The Socceroos have qualified for a fifth straight World Cup. It’s a sentence that 20 years ago would’ve seemed too good to be true. Even two months ago it seemed inconceivable after we were crushed by Japan at Homebush.
But by the skin of their teeth and thanks to some penalty shootout brilliance that has seen Andrew Redmayne draw comparisons to Tim Krul, Australia have overcome Peru – the 42nd-ranked team in the world and a side that massively outperformed heavyweights Colombia in South American qualification – 5-4 on penalties to book a ticket to the World Cup at the end of the year.
It’s a group stage draw that’s eerily similar to 2018, which saw the Socceroos pitted against eventual champions France, Denmark and, ironically, Peru. Australian now play the same two European outfits, both arguably improved on four years ago, and Tunisia. It’s fair to say a borderline miracle will be needed to secure progression through to the next round.
And when we reflect on the campaign that was, it’s easy to see why it took until the final kick for the door to Qatar to open itself firmly enough for us to squeeze in.
“Over 1008 days, 20 matches (only four at home), 11 different opponents, 15 different venues, and [we] were represented by 48 players, including 17 debutants,” FA CEO James Johnson said on Linkedin. It has been one of the more gruelling campaigns faced by the Socceroos, especially considering the backdrop of the professional game in the country that they have had to operate against.
The domestic game is considered by many to be on a heavy decline in terms of quality, particularly after being one of the most adversely affected by two years of pandemic. It’s undoubtedly been falling behind the rest of the nation’s sporting leagues in recent years.
Yet against the adversity that Australian football has faced in the last two years, the Socceroos have qualified for another World Cup.
But it’s not the qualification that matters – yes, it is important for the growth of the game domestically, and yes, it will inspire countless young players to watch and participate in the game at any level – so much as how the momentum of qualification is capitalised on.
(Photo by Joe Allison/Getty Images)
The administration and all other parties involved in Australian football must not squander the financial gains of qualification, which is a minimum of $12 million. Investing this into the proper aspects of our game – into the marketing for the game’s growth in the Australian social fabric, into the youth infrastructure in the country at a national and a club level and, perhaps most importantly, into the establishment of a professional footballing pyramid.
And while proper and worthwhile investment of the financial accruements of qualification is absolutely crucial in improving the infrastructure in and around the game here, arguably the most important aspect of qualification is the capitalisation on the social credit a World Cup brings to football in Australia.
Very rarely does any global sporting event gain as much attention on these shores as a World Cup. The 2018 edition of the tournament gathered millions of viewers on SBS, with Australia’s 2-1 defeat to France in the group stage reaching a peak audience of 3.4 million viewers.
It will be up to the game’s top stakeholders, James Johnson, Danny Townsend, and all those involved at both the FA and the A-Leagues, to capitalise on a very clear thirst for the world game in this country. Using the foundations laid by the Socceroos in Qatar to springboard the game out of the slump it has been in for the past few years and on to the path of advancement, where viewers are engaged, crowds come back with active support and the quality of the product on the pitch returns to its peak.
The onus will undoubtedly be on Graham Arnold and his men to put in a strong performance in the group and look like qualifying for the next rounds come November, something they failed to do four years ago.
It is a tough group, and many Australians understand that. France are the reigning world champions with myriad stars among the European elite. Denmark is a promising squad, a side pitted as dark horses for last year’s Euros before tragedy struck Christian Eriksen. And Tunisia presents a wildcard option – not many in world football would have in-depth knowledge about them, but qualifying out of Africa isn’t easy.
Nevertheless, the Australian public yearns for a World Cup run akin to 2006, but in the absence of progression, competitiveness – like when the Ange Postecoglou-led Socceroos challenged the Netherlands in 2014 – is what Australia’s football fans desire.
It is pivotal that, with the start of the World Cup and the start of the 2022-23 A-League happening simultaneously, those running the game use the momentum brought by the World Cup to transfer interest from the world game to the domestic one.
This summer has the potential to become a sliding doors moment for football in the country. World Cup qualification is no joke and not something that should be taken for granted but rather something that should be used to establish a base to build all facets of the game off of heading forward.
Grem
Roar Rookie
Great summary - and less cost would encourage more indigenous players and we need to have more in our game. Adam Goodes and others should have played football and gone to a World Cup.
NoMates
Roar Rookie
People were saying and thinking maybe this is the world cup we just had to miss, to restart/re manage/rethink of how to fix the wrongs of the past 4 years. Only 590,000 watched the Peru playoff match which is down from the 750,000 that watched 4 years ago on TV. If the A-League was of a lower standard of quality then surely the Socceroo's would have lost to Peru.
Roberto Bettega
Roar Rookie
12 different stakeholders will have their eyes on that $12 million, which in this day and age, will barely cover the increased cost of gas heating at HQ. Just enjoy another WC experience, good or bad, it's always something to savour. But I wouldn't expect any miracles in terms of transforming the domestic game. We will remain a little feeder league to the world's big leagues, like 95% of all other leagues. There will be occasional marginal improvements, there will be occasional steps back, but throughout it all, we will remain a little feeder league to the world's big leagues.
