A-League and Australia Cup 2023/24

[Eednud]

The draw for the 2020/21 A-League issued today with a full programme of home and away matches, all subject to no travel restrictions. Looks like it’s the Wollongong Wellington Phoenix as all their home games scheduled for the ‘Gong. The farce that is Western United have TBC as their main menu. Regular season starts 27 December and ends 31 May. https://www.a-league.com.au/sites/aleague/files/2020-11/A-League 2020_21 Season Draw 24112020.pdf .

Edited June 27, 2023 by Eednud

[Arabdownunder]

Brisbane given up on playing at Suncorp. Might be worth a trip north to see how Dolphin Stadium works out.

[Guest TheJTS98]

2 hours ago, Arabdownunder said:

Brisbane given up on playing at Suncorp. Might be worth a trip north to see how Dolphin Stadium works out.

Makes sense. Must have been costing them a fortune and was never enjoyable. Best left to the Broncos.

Any more players left this morning? Quite the exodus. Alex Grant to Seoul seems the latest rumour.

[Eednud]

Brisbane given up on playing at Suncorp. Might be worth a trip north to see how Dolphin Stadium works out.

Was there a few years back although it was drinking in the Redcliffe Leagues club. Did watch the Dolphins reserves playing in Qld RL comp. Quite an impressive set up back then and been a lot of redevelopment since then. Tipped to be the location of a future 2nd Brisbane NRL team.

[Eednud]

FFA to rebrand as sweet FA. Another story hinted that the FFA Cup will be renamed the Australia Cup.

https://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/ffa-rebranding-to-football-australia-won-t-cost-a-cent-as-it-prepares-for-7-3m-loss

[Guest TheJTS98]

FFA Cup changes announced for the new season.

ACL prelim place for the winners and the semis and final moved to standalone weekends.

I'm in favour. Always seemed a waste having the final midweek and the ACL place should sharpen things up a bit.

https://www.theffacup.com.au/news/stand-alone-final-and-afc-champions-league-prize-headline-rebooted-ffa-cup-2021

[GNU_Linux]

Big changes coming for the New Zealand domestic game next season as the franchise system is going bye-bye.

New Zealand Football chief executive Andrew Pragnell hopes changes to the country’s national leagues will instigate a “cultural shift” among coaches and clubs with regard to youth development and has promised a crackdown on player payments in amateur competitions.

The governing body announced on Tuesday that the ongoing national men’s football league season would be the last under the summer-centric, franchise-based format first implemented in 2004, citing a desire to make youth development and sustainability a priority.

From 2021, the national men’s league will consist of two phases, run from March to December and be contested by existing winter clubs.

The first phase will consist of northern, central, and southern conferences – a rebranding of the existing premier regional winter leagues – with the top teams from each conference advancing to a national championship phase.

Teams will be required to include two under-20 players in their starting lineups and will only be able to field up to four foreign players plus an additional player from another country in the Oceania Football Confederation.

 

The top four teams from the northern conference, the top three teams from the central conference, and the top two teams from the southern conference will advance to the national championship phase in 2021, alongside a Wellington Phoenix development side, likely to be aligned to central conference club Lower Hutt City.

There will also be immediate changes to the national women’s league, which will expand from seven teams to eight and be contested by a mixture of clubs and regional federations for the first time, while returning to the double round-robin format used in 2018 and 2019. The top four clubs from the northern winter league will join with federation sides from the rest of the country in 2021.

NZ Football is pledging to invest in the women’s game to build capability across the country and allow a transition to a fully club-based system as soon as the competitive balance of the premier regional winter leagues allows.

Pragnell said he hoped the changes to the national leagues, which he said received “strong in-principle support from clubs across the country,” would help bring about “a cultural shift”.

“This is not about winning, this is about youth development.

“We're doing a lot of work with our coaching networks across New Zealand to say that if you are involved in this, we want it to be about player development first and foremost.

“Yes, we recognise that winning is always going to be of interest to clubs – we can't get away from that, but I think we're seeing a cultural shift and if we can get everyone focused on player development and thinking about the future of the player, rather than their club's annual success, then New Zealand is going to be winning in 10 years' time.

“This is as much as anything, a big cultural shift for everyone, and we acknowledge that, but I'd be encouraging people to get on board because that's where we want to go.”

NZ Football intends to make amateur player agreements compulsory for all players in top-tier competitions from 2021, place caps on the reimbursements players can receive for expenses, and put an integrity and audit programme in place to ensure compliance on regulatory matters.

“We believe that unfortunately player payments also drive player movement and hinder player development,” Pragnell said.

“Those clubs that are committed to player development are actually being undermined by those with larger budgets and this is probably one of the most critical tools we have to prevent the undermining of player development.

“We will absolutely be implementing an auditing program and requiring clubs that enter these competitions to commit to being audited. We know there are many loopholes and many workarounds, but this will be a massive focus for 2021.”

Tuesday's announcement comes with 11 rounds and the final series still to be played in the existing ISPS Handa Men’s Premiership season, which is due to conclude with a grand final in March.

