Australia's bid for the 2018 or 2022 World Cup

[northernspirit]

well well well what a suprise, egg ball codes trying to once again thwart the growth of football in this country - im with mick, if anything FIFA will strike back and award it to Australia.

 

[midfielder]

It even gets funnier ... the RL guy here says RL will have to close down for two seasons if we win the WC bid... so from the smh..

http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/disrupted-seasons-and-loss-of-homes-will-send-us-broke-say-nrl-clubs-20091207-kfer.html

Disrupted seasons and loss of homes will send us broke, say NRL clubs
BRAD WALTER

December 8, 2009

SOME NRL bosses fear the World Cup could send their clubs broke if they are unable to play while the tournament is staged in Australia.

To satisfy FIFA requirements to host the World Cup, bid organisers need 12 stadiums clean of advertising and each able to accommodate crowds of 40,000, and agreements from rival codes, including the NRL and AFL, to vacate grounds before, during and after the tournament.

With ANZ Stadium, the SFS, Suncorp Stadium, EnergyAustralia Stadium, Canberra Stadium and Dairy Farmers Stadium on the FFA's wish list, the Rabbitohs, Bulldogs, Roosters, Broncos, Knights, Raiders and Cowboys would all be without home grounds for eight weeks or more.

However, all clubs may be affected as FIFA does not allow other major sporting competitions to be played in the same cities where World Cup matches are scheduled.

In addition, FIFA would demand first-class training venues for the World Cup teams, which are likely to mean Parramatta Stadium, Kogarah Oval, WIN Stadium, Skilled Park and the Storm's new home ground would all be off-limits to NRL clubs.

''It is not just for one year, it is for two years and from what I've seen it could have a massive impact on the NRL and a real impact on clubs like ours if we are not able to play games for a long period of time two seasons in a row,'' North Queensland chief executive Peter Parr said.

''If that happens, it will impact significantly on our revenue and have a dramatic effect on us as a club. To have two years of disrupted revenue would put us way behind the eight-ball and we're not a club with a big leagues club behind us, or which gets a grant or is privately owned Like most people I would love to see Australia host the World Cup but not if it has got the potential to send clubs like ours to the wall.''

Parr said the Cowboys would also be affected during the construction period to increase the capacity of the stadium in Townsville to 40,000, while the club would be burdened with ongoing costs after the World Cup. ''We would end up with a stadium that we would hardly ever fill and we'd have to pick up all the costs for its upkeep and maintenance,'' he said.

The potential problems caused by Australia hosting the cup in 2018 or 2022 were discussed at the annual NRL clubs conference last week and a number of CEOs yesterday told the Herald it was unreasonable to expect the competition to simply stop while the World Cup was on. To do so, they said, would threaten the financial viability of many clubs.

''At the CEOs' conference last week we were all given information that the soccer people had provided to the NRL,'' Roosters boss Steve Noyce said. ''There were a number of different scenarios that made it difficult for the game to continue and that is obviously of concern to the clubs because of the lost revenue and lost focus on the competition.''

 

[northernspirit]

lol if i had 3 wishes one would have to be the death of all egg ball sports, truly pathetic

 

[midfielder]

A bloke phoned 702 this afternoon with a wonderfull idea ... just so funny...

He said the Dome in Melbourne holds 52, 000 but that is as an AFL ground... when converted to a football style ground which they can do it meets the 60, 000... say to the Vic gov OK AFL gets it's way Football will not use the MCG so Homebush will get both the Opening game and final.

 

[northernspirit]

1269 am NRL dinosaurs took a call on the w.c "honestly we support the world cup bid and want australia to succeed but how many people follow rugby league, afl and rugby union and wont be able to watch their sports for a full year"

http://www.2sm.com.au/listen.html
for anyone who wants to smash their monitor

 

[midfielder]

NUFCMVFC a blogger from Melbourne and a very knowledgable football person and a great writer wrote the following ...

Originally Posted by NUFCMVFC 
Interesting developments over the last few days, what I find interesting is the timing is impeccable, and it is very much calculated. Right after the World Cup draw, I was interested to note at work, on the day of the draw, Guus Hiddink on the front of the sports section in the Australian gear, raising the possibility of Australia vs Russia for the MCG sendoff.