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
Your talking about totally different worlds. Football a lot of people play but only those willing to pay high NPL rego fees can progress. So that cuts out all the talent through greed. Rugby league, rugby union you have to sort of pay parents these days to have their kids play the sport. Touch football is the real kids sport that keeps the rugby codes going in this country. AFL its not viewed as rough as rugby league or union but not that safe anyway but they dont have touch football. My estimates are its football 4 to 1 on the others combined except touch football. So its not about how many play which code the majority are playing its football, its just that they are cut off from the Socceroos. Simple solution get rid of the NPL fees.
pacman
Roar Rookie
There is so much that needs to be done. Unfortunately, the structure of Australian soccer football ensures that meaningful reform will be extremely difficult. Instead of our nation's football being controlled by one incorporated body, we have another nine state & territory federations being involved. Much duplication and cost here. Can anyone name a nationwide corporation creating a separate corporate entity for each state or territory? Of course not. At the most, a state office will control operations in its state, adhering to guidelines outlined by the national head office. Several years ago on these pages I suggested that state/territory federations be done away with, and the sport be governed by a national body, supported by state offices. Two responses: 1. I was plagiarising a paper published by Jim Shoulder in the mid-late 1970's. No, I was modelling my suggestion on the operations of my previous employer, the Commonwealth Bank ( I worked for a period in head office, and from time to time would pass on directives to colleagues in the state offices}. 2. The state/territory football federation directors would not vote themselves out of their well paid jobs in order for their federations to be disbanded. I had no answer. Much as I dislike FIFA as an organization, I would welcome their intervention in dealing with this issue if that was remotely possible. Buy out the state directorships? Making an offer no one could refuse? Anything. Solve this issue, and the way is then open to reform the game and make real progress.
Steve3557
Roar Rookie
Solid comment. I’ve been an ALeague fan and member since the start. I’ve also been through the highs and lows with my team. I’m tragic enough that I’ve barely missed any of the games played , watching all the teams play on TV. I’ve traveled Australia and to NZ to build holidays around away games. There’s been some great teams to watch through that time, early Victory, Anges Roar, Arnold’s Mariners etc etc. But I reckon the overall play now is as good as it’s ever been. Some of the young players coming through are exciting and while I also don’t have the answers, I can tell you that fans are missing out.
josh
Roar Rookie
Australia would be the world number 1 Rugby League team, if we only played Rugby League. Australia would be the world number 1 Rugby Union team, if we only played Rugby Union. Australia would be the world number 1 Association Football team, if we only played Association Football. Australia would be the world number 1 Australian Rules Football team, if we only played Australian Rules Football. Oh wait. Local talent is a congested marketplace. Doesn't Soccer have the highest participation up until about 13? I'd say we have top quality players, making the World Cup Finals . The issue (and this will get bashed, like in the other column). But too succeed you need to go O/S; at least that is the perception and also the money trail. So the local product suffers somewhat, but the national team should benefit. This then sets the tone, what is the A-league? Is it a developmental league? Compared to all other major codes the NRL, AFL. They have the best players in the league playing for them. Our best players don't play in the A-league, and doubt they ever will (except for the start or tail end of their career). Look at the Big Bash, declining ratings and standards. But CA have made a point, they don't care (kind off, they care about the money, but no so much the "prestige or integrity of the competition, as they exclude National players). World Cup qualification is awesome, but I don't expect it change the status here. Our best national strategy is to have our best players playing against the best at a regular level. If that is O/S then fine.
Grem
Roar Rookie
You’re right – they need to make this World Cup count, which they haven’t done in the past. Our A League standard is good, our Socceroos are good – we are exporting players to decent competitions. The problem is, we are in a global game where the standard can be great. We need to channel money into youth programs to develop our next Harry Kewells and Tim Cahills – great players. The national second division will be helpful and interesting for this growth of talent, but youth development is a priority that needs to happen. And while youth development occurs we still need Danny Townsend’s “sugar hit” players to attract more people to and generate more excitement for the A Leagues. With our qualification to the World Cup and a World Cup at home next year and some bigger names in the A League, and with youth development happening, I’m sure things will look pretty good.
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
"The domestic game is considered by many to be on a heavy decline in terms of quality, particularly after being one of the most adversely affected by two years of pandemic. It’s undoubtedly been falling behind the rest of the nation’s sporting leagues in recent years." Completely innacurate statement. There are more wealthy teams than ever in the A-league. Now you have 12 teams of about the same quality as there were when there was 8. This has been a season of renewal in some teams got rid of old players that were holding them back , Sydney FC went backwards in that they kept old players and dropped out of the six. I would say the quality in other sporting leagues has gone backwards except for basketball and womens sports. The major difference is the Australian media black ban maybe due to Paramount being the outside of Channel 10 streamer.
Aiden
Guest
Has the quality of the A League dropped? Or has it always been about the same? Or is it better than it was 10 years ago, but no-one is watching. I'd say that the quality of the domestic product, while we still seem unable to produce many genuinely creative attacking players, has improved. Games over the last few seasons have been pretty good. I recall some far more turgid displays when there were 16,000 in the stands rather than 5000. Fact is, Aussies are fair weather sports fans. We need to feel we are pretty good at somthing internationally to come out in numbers. So, when we were winning WCs in the 90s, Rugby did well. Now we don't, rugby does badly. After our run at the WC the A League had pretty solid crowds and there was excitement in the early years. Now ... we think the 'Roos are not that good, so the cultural cringe factor comes into play and plenty of fans prefer to support an OS team. So in that sense, you are right. If the 'Roos make a good showing of it at the WC then the A League need to take momentum from that. But as we learned previously, its a sugar fix for the casual fan. The deeper issue is our inability to generate a pipeline of World class players who can generate fan interest here and internationally. If we don't get that right, we don't turn the casual fan into a rusted on supporter. And yes, 'plastic fans, who needs em rah rah.' Well, we do need them. Because ratings are poor and the stands are empty. We want the sport to grow and for some reason the Australian psyche is only interested in percived 'winners.' So you don;t get things like 10s of 1000s of Sunderland fans supporting their team in League 1. We have no history here. I've offered no answers I know. I want prom/relegation but its blocked by the A Leagues and in the short term no-one will come to the second tier, they don;t even come to the top tier. The only major solution I can think of is take the Japanese template for youth development and copy that.