Why Australian football is at war
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- Опубліковано 3 гру 2024
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Football Australia are proposing a huge shake up to the way the domestic league is structured. Previously whichever of its two playoff finalists finished highest in the A-League regular-season table got to host its final. Now the final will be played in Sydney regardless.
Why is this so controversial? Seb Stafford-Bloor explains. Philippe Fenner illustrates.
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#ALeague #Australia
Only thing I'd add is that this deal was done in secret. Half of the clubs, let alone the fans were not informed until after the contacts were signed and it was too late to reneg. The APL knew it would be unpopular, but I think they underestimated how extreme the fallout would be. The fans walkouts and now boycotts / terminating subscriptions and memberships will likely cost more in one season than the deal will make over the next three.
It's good to get a solid view point. Do you think this can get resolved within 2023?
It was also signed secretly by the bosses around a year ago, but only told anyone about it a couple weeks ago.
There is also thr outright corruption that lies at the heart of everything the NSW Government does. Friendlyjordies fans know all about it, consumers of the mainstream media just get Liberal Party propaganda, where backroom deals with secret payoffs are just 'how we govern'.
I kindof doubt that if the addiction to bread and circuses around the rest of the West is anything to go by, and (commercial) sport is a bizarrely integral part of Australia's national identity
@@TheThreatenedSwan It is our uniting feature.
thank you for covering this. it looks like they’re not going to backtrack on the decision and things may get uglier
It's like Townsend is Woodward and the Glazers and we all know what happened to Woodward's home in the end....
@@PerthLuxury And we all know the Glazers are going too
the goalkeeper incident killed any chances of them backtracking - they can't even do that anymore even if they wanted to because it would look like they gave in to violence
@@newgoogleplussux2802 the USA says that they don't negotiate with terrorists, yet they negotiate with Putin on prisoner swaps.... I wouldn't rule anything out....
@@newgoogleplussux2802 agreed
Been following this page for years, and it's never failed to cover everything, Explained really excellently.
It's biased & defends violence of fans
It's named tifo not Infantino's servants
It didn't cover everything and it extremely biased
It kinda forgot to mention a massive part of this story which was the pitch invasion at the Melbourne derby. The goalkeeper and referee were attacked during this crowd invasion, which sadly killed off all momentum the fans had and any hope of the APL's decision being reversed
@@shehannanayakkara4162 i would add that the pitch invasion and subsequent violence was caused directly by the APL’s decision and lack of recognition of the fans’ concerns and protests. I obviously agree that the violence was both sad and unnecessary, and probably set the cause back by some way; but framing it as something that is only the fans fault is simply gaslighting
The A League used to be run by the FA
The professional clubs said they could run the league better and took it over and formed the APL.
Supporters who had long hated-on the FA for failing to make football in Australia a major popular sport; decided the APL was going to fix everything.
One decision they took was to sell the TV rights to a new streaming partner.
The free to air network kicked the A League off their main channel because of low ratings.
The streaming partner had been contracted on the basis of achieving a certain number of subscribers. This target was not met. The A League (APL) therefore did not get the revenue they imagined.
To make up for the lost revenue the sold the Grand Finals to NSW for $12-15m.
So yes
1. NSW bias (although most NSW think the decision is dumb)
2. General decade long distrust and hatred of the game administration
3. A large section of the supporter base who will never accept the A League and want the NSL back
4. A need to cover a massive shortfall in revenue from the clubs (who own the league now)
well said.
Yep good analysis.
As well as the NSW bias, I think there's also the Sydney vs Melbourne rivalry exasperating it. See another comment here saying how unfair it is Melbourne gets so many events while Sydney gets "nothing", as well as the general tactics of Arnold compared to a Postecoglou with the Socceroos and things like how leadership spills in political parties often fall, to even the fact we had to make a new city to be our capital to prevent civil war (slight exaggeration).
I say this of course as a Queenslander who would never feel dirty about ever being left out ;
Imagine thinking basing game in biggest city in region is biggest problem?! Sums up this non issue well
Let's think of another feasible scenario. A cashed up WA government buys the A League grand final for three years (as they did with netball in 2022). How would football fans feel about flying to Perth and spending thousands of dollars on airfares and accommodation. How ridiculous would it appear with both teams being from eastern states (sorry Glory). Anyone that agrees with decision, needs to think of the scenario above. Because it could easily happen. Football A League matches have crowds of under 10k. How many of them would actually fork out thousands for airfares, when the unfairness is clearly visible. Its a complete snub to the clubs outside NSW and their fans. Worse off, its treating them like second class citizens and saying if you want to see your team you'll have to pay up big. But not if you're from NSW. If it was Perth vs Adelaide you'd struggle to get a crowd of 10,000. What if Wellington finishes on top and then officialdom has to inform the NZ public that the grand final must be in Australia. That would be the end of that franchise. This has a huge impact on football fans wanting to follow the A League and their team. It will certainly affect tv ratings, with fans thinking the product is tarnished. Why would anyone want to see the grand final in NSW. Football has scored an own goal, when the A League needs to be kicking goals. The competition needs credibility, which they've managed to do the reverse of.
Football Australia has messed it up by having extra teams. Product quality has dropped and it feels you're just supporting a suburban competition not a super comp. It should only be Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide, Melb (x2), Sydney (x2) plus regional NSW... then certainly NZ. But absolutely no more Australian teams. Australia can only have 8 teams absolutely maximum.
Reminds me of when they changed the Libertadores final from being two matches at each team's home to a final match on neutral ground. The issue is It's harder to travel like that in South America than it is in Europe, and many people are just not happy about the change still.
