It's passed off at amateur to get pokie funding, but it actually isn't and is in fact constantly referred to by players and coaches as "semi professional" in the media.
Not that difficult to get your head around.
A bit more difficult to get your head around a parasite of a club that just takes from every other club in NZ without giving anything in return
So what if Auckland City FC are a parasite - Then so is Waitakere United.