If Canberra (if) joins the league in 2025/26 season it will be a 14 team comp, with a proper H&A 26 game season. So only 2 derbies, one Home & one Away.
New flash Chistchurch stadium to open early 2026, and Nix could get a 20,000 plus crowd if take a ALM game (non derby) there, due the new Stadium novelty factor. Target an ALM team from an Aussie city that has direct flights into Christchurch, to help control costs.
I live in Chch and drive past the stadium every day. Dreaming of seeing the Nix play there. Maybe even take the 3rd NZ derby down here? Cannot wait! I hope they book the stadium for an AL game asap
Again if Canberra join the league next season (2025/26), there will only be 2 derbies per campaign.
The 3 derby games this season are likely to be a one off. The APL and clubs won't like having an odd number of teams beyond this season. If by early 2025, Canberra is still looking a no go, wouldn't surprise if they approach strong NPL clubs like South Melbourne, about entering a team. Or explore other possible franchise locations like Tassie, The Gong, Christchurch or whereever.
Having 13 teams is a bit shark, each team with 3 byes. The $20M franchise fee or whatever it is is a big challenge to start up a new club, so APL may need to be flexible around that in need to get the 14th team up & going.
As an aside I think Auckland's roster (with a heavy NZ presence) is showing there was definitely always the depth in NZ football for a 2nd team.
A 3rd team (ChCh) who knows, but can see the quality young player base broadening with things like annual U17 World Cups, an AFC Academy setting up (like the Nix most of those kids won't progress to the first team, and will be back NZ domestic clubs by age 20-21), and just better overall talent ID scouting. Finding a football loving billionaire is likely the biggest hurdle to getting a team in Canterbury. Slava Meyn has admitted the costs are beyond his wealth level.
Wouldn't surprise if the Nix take next year's Jan 25th CCM game to the Addington scaffolding site, and then from 2026 it's yes an annual game at the new downtown ChCh stadium. Dome said on the pod recently that they have a good relatiosnhip with Mainland Football, and ChCh is basically the logical city to have the 1-2 'home' games that Auckland had before.
History will tell us if there is enough local talent for 2 or not. Admittedly it does give our youth more opportunities for sure.coochiee
Again if Canberra join the league next season (2025/26), there will only be 2 derbies per campaign.
The 3 derby games this season are likely to be a one off. The APL and clubs won't like having an odd number of teams beyond this season. If by early 2025, Canberra is still looking a no go, wouldn't surprise if they approach strong NPL clubs like South Melbourne, about entering a team. Or explore other possible franchise locations like Tassie, The Gong, Christchurch or whereever.
Having 13 teams is a bit shark, each team with 3 byes. The $20M franchise fee or whatever it is is a big challenge to start up a new club, so APL may need to be flexible around that in need to get the 14th team up & going.
As an aside I think Auckland's roster (with a heavy NZ presence) is showing there was definitely always the depth in NZ football for a 2nd team.
A 3rd team (ChCh) who knows, but can see the quality young player base broadening with things like annual U17 World Cups, an AFC Academy setting up (like the Nix most of those kids won't progress to the first team, and will be back NZ domestic clubs by age 20-21), and just better overall talent ID scouting. Finding a football loving billionaire is likely the biggest hurdle to getting a team in Canterbury. Slava Meyn has admitted the costs are beyond his wealth level.
Wouldn't surprise if the Nix take next year's Jan 25th CCM game to the Addington scaffolding site, and then from 2026 it's yes an annual game at the new downtown ChCh stadium. Dome said on the pod recently that they have a good relatiosnhip with Mainland Football, and ChCh is basically the logical city to have the 1-2 'home' games that Auckland had before.
‘The future is football’: Anna Mowbray's Auckland FC bet
Aimee Shaw
August 4, 2024
Richlister Anna Mowbray has teamed up with football billionaire Bill Foley to kick off Auckland’s A-league football team.
