Geelong consortium announces bid for A-League franchise

EXCLUSIVE: The cover behind Geelong’s audacious bid to have an A-League club next year has been broken.

THE cover behind Geelong’s audacious A-League bid has been broken.

Under the working title of Victoria Patriots, the Geelong Advertiser has revealed that a consortium will enter the race for a A-League franchise when the competition expands by two teams from the 2018-19 season.

And the consortium is already working with architecture company Populous to reach a long-term goal of playing out of a purpose-built, boutique rectangular stadium.

The Geelong bid has gathered pace on the back of successful A League matches at Simonds Stadioum. .

The announcement ends months of speculation as to whether Geelong would actually put forward a bid when FFA releases its expansion framework next month.

Spokesman Steve Horvat said Geelong’s bid will be focused on a model similar to that of A-League powerhouse Western Sydney Wanderers, embracing not just Geelong but the whole of Victoria’s west.

Steve Horvat

“We know the bid criteria hasn’t been released yet. But this is going to be a club built from the ground up, engaging the community with key football people in important decision-making roles,” Horvat, who played 32 times for the Socceroos, said.

“It’s a tough economic climate out there and people are cautious and wary of new sporting franchises.

“We have had a core group of people working on this behind the scenes for a good 12 months.

“This hasn’t been a spur of the moment decision.

“We feel that even though the criteria hasn’t been released, we know what we want to achieve.

“It’s going to be a very community-orientated bid. We want to make sure we engage the community and our future fans and members from day one.”

The Kardinia Park Trust has already flagged its eagerness to host a Geelong team out of Simonds Stadium and it looms as the most likely home for the club during its formative years.

The consortium has also unveiled a twitter profile, @Patriots_FC, but Horvat stressed the final say on the club’s name, playing strip and colours will be decided with the fans.

We want to make sure we engage the community and our future fans and members from day one.

Horvat said it was crucial the A-League bid embraced all of Western Victoria including growth areas like Armstrong Creek and the Surf Coast as well as Melbourne’s western suburbs, Werribee Ballarat, Bendigo, Colac and Warrnambool.

“This is only a working title for the future club. It’s a name that was available to secure in the short space of time when we decided to press on and go for it,” he said

“We needed an entity to tie everything together. It will soon be superseded by an official name and colours.

“This really is for all of Western Victoria because there are just so many untapped catchment areas.

“There is huge corridors to work with and we are going to go to all those regions and engage the local communities to make sure they feel invested in this club.

“We also want to stress that both Victory and City have done a great job and we are not looking to take their members. We firmly believe that the game is growing and there are many football fans that would want to call this new club home.

“Imagine six more Melbourne derbies a season like the ones that have captured the Melbourne sporting public.”

The Geelong consortium has always held its cards close to its chest while the likes of South Melbourne and a bid based out of Casey gathered momentum.

However, this announcement is expected to be the first of many in the lead up to the FFA’s expansion framework release.

Horvat has met with FFA to discuss Geelong’s bid and said the message from the sport’s governing body was positive.

“They have said along with other regions that this region is in the ball game,” he said.

“It’s up to us, the community, key stakeholders to work together to make sure we put forward a compelling case.”