Football Federation Australia has committed to re-energizing the A-League "in the hope of landing a bumper broadcasting deal as part of its new four-year plan, unveiled in Sydney on Tuesday," according to Sebastian Hassett of the SYDNEY MORNING HERALD. The new "road map" recognizes the need to funnel the game's broader
focus toward the domestic league, with the organization "set to allocate
more existing resources over the next year to the promotion of the
competition." Most notably, FFA will form a centralized pool to "help those clubs who
want to purchase marquee players," with a "seven-figure amount" set
aside to help fund the next generation of star players. FFA has also committed to "new investment in digital platforms" that will help increase A-League brand awareness, a rebranding of the competition from the '17-18 season and various incentives to clubs and associations to better "align their programs to the game's overall national objectives." FFA Chair Steven Lowy said, "The four-year strategic plan represents a significant shift in emphasis towards our showcase competition, the A-League. This is primarily about braodcast rights and commercial partnerships, which are the economic foundation of football around the world." A new subcommittee will be formed to focus on broadcasting, with Lowy at the helm, "while FFA board member Joseph Healy will oversee a football development subcommittee" and FIFA exec committee member Moya Dodd "will chair a committee focused on women's football" (SMH, 3/8). In Sydney, Tom Smithies reported the "stardust is sorely needed because Tuesday’s blueprint revealed two key factors." First, a realization that the A-League is the commercial vehicle to "attract more money into the game, and second the extent to which the vast bulk of that money -- and exposure -- has to come from the next TV deal." To make the A-League the "shop front and engine room of Australian Football," FFA has to make many more people "care about, watch and attend its games." In the short-term, they hope that will come with a A$10M ($7.5M) marquee budget, "to help clubs find and recruit stars with footballing sex appeal." Engaging with potential fans "via myriad digital channels is a priority; repositioning and rebranding the A-League will take closer to two years, given the time on kit manufacture and advertising spends" (DAILY TELEGRAPH, 3/8). The AAP reported much of FFA's plan "hinges on revenue not yet obtained from a lucrative new broadcast deal." Lowy said that the deal "will determine the pace and scale" at which the organization can achieve its goals. A-League expansion is "still off the agenda, as is the creation of a national second tier and promotion-relegation system." Lowy said that the strategy acknowledged the "need to hone the wider focus" on the Australian game on its "engine" of the A-League (AAP, 3/8).
