There was an air of familiarity around Sydney FC’s progression in the FFA Cup, but will everything change after the FFA’s extraordinary general meeting on October 2?
On paper this looks like it could be one of the best A-League seasons yet.
Several clubs have made shrewd signings, others continue to get their back-room affairs in order, and there’s a sense that the gap between the competition’s best teams and its worst won’t be quite as large as in recent campaigns.
There are plenty of reasons for optimism then, and watching the FFA Cup quarter-finals on Fox Sports on Wednesday night, you wouldn’t have been left with the impression that Australian football has more than its share of problems.
Simon Hill was his usual articulate self, co-commentator Scott Miller offered some fantastic insight – more on that later – the ground looked reasonably full and Avondale looked like world beaters when Liam Boland scored a quick-fire brace in the second half.
And while Sydney FC laboured to their 4-2 extra-time win over the Victorian part-timers, their crosstown rivals Western Sydney Wanderers were putting a careless Melbourne City to the sword 2-1 at AAMI Park.
Bobo of Sydney FC celebrates a goal. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
All things told it looked like a fairly routine night in the annals of Australian football history.
But what happens in two weeks’ time if, following the EGM, the Congress reforms are passed and the current FFA board is thrown out on its ear?
Worse still, what happens if FFA blocks the Congress reforms and FIFA suspends Australia’s membership – putting the Socceroos’ Asian Cup campaign and the Matildas’ World Cup campaign in jeopardy?
What does the A-League even look like without Football Federation Australia?
Talk to A-League clubs – in private, at least – and you’ll discover just how much resentment is festering below the surface over the fact they have little say in the day-to-day running of the league.
And that might be a trivial complaint if it weren’t for the fact that many A-League clubs have felt for years that the constraints of the competition are costing them money.
Not trifling amounts of money either, but rather millions of dollars in lost revenue, licensing fees, salaries paid and all the other associated costs that come with running a professional football club in Australia.
If you want to know where the push for an independent A-League is coming from – and it’s worth remembering that a professional football league separate from its governing body was one of the key tenets of the Crawford report – look no further than the current clubs.
However – and I think this is an important question to ask, despite some interpreting it as a defence of the FFA – can the ten A-League clubs generate the sort of money brought in from broadcast deals and sponsorship agreements that the FFA has helped procure since 2005?
The winds of change sweeping through the game suggest they’ll be given a chance, but it’s only natural to wonder exactly what they would do differently to take professional football in Australia to the next level.
Roy O’Donovan of the Jets. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
They’d hopefully start with expansion – and the absurdity of the situation our game finds itself in was rammed home by Miller’s incisive commentary on Fox Sports on Wednesday night.
The one-time Newcastle Jets coach didn’t miss an opportunity to say something insightful, and it soon became clear the 36-year-old boasts one of the sharpest minds in the game.
What’s he doing next year? Coaching in the Victorian second division, of course. The lack of opportunity at the top level of the game is just one reason the A-League needed expansion years ago.
But there are always going to be vested interests, as the redoubtable Bonita Mersiades demonstrated in her excoriating takedown of Sport Australia’s concerns over the Congress Review’s Working Group report.
At the end of the day, we all want what’s best for football. But what does that look like?
And more importantly, how do you think this impasse will affect the new A-League season?
rob charlton
Roar Rookie
Nemesis - I can say this because it's true. Instead of frothing about what you perceive as past performance, it might be more sensible to look at the issues raised and consider whether (a) there is evidence to support the concerns and, if there is (b) how those concerns might best be alleviated.
rob charlton
Roar Rookie
So you would prefer to be driven by your prejudices rather than looking at issues as they exist now? D'oh!!
rob charlton
Roar Rookie
Exactly. That's the situation that drove my comments about issues of concern with the CRWG recommendations.
rob charlton
Roar Rookie
Lowy stated several times that he would not stand for re-election. He has done this without attaching any caveats.
oldpsyco
Guest
It is interesting how many contributors comment on "Grass Roots Football" ! Ask you local junior club President, when was the last time they got to vote on anything at the State level, anything at all? Ask them when was the last time their State organisation provided funds for equipment etc. ? Grass roots funds the higher levels, not the other way round! The pyramid is upside down and money trickles up through rego fees, not down!
oldpsyco
Guest
Check you facts in law! As a Player or a lower league Club, you are not necessarily a member of the State Body, times have changed buddy, now your just a customer, you don't get a vote, you get to do as you are told, nothing more.
oldpsyco
Guest
Based on what, do you make these assumptions ? There NO indication that Sponsors or Fox will walk, your just fearmongering! One thing for Sure the A league will look better without Lowy & Gallop and personally I think that is inevitable. Their positions are untenable!
Mister Football
Roar Guru
Good points about SA. Let's not forget that back in 2003-04, the Commonwealth Govt had to beg Lowy to take control of the re-birth of soccer, with the promise of millions in Govt money, and Lowy was able to name his own terms about how that was going to happen. Whatever happens next, it's unlikely that soccer will ever again have the ear of Govt as Lowy snr had it when he was in charge.
