Jump in the Tardis and go back twelve months. Domestically, look at Clive Palmer and the chaos he was causing, Tinkler being talked back into accepting the Jets, Tony Sage on the verge of walking away from Perth.
Internationally, representative sides playing poorly, an aging senior squad. Harry leaving, the naysayers were in full flight.
Today, the Socceroos are breaking broadcast records again, while the A-League with record crowds and ratings. The depth of our various national squads appears strong again. The A-League is going free-to-air for one match a week.
The mainstream media, especially commercial stations and the ABC, and radio, no longer represent Australia as it is.
Rather, they show and report what they want Australia to be. Or maybe their view of what Australia is.
We are part of Asia and few stories other than mining emerge from Asia.
A school in Thailand celebrating the Socceroos going to Brazil and singing the praises of Australia and for one of our players.
Dylan sang in ‘The Times are a Changing’ a great line, “your old road is rapidly ageing”.
The under-25, maybe under-30, generation is not fixed to the Australia’s mainstream media.
It is also this age bracket that has most embraced football and streams matches. Back to the Thai Tims for a bit, if you were impressed by the Rogic/Socceroos/Brazil, how about the Thai Tims signing Waltzing Matilda?
If this does not bring a tear to your eye, then you are not human [the singing of the song]:
Practice
The song
I could go on about the 600 million watching the Japan vs Australia match across Asia but it just does not get reported.
What is increasingly becoming the (new) mainstream media is the web.
Globalisation is a concept the under 30s are used to living with. Buying Holdens because they are made in Australia is a difficult sell to this group.
They argue we pay for our education and most jobs today in small business are part-time or contract in nature.
The under 30s do not feel the country protects them, they pay high prices for houses, and education and the media by and large, aside from a few shows, does not represent them.
Technology and competition has resulted in cost-cutting and staff reduction across most mainstream outlets, resulting in few new positions being created over the last 15 or so years.
Beyond this, those that control the mainstream do not want noisy newcomers that may threaten their jobs and pensions. This results in the mainstream reporting what they are comfortable with.
In terms of sports reportings, it’s cricket, AFL, NRL and a twist of Union.
Football, more than any other sport, in Australia is played, understood and embraced by all cultures in Australia.
Further by a long way the biggest player base, and by light years the most global of codes.
Depending on where you start the count, we are about to enter a new phase of football development.
We are in the World Cup with many players pushing for positions in the side, youth development seems stronger than it ever has been, if the U/20 side is anything to go by.
The coaches in the A-League are light years ahead of the coaches in the first A-League season. The new free-to-air live broadcast of the Friday night match will enhance football even more.
Consider twelve months ago and where we are today, and imagine where we will be in 10 years.
PJ
Guest
Where did that 600 million figure come from?
AZ_RBB
Guest
yeah i got my figures from the WSW fan forum. could be inaccurate. the thought of nearly 8000 people with a reserved seat for the season is mind blowing. who knows what sort of numbers we'll be talking about come October.
ciudadmarron
Guest
Steve you are right, it's less than 50% though (at least according to GWS members I've spoken to) - something in the region of 40% Canberra 60% Sydney. However Jukes is also right in that GWS has given away 3 match passes left right and centre which they count as memberships, as he says Auskick, they've given them away at Uni open days, there was a promotion for an energy company which gave you a GWS membership if you switched over. For mine, a membership should be a season ticket; someone at some point has started this absurd contest to count as high as possible and the waters are completely muddied as a result and don't tell you anything apart from how many people are on a mailing list and paid some money to the club for something.
ciudadmarron
Guest
I think the numbers are a bit more healthy than that AZ, unless you know more: I recall that before the 4-match passes went on sale, membership was already between 6-7000, and there was only one non-ticketed option wasn't there? The clubs are loathe to release the breakdowns on this sort of thing but Collingwood told the press earlier this year that about 5% of their memberships were non-ticketed. I would imagine that across most codes that would be fairly similar - if anything, perhaps a bit less, given that Collingwood put heaps into their membership drives. As well, memberships this season are pushing 8000 from what I understand, and you'd think that at this stage the bulk of that would be even more likely ticketed (and full season seats only), because there's no pressure to secure a non-ticketed membership, that can be done at any time.
Midfielder
Guest
Fuss When you come we must meet up for coffee and ham and cheese roll ... or whatever else ... BTW I will take you to the COE ... I will also take you to the International football school if you like... Back to your thoughts... I guess I am kinda saying think about this set up from park team to A-League, a school, a stadium... close to Sydney .... I honestly don't think for a number of years will other teams have all this and how can it be put to better use [club glasses off all teams including the Mariners] for Football as a whole in Australia...
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
Middy Will have to give this some deeper thought, but 1 thing that strikes me - the AUS National Team seems to have, in recent times, found a new "training base" at Gosford. The current squad of A-league players trialling for the EAFF East Asian Cup are converging on Gosford for the training camp, the u20 team also set up base there & I'm pretty sure the seniors were camped there before the matches vs JOR & IRQ. I've yet to visit the Central Coast, but intend to make the journey this A-league season ... to see what all the fuss is about! )not a bad pun to end the day :-) )
Meh
Guest
I think FTA is a big reason for this. Rugby and Football have huge followings (as they are played by private schools) but aren't freely available on FTA. Hopefully this new SBS deal for HAL will change this.