Named Auckland Football Club and donned in black and electric blue stripes, Mowbray and her partner Ali Williams are co-owners and co-investors, although she has kept details of the investment to establish the new club under wraps.
Mowbray, who founded billion-dollar toy company Zuru with her brothers Nick and Mat, says it was when she returned to New Zealand from living overseas in 2020 that she was surprised to find Auckland had no professional football team.
She had conversations with Australian Professional Leagues about an A-league expansion license for Auckland and put into touch with Foley.
There was a professional Auckland football team 16 years ago, but there hasn’t been one since.
A woman’s A-league team is earmarked for the next season.
Auckland FC is a business move as well as a passion project for Mowbray.
“I'm a long time football and sports fan, and also a parent of five children, four of which are absolutely football-mad children. There's so much that I love about spending a Saturday, now Sunday, morning on the sidelines, watching my children play, grow and sort of be developed and nurtured by the sport into their best self. I really believe that sport is a conduit to personal development and growth,” says Mowbray.
“I was incredibly surprised that we didn't have an A-league team here, and wanted to open up that pathway for the talented young people that I was seeing play with my children, that’s where the vision for a team in Auckland started.”
Auckland FC has its first friendly match this week, and will have its first home game at Mt Smart Stadium on October 19.
Its first home darby with the Wellington Phoenix is scheduled for December.
“We're really excited for the season to kick off.”
Anchor has come on board as Auckland FC’s inaugural front of shirt partner, and McDonald’s is also a sponsor.
Mowbray says a women’s A-league team will kick off in November 2025.
Women’s football has rapidly exploded in popularity globally, and the sport in New Zealand has seen exponential growth off the back of the Women's World Cup, she says.
“You look at teams like Angel City in the US, whose valuation has been over $250 million recently, or organisations like Mercury 13 who are putting over $100m investment into women's football across Europe.”
Over 2 million people play football – or soccer – in New Zealand and Australia. “The participation numbers across Australasia are more than rugby, rugby league and AFL all combined, and then you've got fans of football across Australasia sitting at 9.2 million. It is the largest and the fastest growing sport globally, with over 4 billion fans on a global basis,” says Mowbray.
The team is one of four clubs Foley’s Black Knight Sports & Entertainment group has invested in. He owns English Premier League club AFC Bournemouth and has stakes in FC Lorient in France and Hibernian FC in Scotland.
Auckland FC chief executive Nick Becker spent 20 years working in the English Premier League for Manchester City and Arsenal.
There’s big money to be made in football, but Mowbray says the number one goal would always be to win.
“A football club should never be only about the money. We want to win. We've got an incredibly competitive ownership group, but we also want to build a sustainable business that's here for future generations. Bill and I both have track records of creating successful, sustainable and profitable businesses, and we bring all of that expertise into this club.
“We want to make Auckland proud, and we want to bring silverware to our city. Off the back of that, we want to open up opportunities for kids paying football in New Zealand, and pathways to professional football on the international stage that's previously been limited.”
Some Key bits of the Article if you don't want to read the whole thing above:
- She says the Women’s team will kick off November 2025 – so essentially for the 25/26 season.
- She’ s a long time Football fan and her kids are football mad
- She was surprised in 2020 when she returned from Auckland the was no pro football team in Auckland so she talked to the APL who either put her in touch with Bill Foley or she just got in touch with him herself – article is worded funny so I’m unsure which it is
- She says she’s not involved in the day-to-day running of Auckland FC, but is across all facets of the club.
- The club isn’t just about making money, they want to win, they have very competitive owners, They also want to develop more pathways and opportunities for New Zealanders to play professional football.
History will tell us if there is enough local talent for 2 or not. Admittedly it does give our youth more opportunities for sure.coochiee
Again if Canberra join the league next season (2025/26), there will only be 2 derbies per campaign.
