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For those who can’t be blamed for missing it, the biggest club tournament in Asia has in recent weeks returned to our self-styled sporting capital after a three-year absence.
Last night, Melbourne Victory kept a rare clean sheet in defeating Yokohama F Marinos of Japan, a win which followed last Wednesday’s 2-2 draw with Korea’s Jeonbuk Motors at Docklands.
Despite both matches being very much “alive” rubbers pitting one of the A-League’s most watchable sides against talented international opposition, the attendances they attracted were decidedly paltry.
All up, 6,128 came to Docklands last week. That crowd was only bettered by 229 fans last night.
For perspective, the most recent derby at the Docklands drew 45,202. Victory boasts over 22,000 members and an average crowd last season of 23,789.
When Australian clubs first entered the Champions League in 2007, there was much excitement and lofty ambition as clubs spoke with enthusiasm of taking on the continent’s best.
Aussie participation would keep football in the spotlight months after the A-League finished, and attract a higher calibre of player.
This it has arguably done, as recently evidenced by the arrivals of Tom Rogic in Melbourne and Kim Seung-Yong in Gosford.
Despite that, crowd figures have got progressively worse.
In no particular order, here are the reasons why.
1. Who are we actually playing?
The best sporting contests happen within a larger narrative, with renowned characters and established sub-plots.
The lack of mainstream coverage of – and interest in – Asian leagues means their players, managers and clubs are an undistinguished quantity when our Champions League opponents arrive. That is no matter how talented their line-ups may be.
Our football focus is undeniably European. Aussies choose to watch Everton over Evergrande and tune into Juventus ahead of Yokohama.
Football fans: as a test to yourself, attempt to name twelve of the eighteen J-League clubs and fifteen players in the K-League.
I know I’d fail that test.
2. Midweek lethargy
Unlike Europe and America, midweek professional sport isn’t enshrined in Australian culture.
A night out watching sport on a Tuesday or Wednesday is notable for its rarity (the thrice-yearly State of Origin being an exception) whereas in England going to football for midweek European ties and Cup replays has been popular for generations.
Most fans live in the suburbs and many have families. Families, remember, are the FFA’s target audience. Getting home at 10:30 on a weeknight is far from ideal, especially for kids.
Attending means added financial commitment, with Champions League fixtures not covered by a club season ticket.
The cost of dinner and a drink must also be factored in. Last night, the cheapest family tickets (two adults, two kids) began at $46.
When you include food, drinks and train fares or parking, that’s a night out approaching one hundred dollars.
It makes more sense for football families, who we’ll assume have A-League season tickets, to watch on television and come in on a Friday or Saturday night instead.
3. Lack of novelty value
In contrast to recent apathy, Melbourne’s first two home matches in Asia were memorable occasions.
The first, in March 2008, was a 2-0 triumph over the Chunnam Dragons in front of a vibrant 24,656 at Docklands.
The second was even more epic – a valiant 3-4 defeat to Gamba Osaka (who went on to win the competition) played in front of almost 27,000.
Around half that number turned out to see the final group match of 2008, a dead rubber, against Chonburi of Thailand.
In three Asian campaigns since, the club have failed to crack 8000 at a home game – well down on even the lowest A-League attendances Melbourne draw.
4. Everyone loves a winner and we’re not winning
All in all, A-League sides have fared poorly in the ACL.
Exhibit A: Tuesday night’s narrow win was just Melbourne’s fifth in twenty-one matches.
Additionally, the great Brisbane Roar team never notched a win in Asia. Sydney FC have had their moments but never made the knock-out stage.
Adelaide United’s under-appreciated journey to the final in 2008 remains the exception rather than the rule football administrators hoped for.
Competing on a year’s delay means Australian clubs don’t get the chance to test themselves against the best while on a roll.
Central Coast Mariners, for example, won the A-League championship last April but had to wait until February to compete in Asia.
During that time, seven of their grand final starting eleven departed, along with manager Graham Arnold.
Other factors which make it hard to compete are limited squad sizes, a restrictive salary cap and unhelpful scheduling.
Tonight, Western Sydney play their fourth match in eleven days.
Understandably, fans and the clubs they support – and not just Australian ones – are prioritising the bread-and-butter of the league over Asia, which is either a bonus or burden earned by success, whichever way you look at it.
Necessary rotation means several top players missing from most midweek sides, and with that, the Champions League becomes further devalued.
5. Lack of promotion and a ludicrous stadium deal
Do the general population of sports fans know the Champions League is happening? I’ve yet to see any promotion beyond Melbourne Victory’s in-house social media channels.
This is anecdotal – correct me if I’m wrong – but there have been no promotional billboards, nor ads on trams, nor radio ads for this international sporting event.
I’d argue the matches themselves are of a higher quality to the A-League, though you wouldn’t know it judging by the lack of promotion and poor crowds achieved by extension.
Another turn-off is Etihad Stadium where, due to a short-sighted and long-term contract Victory agreed to circa 2007, the majority of Champions League games are played.
Turn-outs of 6000 at built-for-football AAMI Park are tolerable – Heart live with it – but are depressingly eerie at the cavernous Docklands.
Fourteen years after opening, the stadium (not to mention surrounding areas including pubs) remains soulless and poor for watching football without the seats brought in.
And stadium management have a historic contempt for Melbourne’s active support.
6. Criminalisation: fans are over it
One could write a book, never mind an article, on the challenges faced by football fans in Australia.
I’ll spare you the detail today, but here is a sample of what’s happened this season alone.
There has been: a handing down of unfair stadium bans with no right to appeal, police searching bags of innocent fans who fit a certain “look” hundreds of metres from grounds, police requesting personal details without reasonable suspicion, counter-terrorism firm Hatamoto employed to spy on fans, supporters travelling hundreds of kilometres to away games only to be barred from entering stadia and/or entire suburbs, inaccurate and sensationalist media reporting and the ill-thought-out, draconian FFA action with suspended points deductions hanging over two clubs.
We live in Australia. And we’re not only football fans, but citizens. We’re not used to this type of policing and authoritarianism.
In other parts of the world, heavy-handed policing and dictatorial rule is a part of life from a young age. Not so here.
We’re not born and raised with a defence-mechanism to such rule, both individually and as a common collective.
After enduring espionage, suspicion, misrepresentation, restrictions and criminalisation for merely spending weekends at pubs and the football rather than, say, stamp collecting or horse riding, you can’t blame people for throwing their hands up and walking away.
Or at least you can’t blame them for being sufficiently “over all the bullshit” to skip unappealing games on a weeknight which their mates won’t be at anyway.
Even police and security – often visibly on edge at football matches, ready to react to any sign of spontaneity or non-conformity – have struck me as relaxed on Asian nights, with the tiny crowds and usual hordes choosing not to come in.
If “divide and conquer” was an intention of the various crackdowns, the authorities can pat themselves on a job well done.
I was there last night, but dozens of my mates – and more importantly for football, many thousand Victory members – again gave the Champions League a wide berth.
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