Midfielder
Guest
Fuss Posted a reply that has been held up ... remember to check in a little while for another post made but not showing...
Midfielder
Guest
Fuss I have posted this before but it seems to have gone under the radar a bit .... something to keep your ears to the ground... The Mariners are very close to getting the stadium rights for Bluetounge .... if we do, and you add the Football School and the COE and the two academies ..... The broader implementations for football are huge... I am currently writing an opened letter to SBS hope the Roar publish as the fact these things go unreported in the general news is one thing but to go unreported on SBS .... HHHMMmmmm you do have to wonder why ... OK back on topic ... can I ask you to think from a broad Australian football perspective ...Football will have an area although still a RL heartland ... but with a big football heart... OK a 22 acer of training and conference facilities valued when completed somewhere between 25 & 60 million.... a sports high school thats trains people in football... two massive youth academies in the CC Associations and Western NSW Association .... with the academies now we have a school in place to be modelled on Ajax... hopefully soon our own stadium... .So Fuss how can Football Australia wide take advantage of this set up ... it is quite unique the structure ... park team, rep association team, Association teams playing at NSW State level, national youth team and national A-League team... playing out of a football controlled stadium, with Australia's best training facilities and now a school from year 3 to year 12....
Midfielder
Guest
Fuss Thanks for the link ... saved and locked away...
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
Midfielder I've finally found the new link to the Roy Morgan Report that analysed the viewing numbers for WC2006, broadcast on SBS TV. It's worth saving in your archives: http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/finding-4043-201302270248 Of special significance, Roy Morgan Research (RMR), who are one of the most respected statisticians in Australia, categorically state: "It’s clear from four special Roy Morgan telephone surveys that OzTAM have seriously underestimated the ratings of special television programs shown on SBS." As you will see from the table in the article, RMR found viewing numbers for AUS matches during WC2006 on SBS were, on average, 1.7 times (i.e. 70% higher than) the ratings supplied by OzTAM Peoplemeter.
AZ_RBB
Guest
Parra Stadium upgrade * Upgrading the Eastern Stand, including a new concourse, new food, drink outlets and better bathrooms * New corporate hospitality suites and a 500-seat function room, a new kitchen and new lifts * Better facilities for players including an upgrade of the change rooms and gym in the western grandstand, and an extension of the training field to full size * An additional 3300 seats on the northern and southern mounds, bringing the stadium capacity to 24,000 * The expansion is set to be completed in early 2015. Meaning it is most likely that both tenants will be affected. Part of a larger plan to eventually get the stadium to 40 000. At this point this is a fairly minor upgrade but a start nonetheless. It is up to both clubs, WSW in particular to show that the stadium truly does need an expansion by filling the place regularly rather than infrequently. If WSW continue this pattern of only selling out derbies and finals I would think the most financially viable option would be to keep the stadium as it is and send those big games to the Olympic Stadium. SBS also reporting that WSW memberships are at 7500 now with sign ups being opened to the public on July 22.
AZ_RBB
Guest
The Eels have called that stadium home since 1986 and filled it countless times. I don't think the Govt or the Stadium operators are going to turn against them after 3 months of success from the Wanderers. Yes all the most recent sell outs have been by the Wanderers and yes the Eels have sold their soul to an extent to the Olympic Stadium but end of the day the Parra RLC is just as important as WSWFC to that stadium.
Nathan of Perth
Guest
Hope you have better luck with that than we did with the Force :D
Jukes
Guest
Let them do the upgrade during the NRL season. We (WSW) are the main tenant of Parramatta stadium. Why should we get impacted by the stadium upgrade when the Eels cant even get close to filling it. I hope I am making sense. Sorry to all those eels fans but why not.
Nathan of Perth
Guest
If you end up with a mid-season stadium upgrade going on around you, it is going to be the biggest pain in the arse, but it should pay off.
AZ_RBB
Guest
announcement coming at 12:30 about adding 5000 seats to Parra Stadium. curious to know when work will start/finish and where the seats are going.
AZ_RBB
Guest
Total A League members now at about 30 000.
Griffo
Roar Guru
Sort of related to this topic: In just 5-days 3000 Jets members have resigned for the next season. New members can sign up from July. From memory HAL8 member total for Jets was around 11 300-odd, with a campaign for 11 000 for HAL8 (10 000 for HAL7) to sign. No campaign for reaching 12 000 for HAL9 but I am looking at that as an unofficial target before first kick-off Sydney FC vs Jets. Initial response is always quick, with some tapering off before final week flurry before first kick off but not bad so far...
Bondy
Guest
Mv Dave @ Towser It was very infectious the Fed Cup atmospehere this morning great to see a lot of people at a sporting event and with smiles on their faces and a cracking atmosphere. That trophy is Brazil's saviour because they will not win the world cup, not that team.