South American football fans should riot more against that change
To be honest I like the 2 legged tie final too
But it's not neutral. It's a home team advantage for Sydney teams
I love football, but I cannot bring myself to go watch a game between clubs that aren't my own. The first libertadores final played with this format was in my country of Uruguay, it was a 60k seater stadium half empty, it was sad. There was no passion. Most South Americans cannot afford to travel half the world to see their team. We need the two legs back.
@@ignaciokapo But, I think I understand why they changed it. I live in Africa and CAF also changed the Champions League and Confederations Cup finals to be held at neutral venues. While your complaint is valid, the governing body would have noticed that the two legged final tended to favour teams that are at home in the second leg. While the experiment seems to have paid off here in Africa with an above 50% attendance rate for both finals since implementation in 2020, it may not work in South America. So, it will have to go to a consensus as both a two-legged final and a neutral final have their benefits and drawbacks
As an Australian who watches A-league something important to add is the sport is not big here - so having the finals to the top team makes it special for the local fans that aren’t many in number to begin with.
Bogus. Football has more participants than any other sport. The A-League is unpopular.
@@freddyfilter5666 he literally just said the A-League was unpopular.
@@freddyfilter5666 do you even know to ready ya muppet
Perth gets 10k on average. You might get 2000 max flying over. If they were playing Adelaide, then you'd better be giving away free tickets.
It undercuts the grand final concept as well. Soccer fans are already suspicious about why a grand final is required, when its not cultural for soccer around the world.
It’s pathetic. I’ve lived in Sydney my entire a life and was once a passionate Sydney FC supporter. The inner city and eastern suburbs of Sydney have become such an uncultured cesspool of wigs with money. No Sydney football fan will have any interest in going to watch two other clubs play each other in a game that means so much for them. I watched my team win the grand final on a penalty shoot out in the stadium they will be hosting these games at - it was incredible. The atmosphere was something I had never experienced before. To think that a fan could watch the exact same game, albeit with two different teams outside of Sydney, with a neutered crowd makes me sad. It’s a representation of Sydney as a whole and how Australia views anything that the common folk have made popular. That is, slap a price tag on it and move it to Sydney.
As an Englishman living in said Sydney Eastern Suburbs, the only time I was interested in domestic football in Australia was briefly for a season when Del Piero was here. Other than that, the reason this is dumb is because Australian football is nails on chalkboard painful to watch.
@@JoeCool90 yep, too slow and pass it round, no pace and no attack, like watching grass grow, so negative to watch
The grand final would be in Parramatta not Moore Park
Yes, the quality is low. However, as a teenager when I was attending the games I was more enthralled by the spectacle. Away fans have trouble travelling to games as is due to the distance, a final will encourage more people to come but certainly not the number that fills up their home stadiums.
@@twenty-two8651 I’ve never seen a full A League stadium.
Some of my best childhood memories were watching Brisbane roar as a 9-year-old at Suncorp stadium. The days of big crowds, Berisha and Broich. I lost interest over the years as my priorities shifted to other sports and Arsenal. When I returned as a 16-year-old, I saw an empty husk of the club that I once followed religiously. An empty Suncorp, a club being evicted from training bases, and no direction whatsoever. It makes me sad to think that I was living in the best days as a 9-year-old, but I didn't know it
As another young kid who was there during the broich/berisha days I felt this
@@tomb2607 And big Ange as coach
after the field invasion at melbourne they definitely wont back down. that would mean they would appear to be succumbing to violence and that would encourage it further.
Yeh, that incident seems to be missing from this video?
Thats what sort of happened with the Super League in Europe and the clubs backed down.
@@tribalque2232 fans didn't straight up assault players with the super league
@@tribalque2232 Don’t remember any violence in the super league protests
This is in your face dissent. I'm concerned about subtle dissent. People not buying memberships or attending games. Putting pressure on clubs existing. People not watching it on tv because the credibility is lost. Sponsorship and betting falling etc...
There's a lot more for you guys to discover here. There's some grubby back room deal done to get this off the ground in the first place, which is why no one in the game (other than a half dozen on the APL board, and should be pointed out it was kept secret from some board members) knew about this prior to the announcement by the APL. Me personally, i think it's far from the only one.
Should be pointed out that while Townsend and Lederer have made numerous promises around a "festival of football", not a single plan other than the hosting rights going to Sydney was announced. He alluded to having some plans, but would not provide any specifics. Should also be noted, the "interview" was an internal Q&A that was recorded, IE, the APL's media manager picked the softest of soft ball questions for Townsend to selectively answer, and even then he managed to balls some of them up.
It should be noted that the league is in this position because of a really terrible deal worked out with Ten Network holdings (channel 10) that's seen most of the TV money disappear from the clubs, only 1 of the 6 games on the weekend telecast and the other 5 only on their subscription streaming service (as opposed to their previous deal where all games were telecast live on pay tv). This has lead to even Melbourne Victory running at a loss having historically been basically the only club in the country capable of standing on it's own two feet without requiring financial assistance from the league/FA.
Again, whilst Townsend and Lederer have addressed fan concerns about predatory price gouging by our air travel and hotel industry saying they will "help fans to make it as affordable as possible" (whatever that actually means) there has been no specifics what so ever on this either.
There's a lot you can look into on why MV is running at a loss as well, there's ripples and rumors flying thick and fast all year about a lot of really poor management going on at MV
I was at Tottenham Hotspur stadium today for a tour and every single time I mentioned I was Aussie the staff asked me about what happened in Melbourne. Whilst it was a dark day in our countries footballing history, I’m glad more people are waking up to the situation of football in Australia.
Interesting. It looks like it got more coverage in London than in Perth. I just saw some highlights of the clashes during the sport segment. Was it really that big a story with fights in the crowd.
@@BDub2024 Maybe a different game? This wasn't fights in the crowd, this was 'fans' storming the field and the goalie getting concussed and a referee injured.
