This week’s announcement of the domestic match calendar has the second division is kicking off in January and finishing in May. Why?
The NPL kicks off in March. There is no precedent for the NPL clubs to play in summer. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to reliase Australia has the hottest summer football league in the world.
Is it so it aligns with the to-be-renamed FFA Cup? Should the second division sacrifice winter football so a handful of teams get to play some A-League teams? It would be better to get rid of the FFA Cup and keep the national second division as a winter competition, or even just to keep the current FFA Cup scheduling.
Then there’s the fact the A-League teams get to start in the later stages but NPL teams have to start at the beginning, like all participants. Did we just get hoodwinked into a summer second division because of a few FFA Cup games?
I wonder whether a summer second division has been envisaged because of the Australian Professional Leagues – but it makes no sense for a club in the national second division to pay any money to the APL, a profit-generating entity, for the privilege of playing in a league that has no access to the A-League. The APL sells licenses at $15 million each, so why should a second-division team pay for the privilege of maybe playing in the A League in 10, 15 or 20 years time?
It’s telling that little has been said about when promotion and relegation will occur, and so it makes no sense for any of the prospective second-division teams to pay for the privilege of regressing their level of football to a summer competition standard. It’s cheaper to play in the NPL and the game will be faster. Is NPL and state league football going to be moved to summer after a century of winter football in this country?
Matches played recently by the Olyroos, who comprise mostly A-League players, have shown us where under-23s football competes internationally, and the AFC Champions League has shown us how the A-League stacks up against other clubs in the region. Improvement is clearly needed, but it’s hard to believe summer football will achieve it.
I wonder whether the second division has been scheduled to quash the chance for momentum to build for a breakway league. Almost 6500 were at this NPL final in Sydney in 2019. I can imagine there being a risk that some winter games of the national second division would have more people in the crowd than some summer A-League matches.
If Paramount claims that football is going to be the No. 1 sport in Australia, how is it going to achieve this? Are they saying that summer football will have more than the 30,000 average attendance of the AFL and more than a million members when the metrics already show a decline in summer A-League?
I am struggling to see the positives in the APL taking over the A-League and now the knock-on effects on the prospects of the national second division.
Grem
Roar Rookie
I'd be happy with that. I agree that the football quality would be better in winter - if the commercial / financial side was in place and in support of that it would be great to see.
Winter A League is Awesome
Roar Rookie
Even $50M and a winter season would be fine :silly:
Grem
Roar Rookie
66.5 million pounds as a yearly cap per club. I'll say that's roughly 100 million Australian dollars per club. I'm pretty confident that any of our A League clubs, with that cap, might go OK in the ACL.
Winter A League is Awesome
Roar Rookie
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.eurosport.com/football/chinese-super-league/2020/chinese-fa-bring-in-salary-cap-for-the-new-chinese-super-league-season-to-avoid-complete-failure_sto8184513/story-amp.shtml Dragon posted about the introduced salary cap in China now. I dont think the A League is anywhere near ready for no salary caps so could be a great warning.
Grem
Roar Rookie
It didn't open but I assume it is a lot larger than the A League. Oscar's transfer alone was 60 million. Our A League deal from Paramount is about 40 million for one year. It's hard to compete when the disparity is that much.
Blood Dragon
Roar Rookie
CSL now has a Salary Cap https: //www.bbc.com/sport/football/55317928
Winter A League is Awesome
Roar Rookie
I am concerned that Football Australia who is in charge of the Socceroos is bending football to suit the APL and not the APL to suit football. For all the talk of self sustaining, Victory had a $7 million loss over 2 rubbish FOOTBALL related reasons. Who would have thought the financial revenue for football clubs is linked to football??? Is there no better example than Victory Members who there were around 15k at the start of the season had an average attendance of 5k? Newcastle is being funded by other clubs. The Mariners have been for sale for a while. Perth was almost sold for some worthless crypto. All other leagues keep progressing and anyone can take out their phone and see it from home. The ACL and Olyroos and World Cup results show this. But let DTAPL/Sydney FC run all football in this country now. Just because Sydney think they cant compete with NRL. Which they can and should.
Justin Mahon
Roar Rookie
The tail will not wag the dog - that's why. If a NST is to be a commercial (and therefore a football) reality, it needs to be aligned with the only national league that can fund itself. This (summer NPL) is how JJ will ultimately deliver a NST that, phased in over time, can adjust to the commercial reality of Australian football. IF, and it's a very big 'if', the NST achieves this - a phase in Pro/Rel and the sale of the NST to the APL won't be far behind. Expecting the APL (who OWN professional football) to agree to anything else is nonsense and it is the completely expected outcome of spinning off professional football in the first place. A decision I have come to support in hindsight. The more concerned YOU are about the FFA/APL splt, the more convinced I am of it's merrits.
Justin Mahon
Roar Rookie
Amen to #RealTalk
Winter A League is Awesome
Roar Rookie
DT is talking about converting people from streaming EPL games and getting them to come to the football. Yet he cant even get Victory members to come. I am sure talking about the football on channel ten is going to bring back all the Victory memebers, ex active support, convert the epl streamers and get neutrals down to the game. Channel ten is just that powerful. Because no one comes to the football for the quality of the football on the pitch. Everyone comes for the cheap hot dogs :stoked: . Thats the future.
Winter A League is Awesome
Roar Rookie
Not one person has actually put up any figures. Victory lost $7 million playing crap football in summer. The A League has declined since 2013. All these are commercial realities.
Jordan Sports Fan
Roar Rookie
The commerical realities a few people have commented here already.
Winter A League is Awesome
Roar Rookie
Is there something Wikipedia is missing? It covers both hemispheres and even accounts that the months may be in different seasons in different areas of the world. Which was outlined 2 months ago. And Australia still came out the hottesr summer league. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Summer_association_football_leagues
MarkfromCroydon
Roar Pro
It makes me laugh how virtually every author and commenter on here does not know that the continents of South America, Africa and Asia exist.
Winter A League is Awesome
Roar Rookie
Nah mate sorry. Busy. Thanks for the offer though. :football: :football: :football:
Winter A League is Awesome
Roar Rookie
I think I understand what you are trying to say Dragon. If there is no question, there is no answer. And if there is a question or an answer, who is the one observing the question and the answer. But where did the question come from and did the answer precede the question? If I got it wrong, than I shall do 300x hail Summer Rugby Sydney fcs. But if I got it right, could you please stop the trolling and write your own articles?
NoMates
Roar Rookie
Im actually trying to do the kiwi accent with the likes of Yusss etc. BTW u would cum/come over for Chully Wings?
Winter A League is Awesome
Roar Rookie
So you know what it means and yet you continue to use it? I can see why the no mates thing is appropriate and as no one would want to hang out when you say come over :laughing: . Come over and watch the game. Nah mate we good.
Winter A League is Awesome
Roar Rookie
I see you didnt read Debating for Dummies. I will check if there is a 2 for 1 deal where you and jb can go halvies. You can read it on the plane for when you got to AAMI as you seem to be the expert on the subject. Whats the question and whats the answer you are eluding to? You just took some random words that have nothing to do with the thread and said that is the question and that is the answer. Thats very zen. Is this a winter koan? I must meditate on it.
NoMates
Roar Rookie
Is that the best you can do? Cum on mate u can do better then that.