL clubs?