@@cynical1985 Nah. It was mentioned, but just didn't get much coverage in Perth. It sounds like it was a lead story on the eastern seaboard. Football (soccer) doesn't get much coverage in Perth at all. Even Socceroo matches require heavy advertising to get the coverage to ensure attendances.
@@BDub2024 Does WA still have its borders closed? No wonder you guys have no clue what is happening in the rest of the world
@@bromeotorres6964 Football (soccer) doesn't get much publicity here. Glory won last night and its a smallish article (6 pages from the back page). Back page AFL/cricket. Second back Cricket. Third back AFL, 4th back basketball,5th back tennis, 6th back part soccer.
As an Aussie, thank you for making this video and shining a light on a bad decision purely to make money that now will likely never be undone thanks to a group of thugs attacking the ref and players.
Yep, there Victory fans have cemented this decision... surprised TIFO didn't mention it.
@@Left-Foot-Brake they wern't victory fans who did it just the idiots who turn up for the derby to cause trouble
@@Left-Foot-Brake I'm glad they didn't as it implies an excuse for the thugs, and it's a great smokescreen for the APL.
The APL is cancer: 'professionals' who see football as a 'product' among 'experiences' and 'offerings'. They need to f off and sell cola or tyres or toilet paper or some product matching their soul and sense of culture.
Those people has existed in football since the 60s and the players should know not to provoke them. There is a reason why provokation gives a yellow. What Glover did should have been an instant red.
And that attack wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for the bad decision. The APL fired the shot, don't be mad at the fans for bleeding.
Thank you so much for covering this and giving it light. We’ve been staging walk outs and trying to get our voice across peacefully. It doesn’t help that our press doesn’t like football either.
Because 70% of the press is Murdoch which wants you to pay for kayo and watch the cricket and afl/nrl, then the most of the rest is nine/Fairfax which want you into the tennis and nrl..
That's why one ground evasion makes the news, but not the 100+ across the other sports, and the numerous of fans kicked out for reckless behaviour.
@@74_pelicans the funny thing is that Dolphin Stadium, where my hometown Roar play, was recently renamed Kayo Stadium, so now there's Kayo advertising all over Paramount+'s coverage of Brisbane games
@@TheCatDrinksAllTheRedBull it’s even funnier or sadder that the roar lost Suncorp stadium
@@74_pelicans what other sport has had a pitch invasion.. I follow all the major leagues and.. nope, not one.
@@falconmclenny7284 you must stick to main stream media. NRL had a huge problem with pitch invaders with them going viral on social media. AFL had a few too, and the behaviour at the games too with numerous arrests and fans kicked out.
As a paying season ticket holder and a fan writer within the Australian leagues, I can tell that these are some of the darkest days in the game for us as a community, but the A-Leagues have always given off a vibe to mainstream Australia that they don't warrant a lot of commercial success, when this really historically speaking, is not accurate.
It has added fuel to the fire in terms of that negative perception being vocalised more strongly, because at the end of the day, for a sports mad country like ours, football stands out, and it's success is a threat to other more popular sports, thus the bias against football.
As for the actual decision itself, the APL claims to have been forced into the decision due to a lack of decent investment. That claim is horseshit and everyone in AusFootball is painfully aware of that, ultimately the driving force behind our reaction being so strong.
I will say this, our leagues and national teams are coming into a period that is HUGE for the game, mostly with a home FIFA women's world cup coming up in 2023, and an increased number of clubs looking to join the first and more importantly closed first tier, with talks of the professional second tier going ahead, so this may be a MASSIVE hurdle, but one I believe can be overcome.
Yes hewy!! 10/10
Also want to add to this, the fans might seemingly not have a voice in this situation but due to an ABC 4 corners video highlighting the murky ownership situation with several clubs being investigated by ICAC (an independent board in Australia who looks after corruption) ncluding Newcastle Jets (which is still owned by the NSW clubs), Adelaide United, Brisbane Roar (owned by the Indonesian group - the Bakries who have issues on their own), and Central coast Mariners. From what I've been told 5-6 clubs should be under administration or close to administration.
Also there are reports the APL lost $120m due to Covid and being forced to play games behind closed doors and extremely poor ratings on Paramount+ not reaching KPIs etc, I actually think the real debt is much higher.
We're in a real fork in the road given the women's World cup situation next year. I've attended a couple Matildas games recently and they generate significantly higher numbers compared to regular men's A-league games. Which tells me they have more fans, but also from what I can tell demographically it's a much more different fanbase, it's younger and more female. If the A-league wishes to grow it needs to do more to cater to this new audience as well as address the other issues.
Tony Sage, Perth Glory CEO the day the announcement was made said on local radio "if you want to be a millionaire, be a billionaire and own a football club" which really highlights how stark the situation is.
Also need to add a disclaimer that I'm a Sydney FC fan of 10+ years. Have met DT a couple of times as well.
This narrative that other sports view football as a threat needs to stop. It's completely wrong. The AFL is untouchable and couldn't care less.
i think the lack of an actual relegation and promotion based system is what hinders the a league, teams get rewarded for not putting out good results because theres always next year like watching the central coast mariners have been sometimes super painful, teams aren't really forced to fight unless they can win and most of those players are motivated by moves abroad.
@@tornadoduck pro rel wouldn't work, not sustainable in Australia. No other major code has pro rel, and they working well.
Saw Australia in the title, and guessed it would be an article by Seb. Excellent stuff as usual Tifo 👏
Yeah, failed to mention fanattacking player but..
I’m from South Africa and my corruption sense is tingling 🤣
We Africans have seen so much of this shenanigans that we developed a second sense😂
@@opinionatortv6457 In Argentina too, the AFA switched the league format like 5 times in 5 years
@@mariadanielalavia8877 Huh? Why? Isn't that just unnecessary chaos?
As a South African living in Australia, I have a very good genetic ‘corruption/government shenanigans’ gland.
