A-League to put aside off field bitterness ahead of new season

Australian soccer will put aside the political infighting for a few days as the A-League and W-League seasons kick off this week.

FFA CEO David Gallop says a board meeting today could resolve some burning issues

It’s been an acrimonious off-season but Football Federation Australia chief executive David Gallop says it is time to get down to the business of soccer and remains buoyant the future of the A-League is as bright as ever.

After months of controversy, negativity and speculation about who will control the sport, politics will take a back seat — for a couple of days at least — when the new A-League and W-League seasons kick off this week.

Having been at the coalface as the sport has almost torn itself apart, Gallop, for one, cannot wait for the attention to swing to the players, saying he expected a stellar season during the official launch at Fox Sports studios in Sydney yesterday.

“The game’s future is so bright. The professional competitions — the A-League and W-League — are the commercial engine rooms of the game,” Gallop said to a suggestion there could be a knock-on effect because of off-field dramas that have engulfed the sport.

“The agenda that the sport has to get its arms around, and where that is going, whether talking participation numbers, the women’s game, the Matildas, the FFA Cup and the connection points that makes to a potential second division in the future … all of these things make me very optimistic about the future.

“The great news is this is a highly anticipated A-League season because of what is going to happen on the pitch.

“Every club has been active on improving their roster.

“We have got new coaches and a national team coach who is not averse at looking at A-League players.

“If you look at purely what is on the table in terms of the competition then we are entitled to be optimistic about where things are going to go.”

The burning question, however, is how the recent changes, under which current FFA chairman Steven Lowy will step down and a largely new board will be put in place at FFA’s Congress next month, will affect the landscape of the game.

We will find out as early as today — when the board meets for the last time — whether an expansion of the A-League from 10 to 12 teams for the 2019-20 season will be given the green light.

A decision was supposed to be made by the end of the month, but changes to the congress mean there is a demarcation line between the current board and the impending new board over who should make the decision on which two bids will come in.

Another complication is that Gallop hinted all eight bidders still have some issues to resolve, leading to speculation an announcement on the successful applicants may be put off until next year.

It is not a situation that will please fans, who have become bored with the current 10-team competition and are crying out for change. The game cannot afford to mark time for another season.

The A-League management will present its paper and recommendations on the bidders to the board amid uncertainty whether it will go ahead and make the decision.

Gallop was non-committal about his expectations.

“Obviously we had a timetable of making a decision by October 31. There’s some complications with imminent changes to the board, so we have got a board meeting tomorrow (Tuesday) and we also need to have a final look at the bids,” Gallop said.

A-League boss Greg O’Rourke, who has played a major role in assessing the bids, said he did not want a decision on expansion to be delayed.

“If they delay it by a year because they make a decision a little later in the process, that could be one thing, but what I don’t want (the board) to do is to delay the announcement of the teams because that’s where the excitement comes,” O’Rourke said.

“It comes with the ability for those clubs to start recruiting (players), setting up, employing individuals, going to communities, getting (jersey) colours and the name of the club … that momentum you can’t afford to push down the road.”