Steven Lowy set to succeed father Frank as FFA boss

Couldn't be happier.

Your comment has not been deleted , unusual ...

Most AFL fans & "crosscoders" like myself haven't a clue how the voting system works in the AFL,or until reading several posts in "The Roar",how it works in the FFA. Strangely,this seems to have pretty much "flown under the radar" when it comes to the allegedly"Anti-Football" Media. If it happened in the AFL,they would "be all over it,like flies on a Barby snag." The most powerful clubs in the League would then, no doubt, put a lot of pressure on the AFL,& the idea would be quietly shelved. If it wasn't for Frank Lowy,we wouldn't have the FFA,so he is owed a debt of gratitude,maybe Steve is a brilliant choice,& probably it is all done by the book,but it looks bad----,like we are singing from North Korea's songbook..

Jb Correct and that's where football supporters dont want to go to the backstabbing and subterfuge , we're quite happy with the process that is current .

MF - Don't know how to take your closing remark for as you say it is a very efficient process and cuts out completely the subterfuge,back-stabbing, and behind the scenes "going ons" (which today's pollies call lobbying) that were prolific in bygone days, so it means that sports lovers like you and me and other contributors know exactly where they stand. Cheers jb .

Frank Lowy has been a great man for Australian football and in my mind he deserves all the accolades he gets. That does not mean he is infallible as the failed World Cup bid can attest. When he took over at FFA football was a basket case but that was eleven years ago and the game and its people have grown and matured. There are thousands more involved and a lot have put much money and or time into the game for little reward. Are we saying that the likes of Griffin, Page or the voluntary members of the State Federations should have no say in the composition of the FFA board where all the board members receive financial compensation for their involvement? Steven Lowy may prove to be the best thing to happen to Football Federation Australia but as a code have we not just limited ourselves to the wisdom of one man, Steven's father. I am not, and never could be an AFL, NRL or Rugby supporter and I have been involved in football in Australia since 1976. I have no personal axe to grind nor do I see this decision as catastrophic for the game but I do think we have missed a genuine opportunity to bring all of the football community together. Time will tell.

You're not for the betterment or welfare of Australian Football you're a pest .

jb I am very familiar with the state of the NSL circa 2003, and I also know that many clubs connected with the NSL are no longer with us in any capacity. Yes, I'm sure we could find many, many examples of poor governance across Australia if we went looking for it. This is a sports forum, which invites sports lovers like you and I to comment on Australian sport. Here, we have the unprecedented sight of the chairman of a national sporting governing body passing control of the body to his son. It's unprecedented and at a minimum, it creates a perception problem. If that weren't enough, we learn that the ten clubs who comprise the A-League tried to nominate one representative for election to the board - they failed in that attempt - the upshot being that there will be no election and the FFA's hand picked people will slot into the vacancies without the administrative burden of having to worry about being elected. I guess it's an efficient process.

MF - You obviously had no interest in the sport of football/soccer in the year 2003 or you would have known that the game ,even in its semi-professional state was not only 'on it's knees" but was to all intents and purposes "dead in the water'.It took a government backed inquiry to get to the root of the problem ,the outcome being that a man,Frank Lowy was approached "cap in hand"and asked if he could revive the game,not to it's former state but to a full-time professional game..This has been done and despite the usual mistakes being made on this type of revival,in the main success has been achieved. Now faced with your opinion re."'proper governance" I would point out that there are very learned people in this country today that would tell you the country itself is not being run under proper "governance",with 5 prime ministers from 2 political parties having come and gone in less than what would be regarded as a "normal ' term of government.So lets not isolate our football as an example of "bad" governance when there are far greater examples all around us every day, not only at Federal level but at State level as well ,if not local Councils.. PS - Re. Senator Xenophon's background I note we have another South Australian lawyer,with a very similar background,spouting off about this mis-carriage of governance. I would have thought he would be better trying to build the club where he is CEO up to the standard being set in the HAL by Melbourne Victory. Is it something in the air down Adelaide way???? Cheers jb.

I understand a few of you are working on the basis of it being a consensus, which is interesting because a consensus of sorts was engineered via the FFA with some strong arm tactics - but I think we all know and understand that it's merely a veneer of a consensus. Those who doubt the process is one based on merit are certainly out there, a few have expressed their concerns on this very board, and of course the club owners themselves now see that they are expected to prop up the A-League to the tune of tens of millions of dollars per annum while they are denied a voice at board level.

I hear the sound of a loose door banging in the wind.

Isn't this exactly how FIFA operates? Lowy has no credibility.

When football fans don't give 2 hoots about the process & AFL fans like you & AR do, then I see it must be good for the game. When good things were happening in the game, like when Ronaldo & co took over Melbourne for a week & Liverpool doing likewise in Adelaide & Brissy, you wanted to downplay it. Keep up the good work MF.

jb It's not about what Xenophon has or hasn't done, or whether Frank has been good for the game or not, it's about the perception that he is treating the FFA like his personal fiefdom by handing over the reigns to his son. When his son finishes his tenure, the FFA would have been ruled by the Lowy family for 22 years (being the length of time the FFA has existed). What if this son then hands the reigns over to the next son - is it appropriate that the national governing body of a major sport in Australia comes under the rule of a family dynasty? Interestingly, these developments are meant to be an example of the game having moved on from the political shenanigans of old soccer - but one could mount an argument that it doesn't represent a progression (in terms of governance) at all.

I think he is looking at you Mister Football, not the Wookie (who tends to stick with facts), unlike yourself.

JB Words of wisdom ... the biggest mistake is to make the same mistake twice... Frank has to much invested in Football to let it fall over...

Brillant

Mister Football- When the NSL stared up in 1977 Senator Xenophon was 18 years of age and from his Wiki had probably just entered university in pursuit of a law degree which probably took up most of his time.It goes on to say that after gaining his degree he began the job of setting up his own practice, which to be fair,in view of the competition in that field, would not have been easy but it appears he was successful and built an organisation specialising in injury and compensation litigation. Now we must attempt to put a time frame on these accomplishments and say that by this time he was probably nearing the age of 30 so that puts us in or around the year 89/90.There is still no mention of football in his wiki info. You will know that by that time Frank Lowy had been,seen, and walked away from the disgrace that was football's higher management but some 13 years further on Lowy was approached by some VIP's and asked to come back and re- build the game from scratch. Now bearing in mind that the emerging Senator did not, could not have entered the political field without a long preparation it is highly unlikely the he had the time ,or the inclination to get involved in the shenanigans that were going on in the NSL in the decade from 1990 to 2000 so although,as you say,he is entitled to an opinion it would be hoped that it is just not politic-speak and that he would have done due diligence into the circumstances that caused Frank Lowy to set up the type of management structure that has brought success in these last 10 years, Your thoughts? jb

I like the Wookie he does good work with his charts ...not sure why your defending him....I was simply highlighting that the AFL posters on this site represent a pattern across many sites.

Bondy It's a site similar to 442 be it the Rugby version... It's called Green &Gold Rugby. Like 442 they have a rating thread where Rugby folk discuss their ratings. The same as 442 & here on the Roar and as happens on league threads and sites certain folk or certain codes seem to create people who see their role in life to tell or yell the AFL at them .. much like religious folk trying to get people to stop drinking and see the light. They have a need to tell us about the AFL. As I posted earlier I mostly ignore them because the people I want to read or get a message to is what is important to me not the look at me posters.