Ben Buckley's- Future A-League Plans
Socceroo/ Mariner / Whangarei
Permalink
Permalink
BB giving his thoughts on future A-League plans
http://www.smh.com.au/sport/a-league/in-defence-of-the-aleague-20100417-skrz.html
In defence of the A-League
BEN BUCKLEY
April 17, 2010 - 12:27AM
The Hyundai A-League has been a bold plan from day one.
Building a national competition in capital and regional cities around the country involved pushing the boundaries, taking on the establishment and taking calculated risks.
It started as an eight team competition with the vision to expand in a controlled and progressive manner.
We pushed into the territories of the Gold Coast and North Queensland and are set to welcome teams in the major markets of Melbourne and western Sydney.
Those markets were identified as ripe for new football teams due to their size, business activity, high youth demographic and existing sporting culture including a rich history of football.
In its first year North Queensland Fury averaged crowds of almost 8000. When you consider no professional football was played in North Queensland before this team it is a very positive step.
We expect teams in Melbourne and Sydney to help build excitement through rivalry and help us tap into the huge numbers of listed football players in these areas.
It needs to be remembered that the Hyundai A-League is only five years old.
The product is strong, it is getting stronger and every year we gain more spectators, viewers and media space while continuing to generate more excitement and passion for football fans.
Of course there will be some hiccups along the way, a little bit of turbulence if you like.
Not every decision will be right but we will not stop the growth of our competition.
There is rarely expansion without growing pains.
We learn from the past and we will continue to build our competition as it is based on a vision.
That vision is growth.
There is still more work to be done and we are implementing changes each season that will help boost both the business of football and the attraction of the competition.
We will make some exciting announcements soon around fixtures, regulations and player recruitment intended to attract more Australian players back from overseas, create more professional opportunities for young players and boost the depth of player squads. We are also looking into our own Cup competition.
The football community should be hard markers and football fans deserve a national competition that is accessible.
They have waited a long time to win the respect of their peers and it is understandable they are impatient about the development of the competition.
The Hyundai A-League is in its infancy and while celebrated leagues around the world have been established for decades with little or no serious competition we are forced to compete for our place in Australia's sporting culture.
Our national competition is no longer the joke of the Australian sporting landscape.
There is recognition that Hyundai A-League football clubs can play on a truly international stage and have the potential to tap into markets in Asia and the rest of the world.
This is evident in our growing involvement in the AFC Champions League where Hyundai A-League teams are receiving high levels of exposure in international markets including China, South Korea and Japan.
We have made some giant steps in recent years and there are more to be made very soon as we continue to develop and grow.
We are building on a platform that is growing year-by-year and there are bound to be some challenges and issues along the way.
This year more than 1.5 million people came through the gates to our games and we averaged more than 10,000 per game.
The A-League has come a long way in five years.
As we all focus on how far we have got to go it is also important to focus on how far we have come.
Ben Buckley is the chief executive of Football Federation Australia
http://www.smh.com.au/sport/a-league/in-defence-of-the-aleague-20100417-skrz.html
In defence of the A-League
BEN BUCKLEY
April 17, 2010 - 12:27AM
The Hyundai A-League has been a bold plan from day one.
Building a national competition in capital and regional cities around the country involved pushing the boundaries, taking on the establishment and taking calculated risks.
It started as an eight team competition with the vision to expand in a controlled and progressive manner.
We pushed into the territories of the Gold Coast and North Queensland and are set to welcome teams in the major markets of Melbourne and western Sydney.
Those markets were identified as ripe for new football teams due to their size, business activity, high youth demographic and existing sporting culture including a rich history of football.
In its first year North Queensland Fury averaged crowds of almost 8000. When you consider no professional football was played in North Queensland before this team it is a very positive step.
We expect teams in Melbourne and Sydney to help build excitement through rivalry and help us tap into the huge numbers of listed football players in these areas.
It needs to be remembered that the Hyundai A-League is only five years old.
The product is strong, it is getting stronger and every year we gain more spectators, viewers and media space while continuing to generate more excitement and passion for football fans.
Of course there will be some hiccups along the way, a little bit of turbulence if you like.
Not every decision will be right but we will not stop the growth of our competition.
There is rarely expansion without growing pains.
We learn from the past and we will continue to build our competition as it is based on a vision.
That vision is growth.
There is still more work to be done and we are implementing changes each season that will help boost both the business of football and the attraction of the competition.
We will make some exciting announcements soon around fixtures, regulations and player recruitment intended to attract more Australian players back from overseas, create more professional opportunities for young players and boost the depth of player squads. We are also looking into our own Cup competition.
The football community should be hard markers and football fans deserve a national competition that is accessible.
They have waited a long time to win the respect of their peers and it is understandable they are impatient about the development of the competition.
The Hyundai A-League is in its infancy and while celebrated leagues around the world have been established for decades with little or no serious competition we are forced to compete for our place in Australia's sporting culture.
Our national competition is no longer the joke of the Australian sporting landscape.
There is recognition that Hyundai A-League football clubs can play on a truly international stage and have the potential to tap into markets in Asia and the rest of the world.
This is evident in our growing involvement in the AFC Champions League where Hyundai A-League teams are receiving high levels of exposure in international markets including China, South Korea and Japan.
We have made some giant steps in recent years and there are more to be made very soon as we continue to develop and grow.
We are building on a platform that is growing year-by-year and there are bound to be some challenges and issues along the way.
This year more than 1.5 million people came through the gates to our games and we averaged more than 10,000 per game.
The A-League has come a long way in five years.
As we all focus on how far we have got to go it is also important to focus on how far we have come.
Ben Buckley is the chief executive of Football Federation Australia
Socceroo/ Mariner / Whangarei
Permalink
Permalink
Cup Comp aye...
Supporter of the world's best football teams: Waikato..., Kingz FC, NZ Knights, The Nix, The Argyle & of course the All Whites
Permalink
Permalink
The title of this thread made me worried.
I love the thought of the league expanding. But Australia will be running out of towns who have enough interest in football to start a team up there.
I see maybe another 4 or 5 teams coming in.
Also. I don't think that the stat that the A-league had 1.5 million spectators pass through the gates is that impressive. Seeing as we (The A-league) had low crowd numbers for this season. If anything, I see those numbers dropping or leveling out, unless something drastic is done to combat this.
Plus,
Seeing as we are also competing with the NRL which had over 6 Million spectators in 09.
And the AFL which has had 1.2 million spectators in just the first 4 rounds of this season.. (Yes, I know.. Bigger stadiums)
We are fighting a tough battle.
Anyway.. What I was saying was that it seems that as of now, the A-League does not have enough interest to keep expanding.
I love the thought of the league expanding. But Australia will be running out of towns who have enough interest in football to start a team up there.
I see maybe another 4 or 5 teams coming in.
Also. I don't think that the stat that the A-league had 1.5 million spectators pass through the gates is that impressive. Seeing as we (The A-league) had low crowd numbers for this season. If anything, I see those numbers dropping or leveling out, unless something drastic is done to combat this.
Plus,
Seeing as we are also competing with the NRL which had over 6 Million spectators in 09.
And the AFL which has had 1.2 million spectators in just the first 4 rounds of this season.. (Yes, I know.. Bigger stadiums)
We are fighting a tough battle.
Anyway.. What I was saying was that it seems that as of now, the A-League does not have enough interest to keep expanding.
Permalink
Permalink
Bigger stadiums is irrelevent unless the A league is selling grounds out. So the AFL stats are very valid as a comparison.
Allegedly
Permalink
Permalink