Mister Football
Roar Guru
Lowy the name is Lowy L-o-w-y
Waz
Roar Rookie
Ownership wont change. It will be the FFA Hal. It’s merely a matter of who administers the league and where profits are distributed too. It’s hard to argue Fox really want the code given their limited effort in promoting and broadcasting the competition but I don’t think they’d crash out of a 4 year contract just because Lowy isn’t in charge.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
Jets doin' ok at stockpiling good players too Kanga, what you on about?
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
Your argument is sound Waz. Thanks.
Nemesis
Guest
From the CRWG Report 14.5 Pathway to an alternative A-League Governance Model "3. Approval of the new arrangements by Congress The CRWG considers that, subsequent to endorsement by the FFA Board, there is likely to be a constitutional requirement for the final governance model and associated financial and licensing arrangements to be approved by the FFA Congress by Special Resolution. The APFCA and PFA CRWG Members have agreed in principle that the meeting of Congress that would consider that Special Resolution would not be attended by APFCA FFA Members nor by PFA FFA Members and that a quorum would be achieved through the attendance of Member Federation FFA Members as well as the Women’s Council FFA members. The required 75% prescribed majority would need to be achieved by the quorum of Congress in order for the Special Resolution to be passed." BRFC might need to get better legal advisors if they missed that. I know the APFCA are well aware of this.
Buddy
Roar Rookie
I confess I don’t see actual wealth amongst the A League clubs, certainly not in the way that you might view overseas clubs in big league although even there it is often a case of which club has the most debt...just backed by a wealthy owner that is prepared to pour money down the spout to see what comes out the other side..its a different world. I would say that in many ways it is similar to what we see with migration to Australia. Sydney and Melbourne and Brisbane have been the main destinations for decades. Jobs, housing, prospects, city living all those kind of attractions and regional centres such as Wollongong, Gosford and Newcastle do not come immediately to mind. However, once here and people understand the landscape, opportunities, affordability and the chaos of parts of our cities, then the horizons change. Probably not different in any country really. Even on a tourist level, people visit London, Windsor, Edinburgh and Oxford. Whilst all have their merits, it takes a more seasoned tourist to realise that there are some great places to visit in Bath, Salisbury, Liverpool, Manchester, Cambrisdge, Derbyshire Yorkshire and especially York - sorry I’m beginning to sound like an advert for the tourist board but I’m sure that it is the same globally. More research ne essary!
Nemesis
Guest
I've actually heard about the Trigger Clause from multiple sources. From someone who works at FFA and from several people who are in the media. Additionally, I've also heard - albeit from a less reliable source - that the clubs are not happy with the current deal and they already have an alternative broadcast deal in place. It will be underwritten by a sports marketing group (I'm assuming IMG, or Legardere, or similar) and is worth more than the current FoxSports deal. It would be basic contract law for FoxSports to terminate the contract if ownership changed. The terms of the contract would have changes significantly for FoxSports to void the contract. Same material change would happen if FoxSports were sold to the AFL. FFA would have reasonable grounds to void the FoxSports contract if they wanted. The FoxSports deal is terrible for A-League growth. Our competition is not reaching the majority of the core of our football community.
Buddy
Roar Rookie
Growing up in the uk 70’s and 80’s the only live football that was on tv were the big events which was why for many years the FA Cup final held more importance than winning the league. The only people that saw the league winners were those inside stadiums. Highlights were on saturday night BBC and Sunday afternoon ITV. Ironically, they used to beam a live game on a Saturday afternoon to many european countries and many people became fans of the english game through that exposure. Pay Tv and the change to EPL changed the landscape entirely. Pretty much everything was thrown into the mix as champions league, uefa cup and cup winners cup games became involved in the bidding war with paytv taking a huge slice of coverage. FTA TV didn’t stand a chance really with the figures that were being thrown at the game. Ironically though, around the same time, the price of admission went through the roof and has continued to do so. Football had always been on par with the cinema in terms of prices and that was often the debate. 2 hours standing in the cold or 2 hours in a warm comfortable seat watching a film ( not a movie in the uk). The game really changed from being “a working man’s sport” and it hasn’t taken a step backwards really even though ticket prices have dropped for less attractive games. These days you can argue it is about supply and demand and clubs have extended, rebuilt etc to accommodate demand - plus it is all seater stadiums. Mind you, it is all well and good having a stadium that holds 75000 but anyone who has been behind the goal posts and at the back of the grandstand at old trafford, emirates, Wembley etc etc will question whether they got a good experience. Pay tv isn’t cheap either in the uk and many people go to the pub to watch...it has created a whole new culture for watching the game.
Punter
Roar Rookie
Yes we all want SFC to win the premiership by 15 pts again.
Waz
Roar Rookie
Well said Nemesis. I replied before seeing your excellent response ????
Waz
Roar Rookie
“So surely those agitating against FFA should start looking to address the concerns raised by FFA and SA rather than just playing political games?” You don’t think the FFA and SA are playing political games? I do, as do many others. And if SA are so concerned about the governance of football where were those concerns during the Frank Lowy years? Where were those concerns when a father handed control to his son in an uncontested election? Where are those concerns when control of the sport sits with one man? SA has no credibility in this matter not least for the reasons above but also because it has zero interest in football. Look at the configuration of its board and the statements it makes on its website.
Waz
Roar Rookie
No, it’s the A League that is a frighteningly bad example. Spain’s national team is doing okay. Spain’s domestic competition is doing okay.