Aussie World Cup bid in disarray

It seems that it is not just the English that can make a complete hash of presenting a World Cup bid. After the well publicised early PR disaster, which saw the English organisers slated by Jack Warner and the cheeky Australians performing some ‘ambush marketing’ by shamelessly handing out their own bid brochures at an England event, it seems that the Aussie bandwagon has encountered a few speed bumps itself recently.

Soccer has not taken seed too well down under and the introduction of the A League in 2005 has done little to enhance the reputation of the sport. It is hoped that a successful World Cup bid will capture the public’s imagination and draw attention away from Aussie Rules and both codes of rugby, but this unlikely eventuality has already caused a stir among the suits involved in running the other sports.

Chief Executive of the Australian Football League (AFL) Andrew Demetriou has reacted unfavourably to the prospect of the Aussie Rules season being disrupted by the World Cup, with specific concerns over the use of the Etihad Stadium in Melbourne. The AFL have already compromised over the use of the Melbourne Cricket Ground and are steadfast that their game, which is infinitely more popular than soccer in Australia, will not take a back seat.

With such friction lingering over the bid and reports of burn out amongst the Socceroo squad circulating, the Australian bidding chiefs have also been forced to offer reassurance that financial problems in the fledgling A League will not pose a risk to the bid. Despite a salary cap being imposed which limits clubs paying the astronomical salaries that footballers receive in Europe, some clubs are still in dire financial straits. North Queensland Fury have joined Gold Coast United in declaring their crippling debt and doubts have been cast over their existence in next season’s A League.

Fury had little choice but to release their ‘Marquee Player’ Robbie Fowler, who was earning a reported $750,000 a year and he is widely expected to join rivals Sydney. There are notable parallels between the Fury and Portsmouth. Both have been paying for players that their average gates simply couldn’t justify. The golf course entrepreneur that took control of the Fury, who have only been in existence since 2008 had budgeted for modest crowds of 8,000, but only twice was this figure reached in 12 games, meaning the Hollywood signing of Fowler had been an expensive flop.

The sorry state of the A League is a savage blow for the bid team, who promised in their campaign brochure that: “Australian national team players and international stars have joined the league to ensure a high level of technical excellence”. Would this sublime technique be from the same league that sees washed up pros like Eugene Dadi and Lloyd Owusu terrorising defences containing Andy Todd and former Luton misfit Chris Coyne?

With the powerhouse USA in contention, along with strong bids from Spain and Russia, and moneybags Qatar lurking ominously with a potential bid, it seems that there will be plenty of twists and turns before Fifa make their final decision as to who hosts the 2018 and 2022 World Cups in December. It is fair to say that both England and Australia will have to overcome great adversity if they are to be successful.