Robbie Slater: Domestic football is ‘in the worst state I’ve ever seen it’ as APL and A-Leagues flounder

After 40 years involvement at the elite level of Australian football, ROBBIE SLATER believes the domestic game is in ‘the worst state’ he’s ever seen it and has grave fears for the viability of the A-Leagues.

The Newcastle Jets’ woes are another blow for the A-Leagues. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images

I stumbled across an old story recently about a fight I got into with one of my teammates, Carlton Palmer, at Southampton.

It’s true that we didn’t like each other much.

But still we played together.

I passed him the ball. He passed me the ball.

On the field – where it really mattered – our personal relationship was never a problem because we both understood that, despite our many differences, football is a team game and success could only be achieved by pulling together.

Robbie Slater in action for Southampton during the 1996/97 Premier League season. Picture: Gary M Prior /Allsport

The Palmer story got me thinking about the state of football in Australia.

Relationships are strained to non-existent: from the FA to the APL to the state associations and beyond. That’s not particularly unusual in sport but what makes football in Australia unique from many of its rivals is its complete inability to work together for the greater good.

The A Leagues are a case in point.

The domestic game in Australia is in the worst state I’ve ever seen it, to the point where people in the game are now openly talking about whether the APL is viable and the A Leagues can survive.

Red lights are flashing across the dashboard at the moment.

Stephen Conroy’s statement this week that the APL was no longer in the financial position to prop up ailing clubs should have everyone in the game very, very worried. Of course, there was money, plenty of it, but all that Silver Lake cash is gone and we only know about the KeepUp portion of it.

So where did the rest of it go?

What happened to the independent audit we were assured was going to happen? Is there something there they don’t want us to see? There have certainly been plenty of rumours to that effect and the only way the APL can win back confidence and prove there is nothing to hide is to open the books.

If the APL top brass think they can keep everything quiet without holding those in power – past and present – accountable for the many millions squandered, the league will lose the trust of the few fans it still has and tumble further into the abyss.

And what exactly are we talking about in terms of fan numbers? Let’s look at last round. Just 3,058 showed up for Western United versus Victory at AAMI Park. Another 4,103 attended Jets versus Adelaide United in Newcastle. There were only 3,178 for Roar versus Macarthur at Ballymore and 5,952 for Glory versus Wanderers in Perth. In fact, the best crowd of the week wasn’t even in this country: it was the 18,002 for Sydney FC versus Phoenix at Eden Park in Auckland.

Just 3058 people attended the match between Western United and Melbourne Victory at AAMI Park last week. Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images

This isn’t sustainable and it demonstrates just how far the A Leagues have fallen since the APL got their wish and unbundled from Football Australia. And it looks like it’s going to get worse.

The Newcastle Jets, a foundation club, are on the brink of collapse.

They have been propped up for a while now by four other A League clubs but I understand two of those have walked away and the others won’t be far behind them. The APL has warned that there will be no more handouts but, then again, I was told this week that they had yet to hand over relevant accounts and figures to a consortium that were interested in buying them.

There are similar concerns about the financial viability of those behind the proposed new Canberra franchise. The APL has convinced a billionaire to stump up $20-plus million for a new license for an Auckland team – a miracle given the league’s current state – but with a foundation team at the point of collapse and a second expansion team in grave doubt, the A Leagues’ promise of expansion could yet result in another 12-team competition.

Many within the game, myself included, are of the view that there is only one way the A Leagues emerge from the commercial wreckage of the APL era: the FA must step in and take back control now.

They are the guardians of football in this country and, despite their statements about remaining arm’s length from the APL, they cannot allow the premier men’s and women’s domestic league to fail if they hope to remain a sport of significance in Australia.

A few things have to happen now.

First, they must demand the completion of the independent audit. Full transparency. And then they must use the leverage they do possess – the strong Matildas and Socceroos brands – to help secure a better broadcast outcome for the ailing A Leagues.

Embattled A-Leagues Commissioner Nick Garcia has a range of issues to solve. Picture: Matt King/Getty Images for APL

I’m told Channel 10 is close to signing a new deal for the Matildas and Socceroos – and why wouldn’t they? The Matildas are the nation’s favourite sporting team and the Socceroos showed at the last World Cup the pulling power they possess.

The A Leagues, by contrast, are marooned on an unpopular platform in Paramount+ and have been pushed deeper and deeper into obscurity by the free-to-air arm of Ten. I’m surprised how little outrage there has been about Ten/Paramount’s coverage of the A League Women’s competition – there are some games you swear were being filmed by someone in the crowd with a handy-cam – and the fact they still won’t reveal viewership or subscription figures is revealing in itself.

The A Leagues broadcast deal has been a disaster. Clubs have not received what they were promised and are on their knees financially. Some owners were not informed by APL bosses about performances clauses within the deal that allowed Ten/Paramount to greatly reduce payments, or the fact the APL was on the hook for production costs.

And now they find themselves in the weakest bargaining position they have ever been in.

The APL have no more cards to play, short of selling more silverware to Silver Lake (and look where that got them last time). The FA is the only player with a strong hand. And if they really care about the health of the game in Australia, they will step in, clean house and leverage the appeal of the national teams to strike a better broadcast outcome for the leagues.

That is the only way forward.

Originally published as Robbie Slater: Domestic football is ‘in the worst state I’ve ever seen it’ as APL and A-Leagues flounder