😂😂 oh no that's not good
As an American, Australian fans can look to MLS for what can happen when the league's championship is at a fixed site location. From the league's founding in 1996-2011 the site for the final was determined ahead of time. This often meant that the bigger or more successful markets in the league such as LA, New England, DC & Columbus often hosted the final, though in some years cities like Dallas or Kansas City would host the final. This angered many of the newer & smaller market clubs in the league & it also discouraged potential new owners from starting expansion clubs. In 2011, MLS switched to the format that the A-Leagues just left behind where the higher seed in the playoffs hosts the final & as a result the MLS Cup final has seen an increase in TV ratings, media interest & attendance. It has also given clubs an incentive to perform well in the regular season knowing that the reward is hosting MLS Cup in front of your home fans which has increased the standard of play. I think this format also has incentivized most of the growth we have seen in MLS over the past decade in terms of expansion teams because potential owners can tell investors that if they heavily in the team in the first year and are successful, we could host MLS Cup & generate more revenue as a result. As for our women's league the NWSL, they are adopting this format this upcoming season as well. I hope that the APL realizes the error they have made and goes back to the format they used to have because if they stick to what they have got now, they risk killing both leagues
As an Aussie I love seeing bigger pages covering our smaller sports
Update now: Grand Finals have gone back to being hosted to the old format and Danny Townsend has left the APL for Saudi.
And the A-League is finally back.
There are some parallels between Australia/New Zealand and United States/Canada.
We use to have our final at a pre determined location. The major issue was the size of the countries and the time to make travel plans for the two finalists led to some poor atmosphere of neutrals.
It was switched to the higher seed and has been better for it. It rewards a side and city and ensures a far better and more enthusiastic energy for your major event.
With a neutral site there are many cities that would resigned that regardless of how good their club got they'd never host.
Soccer is popular in the us 😂😂
I don't get why the APL has totally ignored packed Suncorp, Adelaide oval, Optus stadium and AAMI park. A grand final won't be the same if it's in a neutral area.
I’m a Melbourne Victory member and I’m so sad this has happened, I have been going to games since I was little, and I don’t feel like going anymore
Feel the same. I want to still support the club but won’t go to any games supporting the APL. Osm carried the protests now it just seems dead and no one cares anymore.
Brilliant video, thank you for raising awareness to Australian football. It's a shame what happened with the Melbourne Derby, but hopefully the pressure is maintained on the league to change.
Thank you for covering this! Craig Goodwin the 🐐
How many other players can say they've scored against both France and Argentina in the same World Cup?
@@twrampagemy 🐐 for a reason
@@twrampage The goal against Argentina was an own goal
@@bromeotorres6964 What on Earth are you talking about? It took a deflection, but it wasn't an own goal.
@@twrampage Watch the replay. His shot was going nowhere near the goal. Check the record. It states OG to Enzo Fernandez
Largest crowds for the A-League Grand Final over the years;
2018/19 56,371 Perth
2006/07 55,436 Melbourne
2008/09 53,273 Melbourne
2013/14 51,153 Brisbane
2011/12 50,334 Brisbane
2006/07 50,333 Melbourne
2010/11 50,168 Brisbane
2015/16 50,119 Adelaide
2009/10 44,560 Melbourne
2012/13 42,102 Sydney (Western Sydney Wanderers)
2005/06 41,689 Sydney (Sydney FC)
2016/17 41,546 Sydney (Sydney FC)
Mental giants running the A-League: "Holding the Grand Final in Sydney every year is a good idea"
Football 🌈
I am from Perth WA Australia, I am so glad this is being covered. After our amazing world cup run, NSW have fully capitalised. A few years ago Perth glory got to the final and we we sold out optus stadium which is one of the biggest stadiums in australia. Australians love football and this world cup has proved it. I worry about the lack of interest for fans who live 1000 dollar trips away. Realistically I would never pay over a grand to see glory play in sydney. I think I speak on behalf of all aussie footy fans when we say keep it how it was the team that wins DESERVE the right to have the final game played at their home. The FFA are trying to hard to be like the NRL and AFL
"The FFA are trying to hard to be like the NRL and AFL"
exactly right. Australians have this interesting tradition of hosting footy finals in the same city/stadium each year (AFL - Melbourne and NRL - Sydney). Optus is a world class stadium.
Spot on. If you start awarding grand finals to States based on tradition. Then Perth should always host domestic cricket finals and hockey. Qld rugby league because they dominate origin. Melb Rugby union because Storm dominate. Perth basketball because its the basketball capital... Adelaide Octoberfest dancing and so on. That's the nonsensical decision of football in Australia.
@@BDub2024 Storm aren't Rugby Union.
@@BDub2024 The A-League definitely is not well thought out, although I do wonder how much better it would be if Aussie Rules and League weren't so dominant. I do agree that QLD is so League centric that it would be good for them to host some grand finals over there, likewise Perth and Adelaide for AFL.
Very sad how Sydney get to control the game like this, Perth hasn’t even had a Socceroos game in like 5 years
You do realise that WA doesn't stand for Western Australia but instead stands for Wait Awhile....
@@PerthLuxury you guys just take a while to catch up
At least you guys have a chance of getting a game. No hope in tassie of the socceroos playing
Sad for biggest city in country to get main game. That makes no sense
Perth is AFL. Soccer isn't big in Perth
I’m an Aussie in NSW, I really appreciate this coverage, I watch all these videos and it’s great to see Australian Football has good coverage elsewhere
Australia did amazingly at the World Cup. This was a big wave to ride for our beautiful game.
The Womens League was already there for me.
The only downer for me has always been foreign ownership and control.
Especially the UAE. If anyone has seen the Four Corners report "A League of Their Own" (it's on UA-cam), they will know how dirty it has got.
