The Asian Champions League is an annual Asian club football competition. It is hosted by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Typically 32 top clubs from fourteen Asian countries compete in the tournament, along with the defending champions of the previous year.
Melbourne Victory coach Ernie Merrick had every right to criticise Football Federation Australia and the Asian Football Confederation over the AFC Champions League fixture list.
For a tournament that is supposed to represent the cream of Asian football, neither organisation has acted in the best interests of the game when it comes to the scheduling of [...] Read article
Adelaide United set themselves up for another fruitful Asian Champions League adventure with a model away performance and a 2-0 victory over Shandong Luneng in China on Wednesday.
Former Brisbane Roar striker Sergio Van Dijk headed home in the first half for United before young speedster Matthew Leckie netted his second in as many matches on [...] Read article
Over-scheduled and undermanned, Melbourne Victory face a difficult task to advance further in the Asian Champions League after slumping to a second defeat in two group matches on Tuesday night.
The Victory fell 2-0 to Korean side Seongnam Ilhwa at Etihad Stadium despite a spirited performance, leaving them a mountain to climb to finish top two [...] Read article
When Frank Lowy managed to convince Asia to accept Australia into the region more than four years ago, it promised to produce regular clutch matches, often. Tomorrow night’s Asian Cup qualifier against Indonesia, in Brisbane, is one of those moments.
With the Socceroos second on goal difference behind Kuwait, a point ahead of Oman, the [...] Read article
It’s all aboard the Red Rattlers once again. Just over 15 months since wowing the nation with a wonderful run all the way to the Asian Champions League final, Adelaide United were back to their continental best last night, dishing up a dazzling display in seeing off the defending ACL champs from South Korea.
There’s just [...] Read article
Former A-League star Joel Griffiths has again sunk old enemies Melbourne Victory, scoring the winner for his Chinese club Beijing Guoan in a 1-0 Asian Champions League triumph.
Griffiths netted a superb 50th minute winner at the Beijing Workers Stadium to get the Victory’s ACL campaign off to a rocky start.
The former Newcastle Jets striker took [...] Read article
Adelaide United’s history-making 2008 run to the Asian Champions League final began with an unexpected victory over the Pohang Steelers.
For the sake of the club’s 2010 campaign, and perhaps his own job, Reds coach Aurelio Vidmar is earnestly hoping for a repeat result against the Steelers, who are the reigning ACL champions, at Hindmarsh Stadium [...] Read article
At 9pm AEST tonight, Asia’s premier club competition will return, and like all good football, the Asian Champions League is a warts and all microcosm of Asian football.
On the downside, there’s the misguided political interference that means the majority of fans from the two teams who make it all the way to the end of [...] Read article
Given very little separated Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory throughout the regular and post seasons, it was perhaps fitting last night’s A-League championship decider went to penalties, and perhaps even more fitting it went to the team that finished first past the post.
A hundred and twenty minutes of attritional, confrontational, energy sapping football ultimately couldn’t [...]
Melbourne Victory coach Ernie Merrick was left frustrated that Sydney FC were not penalised more heavily for a string of “blatant professional fouls” in Saturday night’s A-League grand final.
The Sky Blues won a epic match 4-2 in a penalty shootout at Etihad Stadium after the teams were locked 1-1 at the end of extra time.
Merrick [...]
Melbourne Victory’s star striker Archie Thompson is facing up to 12 months on the sidelines after a serious knee injury destroyed his, and the club’s, A-League grand final.
Thompson was stretchered off after 12 minutes following a challenge from Sydney FC defender Simon Colosimo – a strong but fair tackle after which the striker landed awkwardly [...]
Let me be clear: while Sydney might be the traditional soul of Australian football, these days Melbourne is its home. On November 16th 2005 history was made at Sydney’s ANZ stadium when the Socceroos qualified for the 2006 World Cup.
Yet, football only truly arrived on the domestic stage 18 months later with Melbourne’s hosting [...]
The World Cup in South Africa has helped FIFA’s revenues past the billion dollar mark for the first time, football’s governing body said on Friday.
“We are very confident, not only confident but very proud, that we can deliver the World Cup to Africa and that Africa can deliver the World Cup to the world,” Blatter [...]
FIFA said on Friday that Indonesian bid leaders missed a deadline to produce the required government guarantees to back the project.
FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke says “Indonesia is not any more a candidate for 2022.”
Indonesia was always considered the outsider of the 11 original candidates which applied to host the tournament in 2018 or 2022.
Indonesia [...]
Melbourne Victory coach Ernie Merrick has issued a grand final eve plea to skipper Kevin Muscat – play on for one more A-League season.
Muscat may be headed into his last A-League appearance in Saturday night’s grand final against Sydney FC at Etihad Stadium.
The 36-year-old is weighing up whether to go on for another year, or [...]
Sydney FC look set to reward young defender Sebastian Ryall and start him against the club he won a championship with last year in this season’s A-League grand final.
Ryall looks increasingly likely to keep his starting 11 place ahead of fit-again Socceroo Shannon Cole at right-back for the clash with Melbourne Victory at Etihad Stadium.
Ryall [...]
Socceroos great Mark Viduka is considering playing in the A-League, saying he is “in two minds” about whether to return to the game.
Viduka has not played in 10 months, walking away from several European offers at the start of this season and the Socceroos’ World Cup campaign for a hiatus from the sport.
But the 34-year-old [...]
With both Asian Champions League places for the 2011 tournament sewn up for Australia’s participants, there has been much debate surrounding the worth of an A-League Grand Final with virtually ‘nothing’ at stake.
However, in this fledgling young competition that is Australia’s A-League, a Grand Final is essential. It provides the sport with a showcase, a [...]
were we trying to bully union to death when they were boring people to death ( ok stop now ifs sokka’s so boring why is it so... to be honest i didn’t notice much perhaps I wasn’t paying close enough attention.
