Independent A-League

Also think how the Federations representing Canberra and Tasmania fell about not be included in the A-league Draft. Lets hope they are not blaming the Nix

BREAKING: Have obtained copy of draft New Leagues Working Group recommendations report. Complex, detailed report. 70 pages. 15 recommendations. Plus 18 recommendations from AL clubs. story on line asap

— Ray Gatt (@Gatty54) April 1, 2019

Bastards

Stuff appear to have changed the headline for click bait

A-League clubs frustrated over opposition to league independence plans

The chances of an independent A-League kicking off by the start of next season appear to be lengthening as argument and major philosophical differences expose the cracks between the game's major stakeholders.

The state federations – the bodies representing soccer's grass roots and second tier competitions Australia wide – have thrown what one insider described as a ''hand grenade'' at the A-League clubs over their plans to take control of the game's elite competition, leading to frustration within the clubs, who want to begin the process as soon as possible

The New League Working Party group received submissions from all the groups involved in the game at the weekend, and there was far from unanimous agreement on how an independent A-League could look – even whether it should be independent at all.

''There are a lot of things that the state federations have questions about relating not just to the A-League but whether the way it might be separated off would be for the good of the whole game,'' said one source familiar with the discussions.

''There is the timeframe of the creation of a national second division, the fact that the state federations see promotion and relegation as part of that discussion, and the whole issue of expansion itself and who decides who gets into the league,'' the source said.

''Who is to say that the clubs, acting independently, will run the game any better than the FFA? There are a lot of issues to be resolved. We should also be asking if there are any other models for running the league that could be examined before we go down this direction.''

It is also understood that the state federations have reservations about Wellington Phoenix's continued presence in the league: the New Zealanders have the right to be in the A-League until the end of next season, but no longer.

The A-League clubs have responded positively to the Kiwis' interest in remaining as part of the top-tier Australian competition in the future.

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But the state federations have asked why a New Zealand club, and the NZ game, is benefiting to the tune of several million dollars a year in dividends from the TV broadcast revenue when that money might be better spent underwriting another Australian franchise or underpinning further investment in the broader Australian game.

The issue of payment for the intellectual property of the club's brand names and logos is also a major sticking point. The clubs are reluctant to put a high value on the properties (now owned by the FFA) arguing that they are essentially already own them and that the hundreds of millions of dollars they have collectively spent on establishing their businesses is recompense enough.

There is broad agreement that the A-League would be better off moving away from the overall control of the FFA, but the arguments over how that might best be managed again illustrate the divides between the sectoral interests within the game.

All parties were able to unite behind the idea of an independent A-League over the past couple of years as the major battering ram they used to oust Steven Lowy, who opposed the idea, from the chairmanship of the FFA.

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Having wiped away the old leadership, the groups are finding that the old arguments over how best to run the game remain.

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer/a-league-clubs-frustrated-over-opposition-to-league-independence-plans-20190401-p519nd.html

This doesn't do much to our chances of keeping Rudan. 

Keeping Rudan is only important if the team has any future.

Will the other A-League clubs be prepared to throw us under the bus if they can get their way on other issues in return?

This is the big question. I don't really think that anyone knows what everyone else's bottom lines on all this are.

Absolutely. I'm running off the assumption that we will have a future - but the longer that's left unconfirmed the less chance we keep Rudan.

Fox Joint the party: The clear message from Fox Sports is that unless things change, the broadcast rights fee will fall.   

In a submission to the group, Fox Sports is believed to have expressed concerns about falling ratings and suggested the A-League in current form is unsustainable.

This is our Brexit.

Well that's the least surprising thing to happen this week, the FFA, A-League clubs and state bodies need to get their act together pronto. While they've been bickering like spoilt babies the peak league has been rotting on the vine. Fix it or fudge off.

— SFCU (@SFCU) April 1, 2019

Not exactly great reading. I wish they'd hurry up with all this sharke.

Could just be that the "hoorah, we're all safe and sound now there's going to be an independent league" conversations were a tad premature.

Wouldn't it be ironic if we won the league and riding off the back of that success hit all our metrics only to be booted out because the metrics were no longer relevant and the states had us as a non negotiable.

So what will everyone on here do in that doomsday instance?  All support local Handa clubs?

Source for the above?

And given that Domey is part of the negotiating team, even if true, you think the other A-League clubs would throw us under the bus for more money, which is the implication of the other two?