But yeah, things were high.
Then came the declaration about Sydney, and all that positivity flew out the window.
I have played all my life. It's spatial, 3D, touch thing that I just loved crossing that white line.
And they reminded us that day that it is NOT our game.
It's money. And then they tell us how to "pilgrimage"!
I'm in Brisbane. But I want to pilgrimage to New Zealand to watch Wellington Phoenix who win the league, host the Final within the next 3 years.
here's a funny fact, I believe it was earlier this year or last year, the Queensland FA expelled it's Brisbane division, so there are now 2 rival associations in the state capital.
Correct, Football Brisbane collapsed and Football Queensland took charge of the clubs and recreated the footballing levels across the state.
Reminds me of Perth in the 80s and 90s
It's so tiring. The A-League club owners (known collectively as the APL, like the EPL in England, represented by Danny Townsend, who used to run Sydney FC on behalf of a billionaire Russian oligarch) spent about 5 years fighting with the previous Federation leader (Frank Lowy, billionaire) to take control over the A-League (to the point where FIFA got involved), won their freedom, and then told us all that the fans would be put at the centre of major decisions (the fans were an afterthought to the old leadership). After a few years of doing okay but not great, they've managed completely destroy whatever goodwill they had, a week after the world cup.
its kind of confusing as an AFL fan as our sport is literally called Australian football but from an international perspective it makes sense to call soccer football of course
AFL as 'football' makes equal sense as Soccer is 'football' - both are predominantly using the foot in contact with a ball to transfer it across the pitch/field. Rugby, on the other hand, should be called 'hand egg' on the same premise.
As an avid AFL fan, the comment on neutrals in the stand is spot on. A large portion of ticket allocations go to corporate sponsors etc. which really dilutes the fan. Watching a semi final often has a better atmosphere than the Grand final as a result
Not mentioned is that this deal DOES NOT guarantee a single stadium hosting. In fact, there are three stadiums in line to be host that will be announced prior to the event depending on what teams make it.
Corruption and Australian football sadly go hand in hand. The main reason why APL in my opinion went for this deal is because it's just money in their pockets.
Cost of grass roots keep rising. the infrastructure keeps waning. There is no long term goals for Football here. They just do not care.
Yes, AFL and NRL do centralized finals. However 11 of the now 17 clubs in NRL are within a 3 hour drive of the City and 10 teams of the 18 team AFL are within 3 hours of Melbourne.
So a centralized final for those sports Works.
It's a 10 hour drive from Melbourne to Sydney, It's going to be an expensive plane ticket due to last minute buying of plane spots because you won't know if your team is in the final until a week before the final. And train infrastructure in this country is garbage.
The APL come in over the FFA in 2019 with a promise to put fans first. They lied. The league attendance is waning and travel costs are rising. I think the A-League won't last the decade
Thank you so much for covering this story ❤️ we don't have any faith in the APL to ever make the right decisions but it's nice to see your take on it, and very accurate👍😀👍
It's really disappointing after Australia's best ever World Cup this is the coverage we are getting. But really important to shine a light on it.
A-League ❌
NSW-League ✔️
Not only that, the league doesn't have a promotion-relegation system. The only can do is the expand the current league.
I'm not Australian, but I have been lucky enough to go to a Super Bowl (XLIX) in the US. It took place in the Phoenix/Glendale area of Arizona and the two teams were from Seattle, Washington and Foxboro, Massachusetts (New England). Most of the people there were just casual fans and very few were even real fans of the team. They just wanted to go because of the status symbol it was to have gone to a Super Bowl and having been at that specific game. I went because I was lucky enough to go and I loved American football at the time, but my preferred team is from New Jersey so I had no allegiance to either team playing. I completely understand the idea that a Grand Final with theoretically Perth and Wellington in it would have very few of those fans in attendance. Hopefully the APL will stop the nonsense and prevent their league from becoming the solely commercial behemoth that other leagues around the world have become.
Nobody care about super bowl in usa. in usa, we just watch soccer or olympic
Decision was based on the "it's just like Pepsi approach". Trying to emulate the FA Cup, Superbowl, AFL and NRL finals, which usually fill to capacity. Each are the global pinnacle game of their respective sports. The A Leagues are not
Superbowl does get to move around though - each city gets a chance to host.
@@atomsk1972 not necessarily, I don't think Boston/Gillette Stadium has ever hosted one unfortunately.
@@atomsk1972 Superbowl could be played on the moon and get a full house. A Leagues™️ versions rely on fans with skin in the match. This was evident in this years poorly attended match between two less popular teams
@@atomsk1972 Not anymore.
NFL Picks a city to host it. Approaches the City and asks them to prepare a hosting proposal on whether they can host the event. That report goes back to the NFL Owners meeting in which it's voted on and if passed, that city gets to host.
So the NFL chooses. Noone Bids. That has been the way since 2018 onwards
NRL is a bit different, only has a year by year deal with Sydney. Struggles to sell out each year, unlike the afl, where it is basically impossible to get a ticket unless youve paid an ultra premium membership and waited many years.
easy fix:
-forbid a single city to be hosting the final more than 3 times in a decade.
-get the first final out of Sydney/NSW
-grant 5k tickets for each finalist, to be distributed among their fans
cheers from Argentina!
Was waiting for this. I was surprised it didn’t make much news when it happened. Goes to show how far Aussie soccer has fell behind in importance. The fact that I hear more about Aussie cricket when I’m in usa or japan or the Middle East, tells me Aussie soccer has to be reformed. The entire pyramid system has to be fixed and reorganized, not just APL.
because Australia are one of the best in the world at cricket... Why would anyone be talking about Aussie soccer outside of Australia?
@@berbuck so I hear! but I don’t follow cricket and I only follow soccer when it comes to aus. Point is, it requires such an effort to get news and catch up on anything about Aussie soccer.