Of the eight existing clubs, Eastern Suburbs and Hamilton Wanderers already compete in the northern league and will be able to transition smoothly, while Auckland City, Team Wellington, Waitakere United, and the Phoenix all have relationships – some closer than others – with existing northern and central league clubs and there will be discussions to be had as to what they look like going forward.

The return to a winter-centric, club-based competition would appear to mark the end of the line for Canterbury United, a regional team run by Mainland Football, and Hawke’s Bay United, a regional team that has received significant financial support from Central Football in recent years, at least in their current form.

Pragnell said the existing clubs were split down the middle,”four-four” when it came to supporting the plans for change.

“We acknowledge it's a big change. There's no doubt about that,” Pragnell said.

“What's really important for us is that we support the existing franchises to be able to transition in 2021, and we think there's an opportunity for their survival depending on what form they want that to take.”

 

Edited December 3, 2020 by GNU_Linux

[Eednud]

@Jacksgranda the NPL SA finals series is underway again after a 3 week break due to a lockdown. Campbelltown City lead Adelaide City 3-0 at HT. Looking good to make next week’s Grand Final. Tonight’s game is streaming liven on the NPL SA YouTube channel.

[Jacksgranda]

No bother to us. Also makes a change from a buttock clenching 2-1...

[Eednud]

@Jacksgranda Adelaide Comets 1 Campbelltown City 3. That’s 3 years in a row they’ve won the finals series and 4th time in 5 seasons. They also qualify for the 2021 what was known as the FFA  Cup. They did the double by finishing top of the table in 2018 & 2019.

Edited December 11, 2020 by Eednud

[Jacksgranda]

I'm just a glory hunter...

[Eednud]

The Sydney virus cluster has resulted in renewed border restrictions for travel from NSW.  As a result 25 of the first 40 fixtures for the new season will be rescheduled. For the opening weeks it will almost be a 2 conference league, NSW and the rest. The 6 NSW based sides will meet each for a few weeks. Wellington Phoenix is part of the 6 as they are based in Wollongong for the time being.  This is the revised fixture list for Dec/Jan. As usual there are some ridiculously early kick-off times for games played in summer.

A-League's first month (all times AEDT)

Sunday, Dec 27: Western Sydney Wanderers FC vs Macarthur FC, Bankwest Stadium, 6:40pm

Monday, Dec 28: Western United FC vs Adelaide United, GMHBA Stadium, Geelong, 7:05pm

Thursday, Dec 31: Central Coast Mariners vs Newcastle Jets, Central Coast Stadium, 7:05pm

Saturday, Jan 2: Wellington Phoenix vs Sydney FC, WIN Stadium, Wollongong, 5:05pm

Saturday, Jan 2: Melbourne Victory vs Brisbane Roar FC, AAMI Park, Melbourne, 7:05pm

Sunday, Jan 3: Macarthur FC vs Central Coast Mariners, Campbelltown Stadium, 4:05pm

Sunday, Jan 3: Adelaide United vs Melbourne City FC, Coopers Stadium, 6:05pm

Friday, Jan 8: Newcastle Jets vs Western Sydney Wanderers FC, McDonald Jones Stadium, 7:05pm

Saturday, Jan 9: Macarthur FC vs Wellington Phoenix, Campbelltown Stadium 5:05pm

Sunday, Jan 10: Brisbane Roar FC vs Melbourne Victory, Dolphin Stadium, 4:05pm

Saturday, Jan 16: Sydney FC vs Western Sydney Wanderers, Stadium Australia, 5:05pm

Saturday, Jan 16: Perth Glory vs Adelaide United, HBF Park, 7:10pm

Sunday, Jan 17: Newcastle Jets vs Macarthur FC, McDonald Jones Stadium, 4:05pm

Sunday, Jan 17: Melbourne City FC vs Western United FC, AAMI Park,  6:05pm

Tuesday, Jan 19: Central Coast Mariners vs Western Sydney Wanderers, Central Coast Stadium, 7:05pm

Wednesday, Jan 20: Perth Glory vs Brisbane Roar FC, HBF Park, 9:20pm

Saturday, Jan 23: Sydney FC vs Central Coast Mariners, Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, 5:05pm

Saturday, Jan 23: Adelaide United vs Melbourne Victory, Coopers Stadium, 7:05pm

Saturday, Jan 23: Western United vs Perth Glory, GMHBA Stadium, Geelong, 7:10pm

Sunday, Jan 24: Wellington Phoenix vs Newcastle Jets, WIN Stadium, Wollongong, 7:05pm

Tuesday, Jan 26: Melbourne Victory vs Perth Glory, AAMI Park, 7:05pm

Tuesday, Jan 29: Brisbane Roar FC vs Melbourne City FC, Dolphin Stadium, Redcliffe, 7:05pm

 

[Eednud]

New season gets underway in just under 1 hour in Geelong with Western Ushited v Adelaide United. Besart Berisha has an annoying knack of scoring goals against us and he’s in the starting line-up. Not sure what to expect but a draw would be good.

