The A-League has enjoyed a fantastic season with rising attendance, ratings and merchandise sakes, but its clubs are still losing a lot of money.
A recent report in The Australian Financial Review detailed that in the 2012-2013 season A-League clubs lost close to $20 million, an improvement, down from a loss of about $27 million in 2011-2012.
According to the story Melbourne Victory, the biggest club in the competition, was the only club to record a profit for the season just ending, while it is believed their neighbors the Heart and Adelaide United broke even.
This shows the A-League remains a work in progress and private ownership should not be the only ownership option considered. Other options, such as members ownership and supporters trusts, have been successful overseas for example.
There are definite positives, with 2012-2013 having been a resounding success with growth in TV figures, crowd numbers, digital media, membership and sponsorship.
Perfecting the model and building on this growth is now paramount. The FFA has done a sensational job with establishing the Western Sydney Wanderers, but now it’s time to separate them from the governing body and end the conflict of interest.
Finding the right buyer, who will continue the good work done and maintain the strong community connection the club has created, would be a great step.
Helping A-League clubs nut out more sustainable stadium deals, such as for Perth Glory and Melbourne Heart, is another must.
The new broadcast rights contract with Fox Sports and SBS is a massive shot in the arm for the A-League, with the central grant from the FFA potentially rising up to $2.5 million for each club, covering the salary cap.
Encouraging and helping A-League clubs to sign the right marquees, the right and suitable foreign stars that boost the value of the entire competition, is also important.
Several could do with some star power, such as Perth Glory, the Heart and Wellington Phoenix. Sydney FC and the Jets are set, the same for the Wanderers, and the Roar are probably full with both Thomas Broich and Besart Berisha.
But imagine if we could add in the quality of a Francesco Totti, Raul, Ruud van Nistelrooy or Michael Owen to season 2013-2014? We need to think and dream big.
Hardly anyone would have imagined a year ago that the A-League would convince a footballing freak like Alessandro Del Piero, a World Cup winner and Juve icon, to move down under and grace our shore with his silky skills. But he did, and the fact he did means others of his ilk can be convinced to do the same.
The standard of the A-League is improving and more younger Australian players are getting a chance to play and develop. This is a great thing.
The A-League needs to keep improving its status as a powerful production line so the Marco Rojases, Mustafa Aminis, Tom Rogics, Robbie Kruses, Mitchell Langeraks and Terry Antonises keep emerging and have the opportunity to go on to greener pastures overseas.
There are big financial gains to be made for the clubs in developing and selling these boom youngsters to cash-rich outfits outside Australia.
Membership is growing in the A-League, however it remains small and the good work in that area needs to continue.
Ticket prices remain fairly low compared to many other sports, and they should remain stable as the competition is marketed as an affordable and family-friendly experience.
Another area that needs work is the Asian Champions League and the A-League clubs participation in it. The Australian football public has yet to fully engage with Asia’s top club competition and the FFA needs to encourage fans to get involved.
The financial costs of participation for the Aussie clubs are massive so FFA needs to step in to assist where they can in marketing, promotion or whatever. They can’t do this at the same time as bankrolling the Wanderers.
There is a lot that can be done to help A-League clubs get in the black.
It is too soon for expansion next season but a new franchise for 2015 or 2016 is possible. The right location and the right bid, whether it be from Canberra, Wollongong, Hobart or wherever, could bring big benefits if done correctly.
And lastly the issue of separate body to run the A-League, distinct from the FFA, needs to be debated.
This has been proposed in the past but the fragile nature of the still raw competition, and indeed the FFA itself, made it impossible. But as the foundations become more stable and progress continues, this would be a crucial advance.
It is something that occurs in other football leagues around the world and already Basketball Australia and the NBL are considering it with their own competition.
The A-League has basked in a beautiful six months. But let’s not take our eyes off the ball as there’s a lot still left to be done.
Ballymore
Guest
I'm still impressed you knew who Nick Farr-Jones was.
AndyRoo
Roar Guru
I think it's an interesting debate. If you look at examples overseas the "best practice" model of separation hasn't always worked out well. It's probably important if the governing body is corrupt and poorly run but we don't suffer that problem at the national level. From a football perspective the EPL is doing great business but I am sure the English FA wish they had a bit more of a say on things like development and how much money filters down the pyramid. I know the Korean FA and the K league are constantly arguing over scheduling and the utter lack of cross promotion seems to hurt the game (basically K league teams don't get to leverage of the national team at all and the national team games are on network TV while K league games struggle for pay TV coverage). The German FA seems pretty hands on with rules over the Bundisliga like the requirement of an academy.
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
1) http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-star-pulls-pin-on-2m-sponsorship-deal-with-south-sydney-rabbitohs/story-e6frexnr-1226635223328 2) You're right. I'd watched the story this morning on Offsiders, but my knowledge of the teams involved in SuperRugby is close to ZERO & my knowledge of teams involved in BBL teams is even less. I simply copied the headline from the ABC website, which is incorrect ... but the content video remains unaffected & paints a gloomy picture for Renegades
Australian Rules
Guest
1) Link to Foxsports pulling out? Fox announced recently it had upped their offer for the BBL afte Ch7 and Ch10 put their hat in the ring. 2) The Rebels are a Super Rugby team. The *Renegades* are the cricket team.