@@Moemuntz But I mean,... what's special about aussie soccer that people from outside are going to follow it? I get why the unique points of aussie sports are aussie cricket, australian afl and australian nrl, cos australia have the best teams and leagues in those sports
@@gtaquizmaster Nothing is special about it, and that’s the problem. Kind of like MLS was in the 90s before it almost died than revived thanks to Beckham signing and team expansions. Aussie soccer needs to expand and/or integrate to the rest of the pyramid in Australia and the region. MLS integrated with lower leagues (no promotion/relegation yet) and promoting itself in nearby markets. APL on the other hand, instead of building a wall around the brand and isolate itself, there is a market of 600 million people right to the north that it ignores. Yeah geography doesn’t help but they also said that too about USA/Canada.
@@Moemuntz Wait which market of 600 million people
I've loved watching these videos and I am a subscriber. But to see how beautifully you have captivated the ongoing issue with Australian football is a sight to behold. Well done TIFO!
As I diehard melb victory fan I no longer see the point in following my club anymore and it hurts. The tradition we had for grand final hosting was some of the best memories I have. The APL couldn’t even just tell us the deal was purely cause of $$. Danny townend is a 🤡
The A-League wanted to become like the AFL and NRL where the Grand Final takes place at the biggest stadium possible.
But Soccer/International Football is a completely different beast with a strong history of having the Grand Final in a Stadium hosted by the highest ranked team of the season.
the reason the afl and nrl can make playing the grand final in the same stadium every year work is that they are already leagues that are victoria and nsw dominated respectively so in both the afl and nrl theres only been 3 grand finals with only out of state teams competing and these leagues have existed for decades. the a league began in 2007 and theres already been 4 grand finals without a nsw team and 7 grand finals without a sydney team, I can't imagine having the final in sydney every year will work in any way shape or form.
@@qcthesxientist and AFL and NRL fans don't think it's remotely fair either. Most just begrudgingly accept it as a historic anomaly that their leagues in cooperation with the Vic and NSW governments have no intention of changing.
@@qcthesxientist 3 grand finals of out of state teams might be the most underexaggerating thing I've ever read. Other codes can host the biggest stadiums because they are popular, unlike soccer.
Saying you stand by your decision even tho everyone hates it just truly shows how corrupt these slime bags are. Sort of reminds me of the Super League drama.
Us Football fans, have the right to all vote for situations like this, i am sick to death of football into politics and decisions are made behind the fan's backs, it's the fans that make the game and its wealth.
Football death in Australia and popular in the us,south america, europe
Thanks for covering this
As I'm watching this video, it brings up haunting images of the AFL and Victorians assumption that they are the only place AFL is played.
Australian Football is a completely different sport
The old Melbourne Vs Sydney argument/war. Melbourne had Australian Rules while Sydney was Rugby League. It could have been different when in 1904 the Rugby Players in Sydney had a few clubs that wanted an insurance policy for those players that had to work manually. The Rugby Management rejected it on the bases that Rugby (Union) was purely amateur and thus no financial benefits should be paid. Some delegates came down to Melbourne in an attempt to start a completely new game based on rules of rugby and Australian Rules. Everything was decided EXCEPT where the head office would be - Melbourne or Sydney. Negotiations subsequently fell apart.
back here now and the decision has just been reversed!! big win for Australian football and it's loyal fans
So good to see people within the game acknowledging the issues 🇦🇺❤️ thank you
Never thought this channel would cover football in my country. Thanks 👏
Just want to point t out if you say Football in Australia most ,not all, will think you're talking about AFL.
It would have been worth mentioning the Melbourne Derby fiasco as well. This controversy directly led to that, and it's become the most significant part of the drama
The charge adult Australians in country nsw close to 500 aud in registration fees. Over 65% goes directly to nsw football.. our junior fees are 200. Without representative fees aswel. How is that sustainable
suits at the top of corparations taking football away from the fans...
Smells of the Super League tbh....
@@PerthLuxury UEFA and FIFA are doing the same. Letting any oil money pump billions in clubs while historic clubs suffer
and from the bottom, the wogs who just wont stop lighting flares
A League is a case study why franchise closed leagues are not more stable than leagues with pro-rel. It enables greed which ultimately destroys the league.
it also destroys competition. football fans would love their team even if it gets relegated to 3rd division
I get your point and would generally agree but I do think in case of Australia relegation wouldn't work. Its a big country with a small population... The gap between A-League and the semi-pro divisions below is quite significant and I think it would be really detriment to states such as WA to not have a professional club
As an Australian, when I saw Australian football I thought of afl and got confused about why it was soccer on the thumbnail.
AFL is headed the other way from the A-League, so I got confused for a second too lol
I'm a western Sydney wanderers supporter and I think holding the grand final in Sydney for 3 years straight is completely wrong it takes away the atmosphere of that away team going into a grand final knowing they'll be met with hostility and that passion drives a lot of teams knowing that when they walk out there they are the underdogs, they are trying to turn the aleage into the equivalent of the afl and nrl which are more supported sports in this country and its just a stupid idea.
You're in Australia. It's soccer. We have our own football. It is unique, older and better.
As someone from Perth this is so frustrating - but hardly surprising - because as mentioned basically every major sporting event is already held over east - the cost of flights/ distance alone will block most WA fans from attending. And you don't need to be a rocket scientist to know that the clubs/states without as much cash to throw around are going to be disadvantaged in a bidding process
It’s something of an Aussie tradition to catastrophically mismanage the sport of soccer in this country, it’s been going on for decades.
Thanks for covering this football is always one step forward two steps back in aus and it’s just so frustrating
The scenes at federation square were truly magical. Just proves that football is the only sport that truly unites our country. You don’t see upwards of 10,000 people throwing flares in a public park, or more than double that filling a stadium just to watch the game in the big screen for any other sport in Australia. All of this magic happened in Melbourne, not Sydney, or NSW.
