The dates for "the next stage in the battle for the control of football in Australia" have been set, with FIFA and Asian Football Confederation officials "arriving in a month’s time to try to end the impasse," according to Tom Smithies of the Sydney DAILY TELEGRAPH. In "the wake of the collapse" of Football Federation Australia Chair Steven Lowy’s proposed model for "the power structure at the top of the game," the FIFA/AFC delegation will hold a series of meetings with various stakeholders from Feb. 20-22. The joint delegation "is a second attempt by FIFA and the AFC to find a new model for Australia’s Congress," the voting body with the power to elect the directors of FFA. The talks next month are likely to center on a "far wider representation at Congress," with the National Premier Leagues clubs and other interest groups "seeking an audience with FIFA." So far, though, the demands of the A-League clubs and the players' association for extra votes "have been resisted by Lowy, under whose model the bulk of votes would remain with the states" (DAILY TELEGRAPH, 1/22).