And then obviously we had all the different kids in the different face paint on the day of the draw. Obviously there is quite some excitement building about football, not so much when we qualified in a jagged and obscure way, last time November 16 was so close to the draw it was rolled into one, but now that we have a tangible idea that we are actually going and who we are facing, you can see people are excited. Just have to look at the Ticket numbers, Australians are the 3rd highest in sales. That PROVES that football means a lot to people in this country, and these won't be all hardcores either, a lot of them would be passionate AFL or Rugby League fans as well I'm willing to bet (some would cynically call them bandwagoners and complain about them taking devoted fans spots but that is digressing a bit)

Obviously this is very much a calculated ploy by the AFL to try and stunt momentum building about the World Cup (during the off season for AFL, so no game action to break the momentum) but it is also designed to try and impact and drive a wedge into the community goodwill towards football and the Socceroos and demonise and generate cynicism towards football, not to mention generate some hysterical fear mongering that it is "one or the other" or that a "choice" has to be made. I think the comment that it could come at a cost to the "survival" of some clubs is disgusting, the AFL are happy to throw $200 million at some WS venture no one but them wants, but they wouldn't spend that kind of money on subsidising local teams (perhaps they want Federal Govt compensation). An obvious ploy to instill fear of the World Cup into people

Haven't looked at HS today, but interesting to note how they have had ton handle it, yes they are an anti-football rag, but they also have to be somewhat patriotic to all sports firmly in the national spotlight, and so hook onto South Africa bandwagon. They are probably a bit mixed but for them I would imagine the ideal would be to have plenty of interest in "Soccer" during the World Cup and then have it go back to "normal" afterwards, rather than have football develop momentum (a bit like trying to divert Olympic athlete funding post 2000 Sydney to more "popular" sports). But for a paper that loves trumpeting Australia as the Sports Capital of the world, to not go full bore in promoting a World Cup with Melbourne as final host (which will require adjustments to MCG to stake the case) would be counter intuitive you would think. For this reason I think MW is right in saying there are some people in what I will call "establishment" positions at State and Council level who perhaps have an agenda to promote football only so far but hile ensuring a "competitive advantage" weighted towards the AFL code, this despite there not being enough football grounds to satiate demand and kids having to do without

All in all though, I think this has been a slight miscalculation by the AFL admin and some of their media sycophants. Once again I think there is a bit of a generational difference. People have bagged Media Watch but I suspect he belongs to the slightly older generation, from a time where "wogball" was roundly harangued, and I think this has intilled an ultra defensive intinct that comes out of him. Personally I had an interesting experience over the weekend with the World Cup draw, I was away on a training camp, managed to get a TV reception to SBS on a TV computer thing and got up at 3:30 to watch it. They know I'm crazy and do such things for the EPL, but I think what really opened eyes was the following evening on SBS news when they were covering it, with reporters on site, and pitcures of thousands of people in the street celebrating colourfully. They couldn't believe all of this when there isn't even a game on! Personally I think I tend to forget that some people don't realise Cup Draws as major events, there is no equivalent of the FA Cup, UCL, Euro Champs and South American regional champs draws in the AFL or Rugby League, so they have never had to think about the concept. The reaction was interesting though, a slightly older guy, who is perfectly tolerant towards my interest in football etc, reacted through jest mocking comments about this being what happens with not enough excitement in games etc. There was nothing sinister in it, but it was interesting to notice there is almost a second nature mentality that has been drummed into the slightly older generations, and to treat football fans as a kind of other

But is has changed with the younger generations, I was really surprised to see my best mate who plays AFL at club level on the weekend joined the "AFL can get F&^&ED and make way for the World Cup" Facebook page, already about 4k strong after about 1 day or so, that's actually how I found out about it (good to see some familiar faces there).