The first problem with this is that the a league has a finals series at the end of the domestic league.
All the teams in the a league are franchises, so they care about revenue lost if they make a final. The fans care because they would need to pay for air fares as well as hotels, so it's understandable there was some backlash, but what happened in Melbourne hurts the game more than what the APL has done
It's _soccer_ in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands.
Football or footy can mean Australian Rules Football, Rugby League or Rugby Union.
He tendered, not “tended,” his resignation 🙃 1:30
And it's di pietro not whatever rubbish he said.
Between this and losing to emus, I swear Aussies have really weird wars.
As an Aussie I love seeing bigger pages covering our smaller sports 😊
The larger context is that football authorities in Australia have never had any respect for our history and have always shown nothing but distain towards fans. The money generated will not go towards anything worthwhile because the APL has no relationship (financial or otherwise) with grassroots football. It is beyond a joke at this point.
The biggest problem with Australian football is in my opinion, they're salty the country isn't that interested in soccer. The vast majority of our best talent goes in to rugby league and Australian rules football, and then cricket. Soccer is 4th, even though it has the highest youth participation numbers. I have no doubt that if Australia had a soccer culture like any other football mad nation, we would have the talent and the drive to compete on the world stage for trophies. But we don't, so the national competition is a bit of a soap opera and they try and talk it up as a competitor to NRL and AFL rather than celebrating the successes they achieve on their own.
Thanks
The league has many issues and the main is money flow. Most of the teams would have negative cash flow. That led to the GF being sold. Unfortunately fam engagement is at an all time low. After an amazing first 5-10yrs of the league it really got destroyed. Lots of groups are responsible in it. It can be mended but it's not a quick fix, and unfortunately the attention span of a lot of people now is very short.
Thanks for covering this TIFO!
Now I’m even more confused as to why a goalkeeper was attacked
During the protests against the decision the goalkeeper threw a flare back into the Ultras Section of Melbourne Victory. This caused already angry fans at the protest to storm the pitch and it only took 1 idiot to attack him with a bucket.
basically there were walkouts at all Aleague games but one got violent and they threw flares and he tossed them back and there was then a pitch invasion.
Always great to see Remy Siemsen in the spotlight. One of the great OFGS alumni, an inspiration.
Another thing not mentioned, is that it's accepted Australia wide (perhaps not in Sydney) that Sydney has by far the most fickle active sports fans in Australia.
I'd be very surprised if they attracted more than a ⅔ full Western Sydney Stadium if Perth and Wellington played off in a Grand Final.
As a Sydneysider I can admit that that is definitely true. I don't know what it is about the mentality here but it is so so frustrating. Always an excuse about the weather or the distance but that never seems to be a problem elsewhere.
not like they care, they live in their own bubble, but most australians already arent the fondest of sydney
Sincere question: Would it be fair to compare Australian fan opposition to this in the same way Europe bristled at the Super League? Asking for any fellow Americans who watch Tifo.
Exactly what I was thinking, this is Australia's equivalent to the super league protests
Yep. Fans are essentially at war with a board full of wealthy club owners. In that sense, they're exactly the same.
Imagine if Major League Soccer, a league that is finally going in the right direction, right now, decided to go back to having its MLS Cup Final in neutral grounds again.
yes as an that statement is apt
Yep very similar situation however, Australian Clubs are quite obviously not as financially strong as European Clubs so it makes it difficult for them to resist the deal. We're literally looking at 3 years of Finals Boycotts and protests at games should the decision not be reversed or at the very least changes are not made to football in this country.
Every club's supporter group (except Melbourne Victory because of their pitch invasion and assault) released a collective statement saying Finals will be boycotted unless the league acknowledges and acts on some pretty reasonable demands by January 8. This statement was released a week ago and the league thus far has just totally ignored it so it's looking bleak.
It's crazy how within 2 weeks Australian football went from peaking when we made the RO16 of the World Cup to being at its lowest when 11 clubs boycotted matches over this decision and Melbourne Victory had a pitch invasion and riot resulting in a player being assaulted.
As an NFL fan I would definitely say this is a terrible idea. The Super Bowl is awarded to the highest bidder every year, and the atmosphere for the game is corporate and dead because only rich people can afford to go to the game. The playoffs, hosted by the clubs, are awesome, with incredible fan excitement and stadium atmospheres, and then the Super Bowl is a letdown. Australian football should keep their tradition of clubs hosting the championship, and so should every league that has a similar one.
With the exception of AFL sports in Australia has always been Sydney-centric. I was at the Boxing Day Test and the overwhelming jubilation of Scott Boland’s name being announced showed how much of an uphill battle it is for Australians to break into a NSW-centric industry.
I get what you're saying and sports wise, I don't think Aussie sports is that Sydney centric. Melbourne hosts the Australian Open, a Grand Slam tournament at that; not to mention a F1 race, which Sydney did supposedly try to take off Melbourne recently before a new contract was signed.
Sports wise I guess you could say Sydney has the New Years Day test (which isn't as good as the Boxing Day Test imo), hosts warm up tennis tournaments to the Aus Open, hosts one of the State of Origin games and had the Olympics 22 years ago lol.
I've lived in both cities and attended sporting events in both, and just never felt the passion from the fans in any of their grounds. Tbf though I never went to a state of origin game, cuz if I must watch rugby, I prefer union to league.
I can see why the NSW tourism board did this, not that I agree with the league for taking the cash and forcing fans to travel to Sydney for the final, which isn't cheap to stay/eat in.
@@Sassybella well leagues the most popular sport in Sydney so thats why you wouldn't feel the passion Id guess.
