Yes they did (at least a few times - I don’t think it was regularly) when there were simultaneous 7.30pm games
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I do wonder if they should bother or not - while the broadcaster has some responsibility to promote the game (and it is also a bit more complicated with Ten/Paramount being an investor in the APL) I’m not completely convinced a changed broadcast offering will drive viewership given the parlous state the league is in.
That said, I think what you suggest is a good step forward - football is tribal and anything that helps build that is a good thing, focusing on ‘local’ teams helps build that tribal element but as you highlight NSW and Melbourne are going to be difficult markets to achieve this in given the number of teams. I still think there is value in getting one of your best games of the round on air nationally and anything beyond that is more locally focussed.
There needs to be a focus on quality too (and this is going to be tough), attracting some halo talent would help - the likes of Dwight Yorke and Alessandro del Piero are one of the reasons I watched the early A-League and I’m sure others too - look at the bump that having Messi play in the MLS has had on the game in America (not that I’m advocating for someone of Messi’s skill/talent/paycheck)
If Paramount sees itself wanting a longer relationship with the game in Australia, then it probably behooves them to try something new to make it more attractive to a potential audience (but given the state of its viewer numbers, it’s going to be hard to get people to watch something they may have no idea is on), if they’re walking away at the end of the current deal - meet the terms of their agreement and nothing more.
I think the APL should get rid of the finals series for the A-league and W-league.
To make it a more exciting competition, the team who finishes first at the end of the regular season should be champions.
This is the norm in most football leagues around the world, especially in Europe.
Having promotion/relegation would also help, although this is a few years away, but once it’s implemented, it will make the league a lot more compelling to watch.
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How would you balance it then? In Victoria you’d need mostly 3 games per round, in NSW you’d need 5!
Problem then is that if the winner is decided with rounds to go how do you have any want to keep playing/watching? Plus teams that are eliminated stop caring once mathematics have them out of the title race.
You wouldn’t - it would have operate similarly to how the AFL rights operate in Victoria
First past the post is good enough for every other top-flight football league around the world, bar two (A-League and MLS). It also keeps people interested through the fight for club championship qualification (like CL and Europa League) and promotion/relegation.
Not quite. Several leagues use a break point which is essentially finals, such as the Scottish Premiership:
They’re still first past the post systems
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Yes but not straight. A first past the post just wouldn’t work in Australia with no jeopardy or history behind it sadly.
What a load of shit - we only have finals in the A-League because thats what every other code has. Football needs to stop trying to live in the shadows of the much more successful sports and forge their own path
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However, the consortium is growing frustrated by a lack of clarity from the APL about the salary cap, competition structure, financial distribution from the broadcast deal and other important details for next season.
There is also some doubt regarding the broadcast deal with Paramount Plus, which still has two seasons to run on a five-year $200 million contract.
The “ALM/ALW won’t be around next year” rumour has commenced another lap too.
FWIW: Stephen Conroy (chair of the APL) has confirmed today that they can’t continue to support the Jets (and Canberra’s future team) in their current ‘ownerless’ state. You’ve got to think that there is a strong possibility that the APL could sink Newcastle in an attempt to save the league.
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What happened to the Aston Villa owners looking into buying the Canberra license? Did that go anywhere?
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It was revealed that the Socceroos will play two additional matches at home this year. Lebanon will host the Socceroos in Canberra next Tuesday night as previously posted, then Australia will face Palestine in Perth on Tuesday night, June 11.
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One additional, they were already drawn to face Palestine at home.
The APLs broadcast production partner Global Advance has gone belly up by the sound of it - may also impact Seven and their racing coverage
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Incredibly sub-optimal, for both the industry and the league.
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Timing isn’t great with finals not far off either
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https://twitter.com/joeylynchy/status/1772927032105578751
I suspect NEP would have been the more expensive option originally.
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Yep, Fox was paying $30 million per season just for the ALM, while the new company was costing just $15 million for both ALM and ALW. You can see why they did it, and it otherwise worked quite well. Although NEP were reportedly doing Perth games as a subcontractor anyway (which should allow for a smoother transition), along with being Sky’s production partner in NZ.
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