I was probably on the end of the "wogball" popularisation, but that is no more, nowadays kids grow up playing FIFA games on XBOX or Playstation (my aforementioned mate loves it) and EPL and Euro football tops are a popular fashion item, people are able to walk around (I got "bagged" by an assistant in a shop when wearing my NUFC top, she was a Chelsea supporter) and even yesterday at training someone saw the top and started discussing why they supported Liverpool instead of the others. At work people come up to me and start discussing football (world cup and EPL) as water cooler talk, these people talk about their AFL team to other people just as much

For this reason, I think the AFL admin have miscalculated, people are more rounded in their sports interests now, even if Australia aren't in the World Cup, it will always be a massive event (witness 2002) because a lot of people are dual nationals. And people won't like the idea of having some kind of "choice" forced upon them by the AFL or anyone else (FIFA), What is important about Australia qualifying, is that we have had Australians going to the "World Cup Party" in tens of thousands, and thye naturally go back and tell their friends how great it is, and obviously with Facebook etc friends can see for themselves by the massive amount of pics that get complied. This in turn generates groundswell momentum as a kind of counter point to the perspective some people at AFL HQ and the HS are trying to ram down our throats. This could stimulate a backlash of sorts. People will want both World Cup and AFL, they will be fine with the AFL making a slight compromise for a while (Carlton at Princess Park, Geelong at Skilled Park, even Collingwood at Victoria Park) which will be more "romantic anyway

For my part, Although I have critiqued Buckley in some respects, I think he has handled this matter quite well, he hasn't allowed football to get dragged into an "us and them" dynamic and avoided a "tit for tat", has instead consistently stayed on a message about wanting to work out compromise solutions with other sports and by making remarks about "wrong information" he has deflected attention towards the "facts" the AFL are citing, which in turn alters the attention from "The World Cup will be bad get the pitchforks out" hysteria to an attention scrutinising the fine detail of how the stadium handover and other details would work (MCG being made rectangular?) which leads to a public energy of wanting to work out how to find a compromise (interestingly could lead to calls of State and Federal Govt compensation, so this could also be a secondary ploy by the AFL to develop groundswell for money", a bit like the stadium deal.

As far as this kind of crap is concerned


and that stupid line about "the AFL is ours even though Soccer is the world game"

Football is the world game, we are a part of it, and it is partly ours, and it means a lot to Australians, not some kind of "foreign invading influence" which is the notion Mike is trying to conjure up. This will be amply evident during the second game, against Ghana, at 9:30 on a Saturday night, Melbourne will be absolutely packed with people, and it isn't hard to imagine the public sites will be overfilling, all the bars will have this game on, the SBS ratings will be through the roof, no having to wake the kids up at 4:30 on a school day, they can stay up late on this one occasion and sleep in on Sunday morning. Then we will all undoubtedly know that Australia is indeed a "football" country, and then we will know that "life as we thought we knew it" won't be the same

 

[midfielder]

From BB scroll to BB & WC Bid its 4 to 6 maybe 8 weeks and no season close down and only for the stadium being played at.

http://media.smh.com.au/sport/sports-hq/tiger-woods-tv-skit-is-bad-taste-955040.html

 

[Forum Phoenix]

Reader poll Hijack time:

Would you be happy to see State of Origin shifted to accommodate the World Cup?

http://www.smh.com.au/polls/sport/form.html

Hijacked.

 

[curious]

http://www.smh.com.au/national/afl-block-to-world-cup-bid-20091208-khmw.html

AFL block to World Cup bid
DAN SILKSTONE
December 9, 2009

Be the first to comment

AUSTRALIA'S bid for the soccer World Cup is in danger of being derailed after AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou declared Etihad Stadium off limits for the world's largest sporting event.

In an extraordinary outbreak of war between the codes, Mr Demetriou has lashed out at soccer authorities for ''trumpeting'' their plans to use Etihad Stadium as a World Cup venue without consulting the AFL.

He said the AFL had already offered to give up the MCG for part of a season and could not afford to do without the Docklands stadium as well.

In response, Football Federation Australia has threatened to strip World Cup games from Melbourne and send them interstate.

Soccer needs the Docklands venue as part of its World Cup plans and had already been struggling to meet the requirements of soccer's international body, FIFA, for at least a dozen 40,000-seat stadiums.