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If there is no longer a Nix, I will give up on franchise leagues altogether and become an Onehunga Sports FC fanatic.

Rob is in the group, not Domey. But remember that A-league club representation is in the minority on the NLWG, there's the state federations there, PFA, women's rep, the FFA, and the independent Chair. It's not an easy negotiating table.

If the choice was as simplistic as you've outlined (and I don't think it is) - i.e.:

Nix in, less money for the clubs

Nix out, more money for the clubs

then we're not getting out of that, especially with the possibility that the next TV deal could be worse than the current one. But like I said, I'm not sure that the situation is that simplistic. 

It was easy to make friends and allies when everyone basically shared the same goal of bringing down the FFA a peg or two.

Once the attention turns to where to from there, there was always going to be a mess of competing agendas to implement, and interests to protect, and sorting the way through that was never going to be easy. Quite frankly, you'd have to have been naive as fudge to not see this coming.

Changes to the #ALeague held-up by state member federations, with another 90 days to sort out the future of the professional game. OUR look at the NLWG report. (That truck got around!).https://t.co/3xD8Vpl809 pic.twitter.com/j86o3HFBlX

— Football Today (@FTdotnews) April 1, 2019

"The biggest roadblock is, of course, Australian football's great anachronism - the state member federations, who now consider themselves the custodians of the game and who - true to form - are in no rush to come to an agreement."

"In effect that means, for example, that it only takes one of the state member federations which doesn't currently have an existing A-League club (Tasmania, the ACT and the NT) can hold the development of the professional game to ransom."

Running the clock down to a "Phoenix No Deal".

Couldn't agree more. I've always thought that there's a helluva lot of politicking and horse trading to be done before we're safe and that it wasn't quite the foregone conclusion that some people seemed to think. I'll believe we've got a long term future when I hear an official announcement to that effect

Why have the state federations been given so much power?

they represent the majority of football players in Australia

Also, I wouldn't say that they have been given 'so much power', more that the new governance model for the A-league needs agreement and support from all key stakeholders in the game, of which state federations are obviously a key part. Otherwise you're running the risk of simply transferring too much power from one organisation to another.

Got to say, this is far more grim than I thought it would have been two weeks ago

The whole report has been released 

#OneMoreSeason

Phoenexit

Report does not contain Wellington or Phoenix in it

Does say 80% of players in the league must be from Australia or New Zealand.

Yep it's very high level, and doesn't dwell a lot on niggly details. Just skimming through it you get a sense that there is a lot that still needs sorting out. Wouldn't be surprised if there's another report on 30 June that also recommends continued negotiations.

So we are fudgeed for next season, right? Rudan won't relocate his family if its not clear if we will be around after next season. Players won't sign because a) Rudan has left, b) same reason as Rudan, and c) Welnix won't want to fork out for good players if its all for nothing. Might be super pessimistic but unless things are given more clarity that's the way it looks

Seems that way. I'd love us to go out with a bang, but Rudan is key to all of this and he's not going to do it. 

Realistic look at a new national league in nz? Obviously not going to be as good as A League but could be a good development league.

The Handa Prem final involving an Auckland team got a crowd of 2k (admittedly on Sunday and at unpopular Albany). Half the crowd looked like ES club youngsters bused in for the occasion. Good on ES for doing so.

The Nix v Victory game (admittedly on a Fri night at Eden Park) got a crowd of 23k. Just having the Handa Prem as highest level of the sport in NZ would be shark.

Losing NZ’s sole A League team would be a massive massive blow to football in NZ, and it’s profile here.

With the AWs barely playing of late the Nix, is pretty much the only Kiwi football that is consistently newsworthy.

NZF need to wake up to this and try and help Phoenix out in anyway they can. They still have $7M in Cash Reserves. Qualifying for WC 2022 which looks likely to be 48 teams and direct Oceania entry, is worth $14M. 

Christ giving NLWG $500k a year for the next few years would in some way be justified, if that helped the Nix to survive. Without the Nix, Herbert and Co, there would have been no WC 2010 cash windfall. 

NZF just blew $250k on a review and another $400k paying out Heraf and Martin. Not saying $500k would ensure Nix’s survival, but what money Nix bring to the table (or lack thereof), seems to be one of issues the Aus state federations are raising. Anyway NZF should be using whatever resources they have to support the Nix, the club is too important for football in this country to just do nothing.