Canberra's latest bid to join the A-League is "already facing stiff competition," with two U.S.-based investors keen to bring Clive Palmer's old club Gold Coast United back to the national stage. The Canberra Region Football Collective went public on Tuesday, declaring it had made a formal offer to Football Federation Australia to either buy a new A-League license or replace Central Coast if the Mariners cannot find a "suitable new owner." CRFC's offer is believed to be between A$5M ($4M) and A$10M ($7M), and is being bankrolled by a "local high net-worth family" and an unnamed European-based investment group.
FFA confirmed it had "received an approach from Canberra but that it was just one of several interested parties." Industry sources have indicated that Gold Coast United -- who were booted from the A-League in ‘12 -- have been in "constant recent dialogue with FFA." Like the CRFC bid, Gold Coast was "overlooked in the last round of A-League expansion," but has retained the financial support of American investors Brett Johnson and Jordan Gardner (SYDNEY MORNING HERALD, 8/25).
