By Duncan Mackay
December 7 – Ben Buckley, the chief executive of Football Federation Australia (FFA), has tried to reassure the Australian Football League (AFL) that they will not have to cancel their season if the country is awarded the 2018 or 2022 World Cup.
AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou had claimed that Australia winning the right to host either tournament then it could force the AFL to abandon its season.
Demetriou claimed staging the World Cup could force the the 100,000-capacity Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) to be out of action for four months – a disastrous scenario for the Australian rules code.
He said: ”If the MCG was decommissioned for 16 weeks because a lower bowl would have to be put in for soccer it would probably mean we would have to cancel the season.”
That prompted further carefully-designed attacks on the FFA from National Rugby League (NRL) chief executive David Gallop and MCG boss Stephen Gough, both calling for more information on how Australia’s bid will affect them.
Demetriou said: ”We’re trying to find ways to accommodate the World Cup but the sorts of questions we’ve been asking the FFA we haven’t had much come back the other way.
“The simple questions for the FFA which we can’t get an answer on are, will we be able to play our season during the World Cup?
“And if so, how?
“And how many weeks will it be disrupted?
“We’ll work around that.
“We’re pretty accommodating.”
Buckley today publicly reiterated his stance that no stadium would be out of action for any longer than eight weeks if Australia’s bid was successful.
That would be reduced to just just six weeks if the arena only hosted group fixtures.
He said: ”We need to get access four weeks before the competition for preparation for pitches and preparation for overlay that are required by FIFA and the duration of the tournament.
“In our estimation, that is six to eight weeks depending on where the finals are played.”
Such a length of time is likely to cause severe disruption rather than the cancellation of an NRL or AFL season, he said.
Buckley said: ”I understand Andrew’s concerns.
“I understand the AFL clubs’ concerns, but I’m sure we can work through it and come to a mutually acceptable agreement,.
“If, for example, the MCG hosted the final, that would be an eight week period.
“We’d have to look at finding an alternative venue.
“That’s not easily done because there’s not a lot of other major venues that have the capacity that the MCG has.
“We’ll have to work with the AFL and see what other venues can be utilised during that period.”
Demetriou said: “Cancelling the season is a disaster.
“It affects revenues.
“For a start we’ve got broadcast agreements, we’ve got agreements with members, we’ve got agreements with corporate partners.
“The cost is a monumental cost, and I’m talking hundreds of millions of dollars.
“And secondly, it would probably mean some clubs which rely on the seven or eight million dollar distribution from the AFL, there’s no way they could be sustained.”
The drama acted has acted a timely reminder to Buckley that Australia’s fight to claim hosting rights for the World Cup had to be won both at home and abroad.
And that he must keep powerful rival codes on side before the host countries for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments are named next December.
Gallop said: “We are not trying to stand in the way of the World Cup bid but we are not prepared to fall off the face of the planet either.”
Buckley said the FFA would discuss with soccer’s governing body, FIFA, the possibility of Australia’s other football codes continuing their competitions during a World Cup.
He said: ”We think the World Cup is bigger than any individual sport.
“It is the biggest sporting event in the world, it has significant economic benefits to Australia and enhances our standing as a nation around the world and enormous social benefits.
“I think everybody understands that it is just a matter of working together and constructively and we will find some solutions.”
There has been speculation the MCG would need to be configured in a rectangle but Buckley said that was not an option his body was “actively pursuing”.
The FFA has until May to have all the relevant sporting bodies and stadia on board as that is the due date for its World Cup bid book to be handed to FIFA.
With the MCG contractually bound to host AFL games during the winter months, the FFA must rely on goodwill from the code.
Buckley claimed that he did not think the row would ultimately affect Australia’s bid.
He said: ‘”I don’t think in the grand scheme of things it’s particularly helpful, but I think FIFA sees our bid as being very positive.
“I’m sure that we can get through these issues.”
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