And so it begins. Unperturbed by dwindling crowd figures at most of last year’s games, A-League clubs are again lining up so-called “glamour” friendlies with European sides.
First off the block are Celtic who are just awaiting the rubber stamp from Football Federation Australia before a three game tour is confirmed. Meanwhile AC Milan, who secured their 18th Italian title on the weekend, is in advanced negotiations with Sydney FC for a game later this month.
In a week where it was revealed FFA had rejected a $25 million offer to underwrite the A-League from Newcastle Jets owner Nathan Tinkler, these developments offer crucial money-spinners for local clubs struggling to make ends meet.
With grants from FFA barely covering half the salary cap, severe restrictions on commercial opportunities and numerous misguided stadium deals, opportunities for A-League clubs to supplement their revenue are few and far between.
Yet these friendlies walk a fine line between offering an exciting opportunity for a club’s fans and simply extorting money from supporters who already fork out significant amounts in the name of their club.
That’s certainly how I’d consider some past tours where spectators have been asked to pay a premium price to watch an out of season, second string side jog around for 90 minutes.
In such cases the lack of a spectacle means these tours end up offering more to the fans of the visiting club than the hosts’.
Another key facet beyond pricing is selecting the right opposition for the right occasion. Clubs like Fulham and Boca Juniors might have seemed interesting in theory but struggled to draw the kind of crowd and media attention that would have justified their visits.
The same can’t be said for LA Galaxy’s friendly with Newcastle last year, a game that captured the imaginations of Novocastrians and was an unqualified success.
Thankfully promoter Lou Sticca seems to have taken notice with General Admission tickets for the Celtic games set to be both affordable and numerous.
So if promoters and clubs can find the right balance between these different facets, then I’ll gladly welcome such initiatives. In the meantime, I continue to view these tours with skepticism.
Are you the ultimate team manager? Pick your own superstar team and go head to head with other football fans for glory and cash prizes on Draftstars. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.
Initially, it was ruled a penalty after Jordan Courtney-Perkins was taken down by Kealey Adamson. But on review, it was found that the infringement…
Greek side Olympiacos scored two second-half goals after Villa clawed back from two goals down to win 4-2 to take the advantage after the…
Tammy Abraham came on in stoppage time of Roma's 2-nil loss to Bayer Leverkusen, but should have had a consolation goal.
And so the reigning champions claim the Premiers Plate and now line up for consecutive championships. With their win last night, Central Coast is…
There have been a seemingly endless number of negative, doom-and-gloom articles about the A-Leagues, most of them related to the APL’s mismanagement. This article…
Nestory Irankunda was denied a parting gift in his final A-League appearance before heading overseas, with Central Coast's Danny Vukovic pulling off a spectacular…