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
Interesting times for the summer sporting landscape in AUS. 2 worrying signs for the BBL circus: 1. Channel 10 looks like winning the broadcast rights for BBL, after reports FoxSports has virtually pulled out. In recent times, no broadcaster has been more skilled at picking losers than Ten Network; and 2. Rebels in financial trouble & may relocate to Geelong, after only 2 seasons http://www.abc.net.au/sport/offsiders/content/2010/s3752037.htm Looks like, for the summer of 2013/14, FoxSports will be able to commit 100% of their marketing budget on A-League.
oly09
Guest
Aren't Socceroos games valued at $1 million per game because of a deal the AFC has with an Indonesian based company? So if that is the case then Socceroos games would only add an extra $8 million or so each year depending on the number of games. Also if there was a separate body running the A-League how would it be funded? Also wouldn't also lead to a doubling up of some positions in the FFA and A-League, which be a waste of money?
j binnie
Guest
pete4 - An interesting offering especially when you mention the financial model on which it is purportedly built. Unfortunately your recommended site did not tell us when these measures were introduced & enforced.??? I'd really like to know the answer to that question for what is described is actually exactly the same measures that were introduced into the running of Celtic football club in 1994 and turned a financial disaster area, 8 hours away from being declared bankrupt, and, in a promised 5 years, turned the whole club around building a new 60,000 all seat stadium with all the other plusses your suggested site tells us about,fan ownership etc etc etc. If you are interested key into "Fergus McCann" on Google and you will read of what I am talking about,and my question,wonder who was first????. jb.
Australian Rules
Guest
...for a while there they called it America!
nickoldschool
Roar Guru
Well any country running the world would be a scary thought, Germany included! Was a tongue in cheek comment mate, was just trying to imagine for one second what an efficient nation like the Germans would have done with a country which has some of the best resources in the world.
keyless Sky Blues Fan
Guest
Hahaha why is that a scary thought? Can't be any worse than China, North Korea and the US can they surely?
dinoweb
Roar Guru
Dave, To me, part of your third point is the crux of the matter. Is the HAL here for the overall growth of the game? There is definately a bias by the FFA to use the HAL as a tool to help develop the sport, but is this best business practice for the HAL clubs, and league as a whole? While the HAL is tied to the FFA there will always be a certain amount of doubt over the real commercial value of the A-League. For example, the TV deal comes as a package deal that includes Soccerroos coverage. If the HAL was independant and able to negotiate on it's own, would it be able to get more money than that currently allocated by the FFA? The same applies to other sponsorships like Hyundai. There are also issues like the FFA rejecting certain club sponsorships becasue of conflicts of interest with other FFA sponsors that have nothing to do with the A-League. There are two sides to this argument. One is that the HAL should be there to assist in the promotion and development of the sport. The other is that with the FFA controling everything, the development of the league is being compromised. While there is a certain truth to the argument that the growth of the sport is good for the A-League and vice-versa, it is also plausible that the A-League might grow and develop faster if it was independant of the FFA.
nickoldschool
Roar Guru
You have to give it to the Germans, they know how to run an economy. If they had a country like Oz in their hands, they would run the world! Scary thought!
nordster
Guest
Its a good league for allowing large clubs to coexist with the mid size and smaller clubs. A pretty strong second division as well. The only downside in comparison to us is the number of members u need to make majority fan owned clubs viable. Being a debt-phobe, Austrian school econonerd i love their attitude to debt levels even with the 'control' and 'monitoring' bit ;)
pete4
Guest
Interesting looking at the Bundesliga's financial model: "There are strict controls on German clubs' finances. Debt levels are closely monitored by the league to reduce the risk of insolvency. Expensive player transfers are vetoed if they look like they might prove unaffordable. All clubs must submit their financial projections before each season to league accountants before they receive a licence to compete" http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/real-madrid-v-borussia-dortmund-europes-balance-of-power-tipping-towards-a-german-bundesliga-thats-expert-in-balancing-books-8595644.html
j binnie
Guest
Tizzo-Your thoughts re.the ACL are admirable but have you stopped to consider how our own domestic league would look if this year's top two teams (by the proverbial mile) were to be made to be "more competitive" for next year.The mind boggles. jb
zutto
Guest
Heart can always play their game at Lakeside stadium.
Australian Rules
Guest
Does the FFA have $500k lying around to give out as 'gifts'?
Tizzo
Guest
Maybe the FFA should give a grant to those participating in the ACL. So for the next years competition CCM and WSW would receive $500k to help them be competitive and be closer to balancing the books.
Football United
Roar Pro
Heart need to move full stop, sub 8k crowds in a 30k stadium is just never going to work. They should lobby their private backers and south east councils for a 14k rectangular in the dandenong/cranbourne area..
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
@Dave I agree. Apart from (1), I see no reason to rush into running the A-league as a separate entity. For the first 8 years, the A-League has been draining FFA funds, it's only fair that the A-League spend the next few years - perhaps, the next 4 years until the next broadcast deal - subsidising/giving back to grassroots football, which has suffered due to funds being siphoned off to prop up ailing A-League clubs. The English FA took over 100 years to create a separate entity to manage & administer the EPL (Division 1). The A-League is an immature competition, so we should leverage 'lessons learnt' by other fledgling leagues as they evolved; not try to copy competitions that are mature.