But Mr Demetriou signalled yesterday he would not compromise on the Docklands stadium, which is under contract to the AFL for 25 years.

''It's impossible to run a football season without Etihad,'' Mr Demetriou told The Age. ''We have put up a suggestion of the MCG being unavailable for 10 weeks, which would require our agreement, but we need Etihad to have a season,'' he said.

Mr Demetriou accused the World Cup bid team, led by his old friend and former AFL teammate Ben Buckley, of being disrespectful.

He said he was not interested in working out a compromise for the World Cup. ''It's not for the AFL to come up with solutions for FIFA and the FFA. The language has to change,'' he said.

''We've come up with a proposal to be an accommodating, collaborative partner to support the World Cup bid.

''Our solution is (they use) the MCG for 10 weeks, we play our season around it and play in other areas and other grounds, but you need Etihad. It's the only way it works.''

A shocked Mr Buckley said last night the AFL's stance could mean Victorians would miss out on their share of World Cup action. ''Our preferred position, and the one we've worked towards, is to use Etihad Stadium as one of our venues,'' he said. ''It is one of the best stadiums in Australia and in the world.

''If Etihad is not included we would have to relocate a significant amount of games away from Victoria and that would be a real shame for the people of Victoria.''

Mr Buckley, the former AFL No.2, said he still hoped a deal could be reached with the AFL for access to the stadium.

But that prospect seemed remote after it emerged last night that the FFA had yesterday received a letter from Etihad Stadium chief executive Ian Collins saying that he did not wish the stadium to play any part in the World Cup bid. Mr Collins would not comment last night.

The FFA had initially believed it would not need the venue, instead using the MCG and the new rectangular stadium on Swan Street as World Cup venues.

That stadium was supposedly ''future-proofed'' so that it could be enlarged to 40,000. But the FFA turned back to Etihad after it emerged that the distinctive bubble roof of the rectangular venue meant it would cost a prohibitive $150 million to enlarge it.

Etihad Stadium featured in the glossy book and film handed out to FIFA delegates as part of Australia's lobbying effort at the World Cup draw in South Africa last week.

It was also shown off by the FFA to an official party of international journalists brought to Australia by the FFA for a familiarisation tour last month.

Mr Demetriou said he only learnt that Etihad was being targeted for the World Cup when he read in The Age that visiting journalists were being hosted at the venue.

''Suddenly we have them trumpeting Etihad as a stadium for their bid. It's completely disrespectful to us, it's completely misleading to people, because it's completely untrue,'' Mr Demetriou said.

''It's for them to go away and work out solutions. It's not for us to come up with a solution of what to do about Etihad.

''We've got Etihad and we've got the MCG. People forget there are things called agreements in place.''

On Monday, Mr Demetriou complained about FFA plans to convert the MCG to rectangular seating, which he said would rob the AFL of its home for 16 weeks.

But those plans were always regarded as a long shot by soccer authorities, developed as one among several options. Mr Buckley immediately stressed that it was not a serious proposition for the bid.

http://www.smh.com.au/sport/football/football-and-friendship-in-headon-collision-20091208-khq2.html

Football and friendship in head-on collision
December 9, 2009
Face-off...FFA chief Ben Buckley and his AFL counterpart Andrew Demetriou.

Face-off...FFA chief Ben Buckley and his AFL counterpart Andrew Demetriou. Photo: Getty Images and Sebastian Costanzo

For the second day in a row Andrew Demetriou has thrown a hand grenade at Australia's World Cup bid. Suddenly, relations between the FFA and the AFL have gone toxic, explains Dan Silkstone.

Why the sudden stoush?

Demetriou and Football Federation Australia chief Ben Buckley are close. They played AFL together at North Melbourne, they worked side by side at the AFL. Buckley was best man when Demetriou married. When Buckley is in Melbourne he almost always catches up with his friend and former boss. They speak on the phone often. That is what makes the central claim of this week's storm - that the AFL and its clubs have not been properly consulted about what is needed for the bid - so hard to accept.

For Demetriou, frustration has been growing about the vagueness of the FFA's requirements and the poor level of communication. The AFL feels disrespected and Demetriou does not like it.

