In the days after the Socceroos' Asian Cup victory, Football Federation Australia bosses were keen – again – to spruik that soccer was the sleeping giant of Australian sport. That soccer is growing quickly at the grassroots level is unquestionable but it was now felt that the professional league on local shores – the A League – would become a more coveted entertainment option.
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"Commercially I think the backbone of the game is the A-League, the week-in, week-out competition producing five quality games every week, where it's difficult to predict the winner," FFA chief David Gallop said.
"It's part of the business model, a very important part of the business model. Operating on a level playing field but still allowing for star players to come into the competition through the marquee player system is important for football. The backbone is providing content week in and week out for television and that's what the A League does."
The Socceroos may have gained in prominence yet it emerged days later that SBS, for so long seen as the home of soccer, although it's hard to argue that Fox Sports hasn't assumed that title, is planning to end, or certainly scale back, its 35-year relationship with the local game because of budget cuts.
That's prompted two key questions by those in the industry. Does soccer still lack the market penetration needed for a free-to-air network, or is SBS's coverage – it broadcasts the marquee Friday-night fixture along with panel shows – not doing enough to lure new viewers?
SBS and Fox Sports signed a four-year, $160 million agreement to share the rights until 2017, but that could be cut at the end of this season. There have been rumblings for some time that A-League bosses were unhappy with what some had said was SBS's bland coverage, and certainly were unimpressed last season when matches were banished to SBS2. On face value, it was an odd move – why would a network which has shaped itself around the round-ball code for decades make such a call? Behind the scenes, it's believed fears of poor ratings had been an issue.
That changed after pressure from the FFA leading into a new season, in which chief operating officer John Kelly said "we are in a golden age of football in Australia".
Sources suggest it may be harder than some think for SBS and the league to end its association, with the tentacles of government funding a tricky business to unravel.
Ratings have been mixed this season and weren't helped by cricket's World Cup. Still, when only 37,000 viewers tune into some games on Fox, that's enough confirmation to show why bullish soccer chiefs should be a touch more reserved.
"There are still some poorly performing matches dragging down the overall result because of a lop-sided competition," says ratings analyst Steve Allen, of Fusion Media.
Networks Seven and Ten have publicly expressed some interest in sharing the rights, but are they really serious? That's what soccer insiders want to know. No doubt, the networks would have interest in Friday-night matches through summer involving major clubs such as Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC, and we know how well Seven can pump up events. But there is so much more to generating a winning formula – namely the viewing public having an intrinsic interest.
This will rile many supporters but, in terms of television, the A League appears in a similar position to second-tier sports, such as basketball. Australia produces elite men's and women's basketball talent that head off to overseas leagues, the national teams are popular (although the Socceroos are well ahead in this regard) and, locally, there is a strong league but one that has struggled to have – or retain – exposure on commercial free to air.
The National Basketball League and Women's National Basketball League are each without a broadcast rights deal. Like the WNBL, soccer's W-League was a casualty of the ABC's budget cuts. Gallop says he is "confident" the league will be televised next season.
Led by Les Murray until his recent retirement, SBS had done a fantastic job bringing the men's World Cup into our homes. SBS will likely do the same with the women's World Cup in Canada from June 6. But where the code really needs a free kick is in the A League.
* It's an on-air trait that has been touched on in Sports Watch by commentary great Bruce McAvaney and tennis broadcaster Todd Woodbridge – the need to let viewers hear the roar of the crowd. Fox Footy commentators had been criticised for talking incessantly immediately after a goal, but caller Dwayne Russell says the network will aim more to let the broadcast breathe this season, particularly when stadiums such as Adelaide Oval and Domain Stadium in Perth are full of raucous supporters.