The 3 derby games this season are likely to be a one off. The APL and clubs won't like having an odd number of teams beyond this season. If by early 2025, Canberra is still looking a no go, wouldn't surprise if they approach strong NPL clubs like South Melbourne, about entering a team. Or explore other possible franchise locations like Tassie, The Gong, Christchurch or whereever.
Having 13 teams is a bit shark, each team with 3 byes. The $20M franchise fee or whatever it is is a big challenge to start up a new club, so APL may need to be flexible around that in need to get the 14th team up & going.
As an aside I think Auckland's roster (with a heavy NZ presence) is showing there was definitely always the depth in NZ football for a 2nd team.
A 3rd team (ChCh) who knows, but can see the quality young player base broadening with things like annual U17 World Cups, an AFC Academy setting up (like the Nix most of those kids won't progress to the first team, and will be back NZ domestic clubs by age 20-21), and just better overall talent ID scouting. Finding a football loving billionaire is likely the biggest hurdle to getting a team in Canterbury. Slava Meyn has admitted the costs are beyond his wealth level.
Wouldn't surprise if the Nix take next year's Jan 25th CCM game to the Addington scaffolding site, and then from 2026 it's yes an annual game at the new downtown ChCh stadium. Dome said on the pod recently that they have a good relatiosnhip with Mainland Football, and ChCh is basically the logical city to have the 1-2 'home' games that Auckland had before.
The other thing is that the available talent may grow to fit the number of teams.
Cricket, rugby, league, golf and tennis have all been potentially profitable sports. But looking at Paulsen, Stamenic and Old the pathway for talent to make a good living or beyond has never seemed clearer. Add to that a favorable World Cup path and the new derbies and perhaps athletic talent will begin to look at football. After all even if they don’t make it overseas there could possibly still be a contract here, and then there’s the academy coaching and so on that open up after a playing career.
So perhaps now we don’t have a 3rd team, maybe we will by the time there’s a stadium. After all the NPC, plus an understanding employer used to mean a reasonable living.
Makes some sense about the talent pool growing with a 2nd Auckland Academy coming on board
But a 3rd team won’t happen without another Foley, American or otherwise
However compared to other recent additions WU and MAC, Auckland is going to have big crowds and actually add something to the league. That alone will make the APL open to a 3rd NZ team, esp knowing ChCh is soon going to get a shiny new pretty stadium
Maybe we’ll see a more fan involved or funded model too. Just because it hasn’t been done before in the league doesn’t mean it can’t happen. It’ll be great for Auckland not to worry about their funding, but that doesn’t mean football has to wait around for a couple of spare billionaires to get things happening.
Maybe we’ll see a more fan involved or funded model too. Just because it hasn’t been done before in the league doesn’t mean it can’t happen. It’ll be great for Auckland not to worry about their funding, but that doesn’t mean football has to wait around for a couple of spare billionaires to get things happening.
I think people need to be aware that their Owner, whilst happy to fund a "new" side for a couple of years, will actually want to see a return of some sort from this investment. Be it players moving to one of his more higher League clubs or in money.
Maybe we’ll see a more fan involved or funded model too. Just because it hasn’t been done before in the league doesn’t mean it can’t happen. It’ll be great for Auckland not to worry about their funding, but that doesn’t mean football has to wait around for a couple of spare billionaires to get things happening.
I think people need to be aware that their Owner, whilst happy to fund a "new" side for a couple of years, will actually want to see a return of some sort from this investment. Be it players moving to one of his more higher League clubs or in money.
Or lose interest and fund the minimum. Not enough for an academy, not enough for any decent players, but enough to be in a kind of footballing purgatory. Ashley, Newcastle etc etc. And there’s been plenty in the football league of late who are much shadier than that.
Not suggesting for a moment that this would happen here as this group seems committed and cashed up, but mostly thinking of examples in the EFL. But you look at the Knights original ownership or Terry’s property empire imploding and you can see some of the kinds of problems that you might have. I mean let’s be honest, football everywhere lurches from one drama to another!
Can’t remember what’s happened at QPR, but it’s not been a happy time LG?