The league's clubs, rightly, want to know how this World Cup bid might affect them. The FFA's bid team cannot yet answer those questions.

''They have known everything we knew as soon as we knew it,'' Buckley said yesterday. The AFL says bid leaders have spent more time overseas schmoozing FIFA delegates and journalists than talking to codes and stadiums in their own country.

The FFA responded by releasing details from Buckley's diary that show he met the AFL 14 times since last April to discuss the bid.

What of plans to make the MCG rectangular and disrupt the AFL season by 16 weeks?

The AFL was dismayed to hear of the $130-million plan to make the MCG rectangular when it recently found out. By then that plan - never a likelihood at any stage - had been effectively ruled out. Buckley said more than a week ago it would be too expensive and cause too much disruption to the AFL.

At no point during the past year has it seemed even a realistic possibility. And yet it was never explicitly ruled out

The MCG won't be out of action for 16 weeks as Demetriou suggested but the AFL is deeply suspicious of the 4-6 week timeframe the FFA says it needs. One insider yesterday called it ''complete bullshit''. All in all, though, the league would cop a 10-week loss of the MCG without too much complaint. The real issue, and the real battleground, is Etihad Stadium.

What's the situation with Etihad?

When Buckley and Demetriou met to discuss the impact of a World Cup last year the meeting was cordial. ''It was all in good faith,'' says an AFL insider. Suggestion being: it is now something else.

At that first meeting, the AFL affirmed its broad support for the bid and the FFA expressed a wish to minimise disruption. That meant quarantining Etihad Stadium for the AFL.

What went wrong? The new rectangular stadium being built at Swan Street turned out to be too expensive to expand to a size large enough to host World Cup games.

The cost of around $150 million was equivalent to building a new stadium from scratch. All of a sudden, the FFA needed Etihad, as it struggled to find the required 12 stadiums to bid. The venue had never been ruled out, early suggestions made to the AFL were just that: early suggestions. But Demetriou thought he had a gentleman's agreement and wasn't happy when it evaporated. The AFL has a 25-year contract to play games at Etihad and would have to consent for World Cup games to be hosted there. Demetriou says he can live without the MCG for 10 weeks but not without both. He also says Etihad Stadium chief executive Ian Collins doesn't want to host them anyway because the stadium's private owners would lose plenty of revenue. Collins said as much in a letter to the FFA, received yesterday.

Could AFL be played during the World Cup?

Not in the same stadium. FIFA requires all World Cup venues to be vacated in the lead-up to and during the tournament. But could the AFL play at all? Maybe. The question is a matter for FIFA but only one that the governing body will decide after hosting rights are awarded. Only competing ''major events'' are banned during the tournament under FIFA's rules, and the FFA believes that does not cover AFL. The best available precedent - Major League Baseball - was allowed to continue during the USA World Cup in 1994.

Who wants what?

Buckley said yesterday that his preferred option was for the AFL to start its competition a month early, break in the middle, and then play finals at the usual time. The absence of Melbourne stadiums would be covered by sending games to regional centres, playing more games at Skilled Stadium or interstate.

The AFL is happy to do this but says it needs Etihad to make it work. It also wants clarity: to know what stadiums are required for the bid and when.

Does it have the potential to derail Australia's World Cup bid?

Maybe. At this stage it can still be rescued. There is immense political will and money behind the bid - as shown by the agreement of all Australian governments at COAG on Monday to re-state their commitment to hosting the World Cup. The funding wrangle should be settled by the end of February. But take Etihad Stadium out of the venue list and the FFA has a gaping hole.

If not Etihad, then where?

FFA chief Ben Buckley said last night that he still hoped to hammer out a deal to provide access to the stadium. Otherwise, he said, ''a significant number of matches'' would be stripped from Melbourne and awarded somewhere else.

 

[Ranyen]

NUFCMVFC a blogger from Melbourne and a very knowledgable football person and a great writer wrote the following ...

