New Zealand will soon have two sides competing in the A-League Men’s competition and not too long after that, a second women’s team in the Liberty A-League.
Bill Foley is a 78-year-old American businessman who owns Premier League club AFC Bournemouth in the United Kingdom, has a significant stake in FC Lorient in France and heads a consortium of owners who control the Las Vegas Knights, an expansion ice hockey team in the United States.
The Texas-born billionaire has been granted the newest A-League licence, with the men’s team set to join the competition in 2024/25 and the women’s team to come into the fold a season later.
Foley’s net worth has been most recently estimated at around $1.6 billion, with Forbes usually reliable in making such estimations.
He is exactly the type of person Australian football needs and has drawn to it, via impressive international results from both the Socceroos and Matildas, with the fundamental core of the playing groups having cut their teeth in the domestic competitions.
With Perth Glory seemingly on the brink of something special, and an ownership interest that fell through at the eleventh hour, as well as the Newcastle Jets still waiting patiently for the investment and belief from a committed source that could potentially turn the tide for the men from the Hunter, Foley’s investment into the A-League is much needed.
Some will argue that a second New Zealand team is not the most urgent necessity for the A-League right now and a decent argument they could potentially make.
However, when a billionaire with a proven track record in investing in sports teams and achieving success whilst not leaking money at a rate that could have them baulking at the thought of doing so again decides to take the plunge, the domestic game as a whole should be shouting with joy.
Without a crystal ball, it is of course impossible to know whether the plunge into the Auckland market which will be a positive for the A-League in the short term, is also to be advantageous in the long term.
Yet the Phoenix have pulled excellent crowds in recent years whilst playing in New Zealand and away from home in the exquisite harbour city.
Frankly, I do not quite understand some people’s reluctance to have a second New Zealand-based team, particularly where the crowds in the home base of the new franchise have been better than those at the cake tin, where the Phoenix has grown as a club over the last decade.
The investment of Foley and the sheer logic of the numbers suggest that Auckland will make a far bigger immediate splash in the A-Leagues than the arrivals of Western United and Macarthur FC, in spite of the fact that United did manage to win a premiership in quick time.
Foley set about a six-year plan to get the Vegas Golden Knights to the promised land and raise the NHL Stanley Cup trophy. Many thought he was mad, yet the prophecy came true and the 2023 championship says a lot in terms of putting one’s money where one’s mouth is.
Bournemouth continue to be a worthy adversary in the EPL, now back in the top flight after some time in the EFL Championship and for now, outside the drop zone as the competition approaches Christmas.
Rumours that Foley is eyeing off investment in Scottish Premier League club Hibernian could prove fact or folly, yet the opportunity to welcome an international investor with a proven track record in bringing success to the teams in whom he hitches his wagon is one simply impossible to refuse.
With National Second Division announcements and the pending Matilda and Socceroo broadcast deals to be announced by Football Australia in the near future parlaying all the positivity circling the game right now, Foley’s entrance to the domestic scene looks a no-brainer and a potential coup for the APL.
The A-League will have 13 teams next season and yes, the competition has been burnt in the past by certain individuals claiming to bring everything required and subsequently being proven as nothing but snake oil salesman.
Foley looks cut from a different cloth and if only football could drag a few billionaire locals like Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest and Gina Rinehart away from the colonial sporting money pits they have supported in the past and invest in the game set to frame the future of Australian sport on the international stage, the A-Leagues might well stand a chance of growing exponentially over the next decade.
Welcome aboard Auckland, I look forward to the away day.
Blood Dragon
Roar Rookie
Football for Males and Netball for Females in terms of Participation, Basketball is also very popular as well.
Grem
Roar Rookie
Walking before you run is always a good idea! It would be great to see football in both countries grow further. I have the understanding, and it may be incorrect, that while rugby union is the most popular game to watch in NZ, football is the most popular to play and their participation numbers are good. Is that correct? As Gary wrote, in time Oceana may become a part of Asia, if Asia is split. Seeing Australia and New Zealand at World Cups would be great, especially after NZ’s last undefeated run.
Blood Dragon
Roar Rookie
If Auckland works out a 3rd team in Christchurch is a great idea but I think we need to see how Auckland goes 1st, the owner of Christchurch United has been interested in putting his team in the A-League for a while but he is a Pro Putin Russian/Ukranian and a lot of his assets are currently not accessible as they are tied up in Russia so that does put some people off.