[Guest TheJTS98]

It was a decent enough game last night. Not bad for a 0-0. Looking forward to seeing the Roar later.

[Eednud]

Roar v MelC kick-off at 08:05 GMT. Start of their Redcliffe era.

[Eednud]

Good first game win for Macarthur Bulls away to WSW. Benat Etxebarria with the goal. Good to have real crowd noise.

 

Edited December 30, 2020 by Eednud

[Eednud]

Last night’s Roar v MelC (att: 9,279) and opening night’s Western Utd v Adelaide Utd (att: 5,128) highlights.

 

[Eednud]

 

 

[GNU_Linux]

Australian pro leagues to be unbundled froom Football Australia

Football Australia and the newly formed Australian Professional Leagues (APL) today announced that terms have been agreed to ‘unbundle’ the A-League, Westfield W-League and Y-League (‘Professional Leagues’) from Football Australia.

This unbundling of the Professional Leagues from Football Australia means that the Australian football structure will be in line with global best practice in football, separating Football Australia as the regulatory body from the operation of the Professional Leagues.

In accordance with the FIFA Statutes, the Professional Leagues will operate under the umbrella of and recognised by Football Australia as the top tier of domestic league football competitions in Australia.

APL will take over the operational, commercial, and marketing control of the Professional Leagues and all revenue generation responsibilities.  

Football Australia will retain regulatory functions in respect of the Professional Leagues, including matters relating to on-and-off-field disciplinary and integrity matters, the registration of Clubs, Players and Officials, the transfer system, and the domestic match calendar. 

The regulatory functions of Football Australia also include a new club licensing framework for the Professional Leagues and control over access to the Professional Leagues (whether by expansion, contraction, or promotion/relegation), the AFC Champions League, FFA Cup and all other domestic and international competitions.

Football Australia will also retain ‘good of the Australian game’ rights in respect of the Professional Leagues, which apply to a variety of matters that are aimed at ensuring the ongoing growth of the Professional Leagues.

As part of the unbundling, the APL will also obtain the exclusive right to use the intellectual property rights associated with the E-League brand.

This agreement, approved by Football Australia’s Board and the Board of each Club, is in line with the in-principle agreement reached in 2019 and endorsed by the New Leagues Working Group (‘NLWG’), the body mandated by the Congress of Football Australia to make recommendations for a new model for the Professional Leagues.

The new model for the Professional Leagues will be implemented throughout the course of the A-League 2020/21 and Westfield W-League 2020/21 Seasons.

The APL Board will comprise of five (5) directors from the Clubs, three (3) independent directors, and one (1) person appointed by Football Australia. An independent Chair to be elected by the Clubs and ratified by Football Australia, will have a casting vote on the APL Board.

Greg O’Rourke, currently Head of Leagues at Football Australia, will take on a new role as Commissioner of the Professional Leagues for APL.

James Johnson, CEO of Football Australia, said:

“The unbundling of the Professional Leagues from Football Australia is a key milestone in the ongoing transformation of Australian football and fulfils our commitment outlined in Principle VIII of our XI Principles. It represents the culmination of a process, which ramped up following the completion of the A-League 2019/20 season, that ebbed and flowed over the course of what has been a difficult 2020. 

“The new model respects the fundamental aspects of the global football pyramid and highlights the importance of strong governance principles as Football Australia retains its regulatory functions in respect of the A-League, Westfield W-League and Y-League and the APL takes control over the operational and commercial direction of the Leagues, in turn triggering the ability for significant new investment in the quality and marketing of the Leagues. Each constituent now has defined roles and responsibilities and the ability to make the right contribution to the growth of the professional game.

“We have been able to create a unique model which draws upon global best practice whilst allowing for local specificities. Significantly, the model establishes a framework for a strong partnership between Football Australia and the APL which recognises the value of a thriving domestic professional league to the ongoing growth of the game in Australia.”

Paul Lederer, Chair of APL, said:

“This is an historic moment for the future of football in Australia – for the fan, for the player, for the whole game.

“It’s now time to earn and deliver the future our game deserves.

“The handbrake on the game is off; owners can finally invest in what they own and create value for the entire footballing ecosystem.

“Players can plan their careers in Australian football, fans can reconnect with the game that they love, and clubs can create meaningful moments for the whole Australian football family.”

Chris Nikou, Chair of Football Australia, said:

“There is unprecedented unity amongst football’s key stakeholders with Football Australia, Clubs, and the Members of Football Australia, being the group making up the NLWG, that paved the way to the unbundling of the A-League, W-League and Y-League from Football Australia.

“Football Australia will now focus its energies and resources on the regulation of the professional game, national teams, grassroots and the overall strategic direction of the game as outlined in the XI Principles for the future of Australian Football, the new 15-year vision for the sport and strategic agenda.

“All parties are committed to ongoing cooperation and collaboration and we look forward to working closely with the APL this season as we transition to the new model, and more broadly, the future of professional football in Australia."

The APL is also record as saying Canberra is an important part of their vision for an expanded A-League.

[Eednud]

Today’s games: Wellington Wollongong Phoenix v Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory v Brisbane Roar