Originally Posted by NUFCMVFC 

But is has changed with the younger generations, I was really surprised to see my best mate who plays AFL at club level on the weekend joined the "AFL can get F&^&ED and make way for the World Cup" Facebook page, already about 4k strong after about 1 day or so, that's actually how I found out about it (good to see some familiar faces there).

I joined up - and we now have around 11,480. Didn't see any body else from these forums as a fan.....  ;D

 

[midfielder]

Mike Cockerill stiring article go Mike go...

http://www.smh.com.au/sport/football/rival-codes-powerless-to-halt-cup-juggernaut-20091209-kk51.html

Rival codes powerless to halt Cup juggernautMICHAEL COCKERILL
December 10, 2009
The horse has bolted. Andrew Demetriou knows it. David Gallop knows it. John O'Neill, to his credit, never even tried to shut the gate.

The gate was bolted shut behind Australia's World Cup bid by Kevin Rudd at the start of the week. The Bid Agreement will be emailed to Zurich by Friday's deadline with the requisite government guarantees. So the bid is off and running, and watch Frank Lowy gallop away. No amount of histrionics from Demetriou, in particular, will sabotage it. The bid will live or die on its own merits, and those merits will be decided by FIFA - and no one else - at the end of next year. No Etihad Stadium? So what. Auckland might get some games instead. And guess what? The AFL, and to a lesser extent the NRL, haven't hindered the bid. They've helped it.

Ever since Joao Havelange ascended the throne in Zurich in 1974, the overriding strategy of FIFA has been to complete the global footprint. In football's first world of Europe and South America that wasn't an issue. But in FIFA's other four confederations - North/Central America, Asia, Africa, and Oceania - it was. Havelange's mantra was embraced even more wholeheartedly by his successor, Sepp Blatter, when he took over in 1998.

Through the hugely-successful GOAL program, which has seen world-class facilities constructed in even the smallest nations, FIFA's enormous spending power has reached every corner of the globe. In Oceania, for instance, football now outspends the two rugby codes in terms of infrastructure by about 10 to one. But it's not only about bricks and mortar, it's about hearts and minds. And nothing wins hearts and minds more than the World Cup.

No coincidence, then, that in the past 20 years FIFA has taken the cup to its most important frontiers. To the United States, to Japan and South Korea, and now to South Africa. Vibrant professional leagues have evolved in all those countries. The seeds have been sown.

Australia's argument - espoused at every opportunity by Lowy - is that football in another key frontier, Australia, needs the same support to get the same rewards. It's an argument which has steadily been gaining traction, and last week's charm offensive leading into the draw in Cape Town was a spectacular triumph for the FFA chairman. FIFA is starting to listen, and now - thanks to the posturing of rival codes - it's listening more than ever. Threatening the World Cup bid equals threatening FIFA, and FIFA doesn't take kindly to being threatened.

Sadly, these actions expose the insularity of our sporting culture. The AFL, especially, has always been paranoid about football. Why? Perhaps, as many senior AFL coaches have often mused, the two codes fundamentally compete for the same type of athletes. Whatever the case, the paranoia is absurd. The AFL is one of the best sporting competitions in the world. But it's also the only competition of its sport in the world. Which probably explains the fear. Demetriou knows as well as anyone that a World Cup in Australia could shift the balance of power, perhaps forever. But even if that happens, the AFL, as a competition, is indestructible. Instead Demetriou needs to look closer at his owns ranks to get a better perspective. Melbourne Victory are the best-supported club in the A-League, but a huge percentage of their fans also follow an AFL club - proving the two worlds can co-exist.

Whingeing and moaning and throwing tantrums isn't going to get the AFL, or the NRL, anywhere. Maybe they've been spooked by Lowy's tour de force to South Africa, but after Rudd laid down the law to the state governments this week, it hardly matters. They've now been dealt out of the game. All the whingeing and moaning is going to do is irritate some powerful people - making it even less likely they'll get any compensation, and more likely Australia will get the World Cup. What should be a win-win for everyone might instead end up with a few sore losers. Call that a knife? This is a knife.

verhead:

 

[dru]

I don't know smacks of the arrogance we used to hate from the other codes.