Christo the Daddyo
Roar Rookie
My guess is that Auckland will be more popular than Wellington pretty much right from the start. The problem children for the A League are WU and Macarthur. WU are only in the comp based on a lie - still no sign of the promised stadium. And Macarthur seems to be clueless as to how to build a fan base. Not that they’re on their own in that regard of course…
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
The AFl controls the purse strings and the draft and all these loopholes its really a dictatorship from Melbourne headquaters except for those clubs with enough money. When the members voted against the AFL in the past they just bankrupted the clubs and took them over and did what they wanted anyway. What about all those mysterious members the GWS has with Melbourne addresses. You should be thanking the A-league for saving the existing Melbourne clubs from further culling and allowing them to be in grand finals. The AFL grand plan was for Brisbane and Sydney to dominate the AFL followed by Gold Coast GIants and then joined by a NZ team in the future. Then once Docklands was paid off by the Melbourne clubs the next stage of culling was to begin. The A-league came along and all those plans were abandoned.
AR
Roar Rookie
"the nrl and afl would be dead if it wasn’t for the BILLIONS thrown at by ch 9 and ch 7 every year." Yep. That's what broadcast deals are for. Same with Sky and the EPL. And Amazon/CBS/ESPN/ABC/Fox/NBC and the NFL.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
I think that one's obvious. NZ play in Oceania, simples. But I'm not sure the APL talk about youth development. Maybe they do, but mostly that's the FA and some clubs. After last season's transfers, especially from Mariners and Adelaide, clubs are endeavoring to become more financial stable and make money, rather than lose $millions.
Garry
Roar Rookie
"Theoretically, can Auckland or Wellington win the competition and be granted a position in the Asian Champions League?' the answer has alwys been clearcut...No.
Harry Brill
Roar Rookie
Thanks for your comment Lionheart - and I agree. AUS/NZ share the A-League out of necessity, not desire. Financially sensible, being of different confederations is surely an issue that will become problematic? Theoretically, can Auckland or Wellington win the competition and be granted a position in the Asian Champions League? Further, the APL claim that Australian youth is their priority - Auckland's arrival is not consistent with such. I'm hopeful, but torn.
Buddy
Roar Rookie
EF- there is absolutely no correlation between junior football especially at grassroots level and the professional game or numbers playing the professional game. It really is about time a lot more people understood this. There are thousands of players that play socially and have no interest in trying anything higher or having kids try out for anything. The large playing numbers just reflect a social scene - that is all. By way of example, our local under 12 competition has 7 divisions of 8 teams per division. A squad can be up to 16 players but averages probably 14. that is 784 players in that age group in one area of Sydney. Out of those players, there might be 10-20 that aspire (or their parents do) to play anything higher than grassroots. BTW - that is just boys - there will be another 4 divisions of girls. The numbers are just that and should not be interpreted to draw any other conclusions.
Buddy
Roar Rookie
Rodger. I haven’t given it that much thought but I (along with many) get fed up seeing the same old same old and the A League struggles away so why not at least try a different model. I totally get that you will come across people/companies who want to beat the system but there are ways to deal with that. I’d expect to elect a chair and a board and have an AGM for the running of the club to answer to its members - ie the people who put up the money!
Garry
Roar Rookie
but if we spilt the Asian conference into two zones and NZ/Oceania joins ours...
Garry
Roar Rookie
the more political correct event might be the Shaky Isle Shakedown :happy:
Garry
Roar Rookie
"He didn’t divulge exact figures but that would mean an annual operating budget of around $20 million. Foley wants the franchise to be based around homegrown players but admits it will take time to develop an academy." "We anticipate the first year we'll probably lose $5 million and the second year we'll probably lose around $3 million and then by the third year we should be break-even or modestly profitable."
Garry
Roar Rookie
"Foley had never considered an Australian A-League venture - “I’m such a fan of New Zealand” - nor purchasing the Wellington Phoenix if they had been for sale."
Rodger King
Roar Rookie
It is still early days for the Bulls/Rams [whatever they are called] and WU. I am more optimistic about these two clubs than most. Mac will be a slow laborious club plodding away without making much of an impact, and at some point in time [using my crystal balls] say 2050 they will be a force both on and off the pitch. WU will end up being the most successful club in the A-League. They will, eventually, build and own their own stadium, and all the money the rest of us have to fork out for 'rent' on match days they will be putting into their club, or the owners pockets. As for Auckland, I am excited, mainly for them, and for us. I do not believe the league will have a bye and that all the behind the scenes wheeling and dealing will be done on time for both of them to come in to start the 2025 season.
Rodger King
Roar Rookie
Loving it already.....hahahaha
Rodger King
Roar Rookie
Or Salisbury United.
Rodger King
Roar Rookie
The ST will have plenty of time to save up for such an event. Watch them all think twice about it when they see the costs involved and having to find around 20mil to run in the ALM/W
Rodger King
Roar Rookie
@ Buddy - Would you expect to have a say in how the club runs? Or would these 10,000 'owners' elect a chairman and a board? The concept sounds great, as a suggestion why don't you run it past the people in Perth or Newcastle? I think a club could be run on a minimum of 20mil once you add in the ALW and an academy program. It would be really interesting to see how it would turn out. It wouldn't be at the rich end of the A-League more along the lines of an Adelaide or Mariners, and that's a plus for the league.