Football Federation Australia Chair Steven Lowy "made a last-minute plea for A-League clubs and state bodies to support the code’s governance overhaul," questioning whether their demands would have "allowed the Socceroos the resources to qualify for the World Cup," according to Andrew White of THE AUSTRALIAN. Ahead of Thursday's "climax" to football's "long-simmering power struggle," Lowy said that the clubs’ bid for a bigger share of the code’s revenue "threatened to impoverish the national teams and grassroots." He said, "They are putting their interests ahead of the overall interests of the game in this country. We have had a dispute with the clubs and it is the view of the FFA and all of the member federations that the clubs’ desire for more money will come at the expense of grassroots and the national team." Football’s governing congress will meet in Sydney on Thursday to vote on a "FIFA-driven overhaul that would see the body expanded from 10 members to as many as 21" under a structure put forward by FFA. But that model "faces defeat unless the FFA model gets at least eight of the 10 votes, with a loss potentially triggering a FIFA takeover" and the appointment of a normalization committee to replace FFA. Normalization "would in effect be a deregistration of FFA by the world body, triggering a power scramble in Australia" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 11/30).
HIGH STAKES: In Melbourne, Michael Lynch reported fears that federal government responses to football's "civil war" could jeopardize Australia's plans to host the Women's World Cup "were raised in the senate this week after stakeholders in the game suggested they were being subjected to government lobbying" in the lead-up to the "crucial vote." South Australian Senator Don Farrell asked Victorian Senator Mitch Fifield, representing Australia Federal Sports Minister Greg Hunt, if the sport's governance issues "would influence Hunt's decision" on making A$4M ($3M) available to help fund Australia's bid to fund the 2023 Women's World Cup. Fifield "reiterated the government line" that it would make the cash available "if the government is satisfied that there are reasonable prospects of success and that FIFA's bidding process conforms to the highest standards of probity" (THE AGE, 11/29).
HISTORIC OCCASION: Lynch also reported former FFA board member and Socceroo Jack Reilly "has been one of the most trenchant critics of the current administration since he was dumped from the board" in '13. So it is "hardly surprising" that he described Thursday's general meeting as "the most important decision-making day there has been in Australian football history." He said, "It's important because we need to be totally honest about the way things were run in the past, and it's vital that we put in place a plan that will ensure our future. That means putting in place an administration that will be monitored, scrutinized and held totally accountable for its decisions" (THE AGE, 11/29).