 

[FFC Mariner]

Top article and well played FFA, they are winning the PR campaign hands down by allowing the Tards to paint themselves as parochial, ignorant provincials.

Sporting capital of Australia my arse. I think Ava Gardner might well have been right after all (google it).

"We are the world game, we are the world game"
"You're not"
"You're not"

 

[dibo]

just got an email:

I wanted to write to let you know that our bid for the 2018-2022 FIFA World Cup is well and truly on track.

Recent media comments which suggest otherwise come off the back of a very successful week in Cape Town last week in which we had many valuable opportunities to promote the bid to the FIFA Executive Committee who have provided us with great feedback. We also launched a new book and film narrated by Nicole Kidman, which were very well received.

While it is not constructive to go into detail about the media comments from other sporting codes, I would just note that much of the commentary is inaccurate particularly around consulting with the other sports, briefing them on the options, and informing them of the work being undertaken by our infrastructure consortium. None of the options involve "shutting down" the season of another code or having a venue unavailable for the entire season.

We are fortunate to have the backing of all governments for our bid (which was reaffirmed by the Council of Australian Governments on Monday), we are on track with the timelines we need to meet, and we've received very encouraging feedback on our bid from around the world. Our next timeline is tomorrow (11 December) when we must submit a formal 'Bidding Agreement' . This is an undertaking that we will submit a technically compliant bid proposal in May 2010. The Bidding Agreement is not the formal bid proposal.

We will continue to work with all governments and all sporting codes to make sure we can put the best possible bid forward on behalf of Australia. Ultimately, all sports will benefit from a successful bid as many of our sporting facilities suit more than one sport.

Your support for the bid is appreciated. I would encourage you to invite your family and friends to join the bid at www.australia2018-2022.com.au so we can show FIFA and others the level of strong and passionate support for the world game in Australia.

Cheers

Ben Buckley
ceo@footballaustralia.com.au

 

[northernspirit]

got that too, shame the mainstream media wont report on it but will on the alarmist sensationalist views of the egg ballers

 

[dibo]

Raising the roof on Australia's World Cup chances

EXCLUSIVE by Phil Rothfield From: The Daily Telegraph December 10,

Raising the roof ... an artist's impression of ANZ Stadium. Source: The Daily Telegraph
THIS is the $150 million makeover that could knock out Melbourne and ensure Sydney wins the fight to be Australia's nominated host for soccer's World Cup final.

This artist's impression shows how ANZ Stadium would be transformed into a rectangular venue for soccer's showpiece, with a roof over the stadium and an extra 7000 seats, increasing the ground's capacity to 90,000.

The high-tech, retractable and transparent roof, the first of its kind in the southern hemisphere, would protect fans from the elements and let natural light filter through.

Moveable northern and southern grandstand tiers would bring fans behind the goals up closer to the action, instead of being seated in the existing curved ends that are required for oval sports.

At rugby league events, fans are currently seated 23m from the dead-ball line.

With the revamp, spectators at each end would be only 5m from the line.


It is understood the revolutionary pivoting tiers technology would allow the end grandstands to retract for AFL and cricket.

The draft master plan developed for the 10-year-old stadium aims to create a better atmosphere for fans, improve player facilities and give regular tenants - league, union, AFL and cricket - more corporate and commercial opportunities.

The benefits for soccer's rival codes, which have been critical of the effect the World Cup will have on their regular seasons, are essential to win support.

"The big play here is an evolution of ANZ Stadium as a multi-purpose major event venue for grand finals, Origins, Bledisloe Cups, international cricket and rock concerts," said a source close to the project.

"But the revamp must also deliver a true rectangle like the world's best football stadiums if Sydney wants to host the World Cup final.

"We won't get it with a venue that hasn't changed much since the Olympics because FIFA will want a stadium that's a monument for the world game and even bigger than the Olympics. This makeover will deliver that.

"It will knock Melbourne out."

The Daily Telegraph understands that FIFA would be reluctant to stage its showpiece game at the MCG, a specialist cricket and AFL ground that cannot easily be made into a rectangular venue.

The final plan and architect designs will be presented to NSW Government officials and the FFA bid team that is chasing the rights to the 2018 or 2022 World Cup.