@@qcthesxientist true, I had a mate who grew up in Sydney's inner west who told me not to go to NRL/Origin games cuz the crowds were too feral lol
@@Sassybella AFL fans are way more passionate than NRL fans. Memberships number show that. Plus the MCC membership has a long waiting list.
@@SportsReplays yeah agreed. Ive yelled and celebrated my heart out back when i used to go to a lot of Bulldog games with my friend who was a member. My mate who grew up in Sydney's west says NRL fans are more feral too and told me not to go watch games in person for safety reasons lol
From the title I kinda thought this'd be a tongue in cheek bit about the four football codes in Australia. Not unhappy it wasn't, mind. Good article.
We have this problem in the United States as well know-nothing gatekeepers in suits who worked in banking/finance or for other sports leagues trying to increase revenue at the cost of the traditions of the game we love. Stop trying to nationalize the game to suit minuscule agendas!
Us has done an amazing job at competing with ur other top sports though. Football here doesn’t get any investment or money from our government, and if you are not in any of the 12 professional clubs academy’s you have to pay a ridiculous amount of $$ just to play football. Your youth development has been amazing and seeing nearly every expansion team in mls be a success shows how far it’s come.
That’s what happens when they’re both closed shop franchise models.
Soccer is the most popular sports in usa lol,we just play soccer
Update.
The contract with tourism NSW was revised so that an entire round was played in Sydney instead of just the GF. the Theme of playing entire rounds in one place has been trending recently in Australia with Magic Round in NRL and Gather Round in AFL. The APL decided to call it Unite Round but when the round came it flopped massively. it seemed that no one was interested in going to Sydney for an entire round of football.
I think that's unfair. Not much success can be expected in its first year, but those who went really enjoyed it and I think next year's edition will bring more bums on seats
Great video and totally spot on
Would be nice not to leave this here, but to do a little follow up on how things are panning out or how things eventually move on. Thanks for the video guys.
Great video and summary. It was such a heartbreaking shame that those cowards and thugs who stormed the field during the Melbourne derby ruined it for all true football fans. In one incredibly stupid act, they made the APL and puppets look like the good guys in the public eye while playing into the hooligan stereotype that the anti football media try and paint against the code. It had the potential to be one of the most powerful images against the decision, instead, it has cast a huge black shadow over the future of the sport
I'm both a soccer and an AFL footy fan.
I prefer the previous system in the A-League where a team that finishes higher on the ladder is rewarded by earning the right to host the Grand Final.
As a Victorian, if one of our teams finishes higher on the table, I don't think it's fair that our soccer fans are expected to travel to Sydney to play in the Grand Final. The Victorian clubs and the government were not consulted in this decision. The competition will be compromised.
I'm also an AFL footy fan and equally believe that if an interstate team finishes higher on the AFL ladder, they should have the right to host the AFL grand final in their home state (as long as their stadium has a big enough capacity). You could equally argue that with the decision to play the AFL Grand Final in Melbourne, interstate clubs and their respective governments were not consulted in this decision and that the competition is compromised.
This is such a lovely video but please, we call it soccer here in AUS ❤
Can you do a video on what is happening in Trinidad and Tobago with the debacle going on between FIFA and the local governing football body the TTFA... would really like to see your take and analysis on the matter
is jack warner involved in the debacle or am i watching too much netflix 😂?
Send the final up north to Cairns where the fans can have a few beers and fight Cane toads before the match
You don't understand Football in Australia, like the US that has basketball, baseball and the NFL that soccer has to contend with in AU there are 3 football codes soccer is the way back third string code in football with the AFL and NRL way out in front, both these codes play there grand finals in Melbourne and Sydney respective, its a pure and simple cash grab to give it to Sydney for 3 ys, the Aleague is about 14 ys old now and stuttering along needing lots of money that goes mainly to the other two bigger codes, they even were struggling to sell there TV rights while AFL and NRL keep on getting record bids each time there up for sale. Love it or hate it they need to balance books and grow the game there not going to do it when some games are attracting just a few thousand spectators, example, top club like Melbourne Victory will pull around 25,000 to a normal match and a derby close to 45,000 with City, go up north there lucky to get 12,000 to a game, a big AFL home and away games will get 70,000 plus, average home and away games attending is around 45,000 plus massive prime time tv, both pay and free to air, AFL Grand Final pulls just shy of 100,000 since they renovated the stadium, prior was over and always sold out for the big day. Sorry you cant measure Australian soccer by European standards the AFL has been going since around 1860 in one form or another and has the heart and souls of more than half the country.
Usa is different, soccer is the most popular sports in usa, not like australia
Everybody around the world know that Australian never care about soccer
Seems the Aussies have the same sorts of problems we have in the USA. Our FA (USSF) defers to MLS and Don Garber/MLS owners--not quite as bad as Liga MX but still fans are unhappy. To coach for USSF requires living in Chicago (USSF headquarters = winter hellscape, no camps are held there for players) which most coaches don't want to do since most camps are in Calif/Florida/TX. Good luck figuring this out. FAs needs to listen to the fans more instead of whatever biased management thinks is best.
Usa is different australia Soccer /Football is the most popular sports in usa🇺🇸
Superb coverage, an awful thing for our game and almost every sydney- based fan also opposes
Pitch invasion was far worse for game, then some bitterness stemming from Melbourne inferiority complex
This is football in Australia, not Australian Football.
Soccer*
This is the sort of faction stuff the creation of the A-League was supposed to finally eradicate from Australian Football...and it did for a short time.
Then the factions manoeuvred to gain power within the new structure and it started all over again.
...and this is why we can't have nice things.
Australian Soccer, Australian Football is a completely different code of Football
As a Phoenix fan, not like we’d win the A League anyway, but why would we as fans need to fly to another f****** country to watch the final our team would have otherwise been on top of