Maybe we’ll see a more fan involved or funded model too. Just because it hasn’t been done before in the league doesn’t mean it can’t happen. It’ll be great for Auckland not to worry about their funding, but that doesn’t mean football has to wait around for a couple of spare billionaires to get things happening.
I think people need to be aware that their Owner, whilst happy to fund a "new" side for a couple of years, will actually want to see a return of some sort from this investment. Be it players moving to one of his more higher League clubs or in money.
Or lose interest and fund the minimum. Not enough for an academy, not enough for any decent players, but enough to be in a kind of footballing purgatory. Ashley, Newcastle etc etc. And there’s been plenty in the football league of late who are much shadier than that.
Not suggesting for a moment that this would happen here as this group seems committed and cashed up, but mostly thinking of examples in the EFL. But you look at the Knights original ownership or Terry’s property empire imploding and you can see some of the kinds of problems that you might have. I mean let’s be honest, football everywhere lurches from one drama to another!
Can’t remember what’s happened at QPR, but it’s not been a happy time LG?
Got rid of a few players, brought some in too. But as per normal for the last 6 years, they are still missing 2 or 3 strikers. Dykes couldn't score in a brothel. I think he got 6 last season. Quite embarrassing for a main striker with the all over Lizard Tattoo.
Wonder if the women's team might end up playing at Keith Hay. Good facilities for players and teams, good pitch, looked good with the crowd last night.
I think as well, and I’ve said this before, that football IN NZ had a bit of the ‘Sheilas, Wogs and Poofters’ about it. It was only for non-rugby types, and they were all lefties or outsiders or whatever.
Whereas the rugby types might support Liverpool, Chelsea or United, that credibility with parts of the mainstream couldn’t be found past young kids sport in NZ. By 12 it’s time to play rugby.
I think these owners might further loosen those stereotypes and allow a less partisan game or perhaps rugby’s stranglehold on the conservative heartland of Auckland to soften just a bit.
And if there’s less stigma about attending a soccer match among righties, then there’s a much bigger potential market.
That’s if cultural norms from 30+ years ago still have any bearing in Auckland.
I think as well, and I’ve said this before, that football IN NZ had a bit of the ‘Sheilas, Wogs and Poofters’ about it. It was only for non-rugby types, and they were all lefties or outsiders or whatever.
Whereas the rugby types might support Liverpool, Chelsea or United, that credibility with parts of the mainstream couldn’t be found past young kids sport in NZ. By 12 it’s time to play rugby.
I think these owners might further loosen those stereotypes and allow a less partisan game or perhaps rugby’s stranglehold on the conservative heartland of Auckland to soften just a bit.
And if there’s less stigma about attending a soccer match among righties, then there’s a much bigger potential market.
That’s if cultural norms from 30+ years ago still have any bearing in Auckland.
Yeah fair points here. I know too well after attending high school in the rural heartland of Canterbury in 2000’s. Albeit I managed to convince a few of my first XV rugby mates to soften their stance on football via playing FIFA, the Phoenix and playing fantasy premier league.
Having living in Auckland since 2016, this conservative view has largely gone now. It’s a completely different city since the days of the Kingz and Knights with increased migration from Asia in particular changing the identity of the city. I expect AFC to be very successful. Football is or at least will be the no1 sport in Auckland very soon.
The only place the ‘poofta/divers’ type mindset is still the majority amongst some areas of rural NZ (think Southland, Northland, Hawke’s Bay, rural Canterbury). However, rugbys position as defining the countries sporting identity is slowly being eroded and footballs perception and presence is continually growing in these areas. Sellout NZ derbies, a first A league title, World Cup qualification, more Kiwis playing in the EPL will only help. Sorry, big rant.
It's also important for AFC to look to represent all the different communities that make up multi cultural Auckland. The big Polynesian/Maori population will likely always favour the rugby collison sport codes. But the likes of Howieson, Rogerson, Mata, Hall do give the team straight away some players from that community. Otahuhu's Bill Poni Tuiloma if he can ever be prised away from the MLS, would be a real statement signing in that regard.