*Real* rectangular pitch - check.

Roof to cover pitch and seats but still let in natural light - check.

90,000 capacity (making at least as big as any World Cup Final stadium going back to 1986 and including South Africa and Brazil's grounds) - check.

I think I'm drowning in drool.

It would be absolutely terrific for rugby league and rugby union as well - all the more reasons for the NSW government to be convinced to give it the green light. Cover means you remove some of the 'fickle Sydneysider' element too - they're going to be undercover and the atmosphere is going to be fierce...

 

[Atomic]

If we get one of those fierce hail storms this summer then we know two things:
1. God doesn't support our bid
2. Frank Lowy isn't God.

(Edit... with reference to the roof over ANZ. I dont think it will cope very well with one of those fierce hailstorms)

 

[midfielder]

Brendan Schwab  from the PFA has come out fighting too ... he is well respected within the professional associations around the world ... funny how it all could be backfiring...

From 442...

http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/118591,fifa-will-embrace-oz-challenge.aspx?r=rss

'FIFA Will Embrace Oz Challenge'

Jon Ritson
Dec 11 2009 13:37
Get more on: socceroos | australia | worldcup | pfa

EXCLUSIVE: FIFAS World Cup decision-makers are well aware of Australias fiercely competitive sporting market and are more likely to embrace the World Cup challenge than be driven away by current code disputes, according to the PFA.

Both the AFL and the NRL have voiced loud concerns this week over the potential impact a World Cup would have on their respective codes.

This has led to fears that such squabbling could seriously damage Australia's chances of earning either the 2018 or 2022 tournaments.

However PFA CEO Brendan Schwab is confident that FIFA will see Australia as too big an opportunity to ignore and that powerful 'positives' will holder greater sway than rival codes' concerns.

"Australia is part of Asia and this country hosting the World Cup would allow FIFA and the game to make a massive footprint in this part of the world," Schwab told au.fourfourtwo.com today.

"I think FIFA understand how important it is to have the World Cup in Asia and how big the potential market is.

"Football has the ability to bring people together like no other sport can. I think a World Cup for Australia would provide a wonderful sporting legacy.

"I think they are wrong to think that FIFA would be pushed away by the challenge, I think they would be emboldened by it. I don't think it will drive a wedge.

"What they will look at is a Prime Minister backing this bid, letters of support from levels of government, football fans and of course proof of the financial commitment that backs up that support.

"FIFA's  executive committee understands just how competitive a sporting market this is and a World Cup would be a tremendous opportunity to further drive football forward.

"I travel around the world and people are well aware of the sporting set up here. They liken it to the United States of America."

Schwab said a World Cup on these shores would be important in the near future and for Australians in the decades that would follow.

"We have a chance to host an event that would leave all the foreign visitors to enjoy the tournament and then head home saying to themselves that Australia is a football nation," he said.

"We are also left with the infrastructure from the event which Australians will benefit from."

The PFA boss reiterated that FIFA's drive to spread the world game far and wide was a powerful factor in making a final decision on hosting rights

Schwab added: "FIFA is driven by its desire for the development of the game. These people are football missionaries.

"Asia is a market that has huge potential and Australia is a big part of that market. I firmly believe Australia will be a greater nation for hosting the World Cup."

 

[FFC Mariner]

What is scaring the crap out of the minor codes is probably the fact that FIFA has surplus assets to the tune of a lazy USD 902 million (post GFC)

http://www.fifa.com/mm/document/affederation/administration/01/03/94/23/fifa_ar08_eng.pdf

Remember, thats just the association (in our speak).

In 2001/02 they spent USD 5.5million on development in Oceania alone.

 

[Arabmariner]

What is scaring the crap out of the minor codes is probably the fact that FIFA has surplus assets to the tune of a lazy USD 902 million (post GFC)

http://www.fifa.com/mm/document/affederation/administration/01/03/94/23/fifa_ar08_eng.pdf

Remember, thats just the association (in our speak).

In 2001/02 they spent USD 5.5million on development in Oceania alone.

108 pages to trawl through FFC ?

I'll just take your word for it