And yeah I went to school first in North Canterbury and then the Wairarapa in the 80s-90s. Soccer was definitely for those on the nerdy margins, and usually not the school's best athletes. Things have changed for the better, though I still have an old uni mate in the Naki, who said his sons and daughters can do anything they want he will still love them........except play the round ball game.
A big issue that rugby is going to face, which I think is only going to get more publicity - is the brain injury issues, that come from playing collison sports. No pro sports (more so even amateur) career, is worth getting early onset dementia in your 50-60s. The more this issue rightly gets publicity, the more parents are going to dissuade their kids from playing the rugby codes.
My brother who was a useful 1st five playing senior 1st club rugby in Manawatu, Canterbury, Bay of Plenty & Canada had at least 5 nasty concussions in his playing time. One time my folks drove up from Masterton to watch him play at Murupara (near Rotovegas) only to see him off in the first five mins to a blatant late swinging arm high shot. He's two footed, but only 75 kgs at his heaviest and wishes with hindsight he'd played football - but in our day you were pushed into playing rugby, in rural NZ.
I think Auckland bling will be very successful off the field. The timing seems perfect. It’s a code on its way up whereas egg ball seems on the downward trajectory. The huge change in demographics in the city have completely changed things. I remember going to some of the Nix games in Auckland and it the crowd looked like the United Nations. There were people there from Brazil, Korea, Sri Lanka etc everywhere. You don’t have to convert them to football…..they know it already.
Wonder if the women's team might end up playing at Keith Hay. Good facilities for players and teams, good pitch, looked good with the crowd last night.
Wonder if the women's team might end up playing at Keith Hay. Good facilities for players and teams, good pitch, looked good with the crowd last night.
Not a lot of elevation and difficult to control access with the walkway on the far side which would make it difficult to charge a gate.
You mean a fan ownership group that stumps up with that huge fee to join?martinb
Maybe we’ll see a more fan involved or funded model too. Just because it hasn’t been done before in the league doesn’t mean it can’t happen. It’ll be great for Auckland not to worry about their funding, but that doesn’t mean football has to wait around for a couple of spare billionaires to get things happening.
You mean a fan ownership group that stumps up with that huge fee to join?martinb
Maybe we’ll see a more fan involved or funded model too. Just because it hasn’t been done before in the league doesn’t mean it can’t happen. It’ll be great for Auckland not to worry about their funding, but that doesn’t mean football has to wait around for a couple of spare billionaires to get things happening.
Who knows what the situation of the A league will be like in a few years?
It seems like Newcastle and Perth’s new owners didn’t pay much to get A league teams. We might have a second division. There might not be 3 billionaires on hand to get involved when an opportunity arises. I mean it’d take a bit of organising, but never say never right?
I think from a crowd perspective this is perfect timing for the new Auckland team.
As someone has already mentioned rugby is on the decline attendance wise. Domestic and super rugby band wagon days are well and truely over and likely beyond repair.
League at Mt Smart has been the new band wagon. On the back of a great last season, they have sold out each of their home games at Mt Smart, which is amazing.
However they have had a crap season, so there is no guarantee this band wagon will continue. Players like Johnson leaving will not help as he has always been integral to this side. RTS and Tohu Harris will be another year older as well. From both a marketing and player view they are likely a team in decline.
The band wagons (looking at the white middle class and even higher) have however now became used to entering the Penrose area. It’s not as scary as it seemed and it’s likely their kids play football and not league.
Can foresee a number jumping ship, especially if Auckland recruit well in their foreigners, market well and start the season ok. They have heavily recruited kiwis and not ausis so there should always be a kiwi presence which will help -unlike the knights.
A hard core of 5 to 7k I think is possible, with potential for the bandwagon initially to fill the place for the first game and thereafter nix /final games, with 12k going to games in between.
