How we ended up with the worst expansion teams

[@That1Nixfan]

Western United actually have some potential imo. 4k average attendance isn't a lot but, in a 5k capacity privately owned ground that's gonna start adding up financially for the club. They just need to play the long game and hope that they grow with the suburb.

[@robbiebalboa]

The fact that western finally stopped being a gypsy side and settled on Tarneit, just shows they need to accept their situation and tap in to the new community there. They’re betting on 25-30 years in the future they they’re are embedded in the region.

[@billgats4094]

Great video and summary of the expansion. Fingers crossed for Western.

[@ALeagueCouchCritics]

🤞

[@stevenleslie8354]

How Wollongong missed out is criminal.

[@BigBlueMan118]

Wollongong got shafted so many times it's ridiculous. First the federation didnt let them host the 2002 grand final at home in Wollongong, they then won it anyway but went from back-to-back champions with a squad of top talents and owning their own Stadium, to being broke in the 2nd tier after being shafted out of their stadium and then from the A-league a bunch of times.

[@craigrobinson4953]

Illawarra can have their own A-League team and NRL team like the NBL team. They can afford to fund both A-League and NRL teams. They should hand St George back to Kogarah and stand alone again. Always been a good area for Soccer with the Wolves. A Canberra team as well rather than having 3 Sydney and Melbourne teams.

[@markcroydon3195]

Macarthur and Western United still draw bigger crowds than the old NSL clubs that tried to get in for the expansion.

[@codycommandeur123]

As you've said Macarthur is the fastest growing region in Sydney & we've already won 2 Australia Cups just give it a bit more time :)

[@codycommandeur123]

They need to expand to a 16 team comp & add Canberra, Gold Coast & either a Tasmania team or Townsville!

[@SLFootballFTT]

They're already in their 5th season and their crowds have stagnated not grown. If being too new was a problem then we'd see consistent growth in crowds year on year as they better establish themselves but this is not the case. West Sydney and Sydney FC were already well supported by people in South West Sydney so they've been doomed from the beginning imo.

[@markmelo2779]

MacArthur needs a Women's side.

[@Tom-bz3fu]

No commentary on why South Melbourne weren’t selected? The A league is dying a slow death because they turned their back on real football fans.

[@ALeagueCouchCritics]

No because the video’s purpose was to detail why Western and Macarthur got in. Not why others missed out

[@IlijaStajic]

That itself is its own video ngl

[@TwelveDeck]

If they're both paying their way, there isn't a problem. More teams can be added in due course. Running a hate campaign isn't gonna help either of them.

[@BanksyOz]

approx 350k juniors play AFL compared to 750K juniors play soccer in Australia yet the AFL gets 50x the funding Soccer does. Its tough managing junior teams at public clubs, you dont get the support you would in AFL. its a shame because the demand is there to play. Australian Government need to inject a heap of $ into Football Australia and improve the academy's. We would be much more competitive on the world stage and if we ever get that success, the stadiums will fill, wont happen overnight though. good content bro

[@Shaun-o8g]

If you can't keep our best players in the A-league... who's gonna watch? Why should the Australian government be spending money in developing players that'll only end up playing for overseas clubs?... At least the AFL is home grown and expanding so makes sense that the government would invest.

[@yff9978]

@@Shaun-o8g because of the potential money the international side could bring in

[@b.k.s.sthcoast]

I remember reading Foxtel paid the FFA $5m, (you read correctly), to have a seat at the table regarding expansion. $5m buys you more than just a seat, they got to pick the two new teams and they wanted them in big population centres.

[@MJPTUWC]

Really enjoyed this video, good job! 👍🏾⚽

[@ALeagueCouchCritics]

Thanks for watching

[@Prolix8]

Excellent video

[@redthezz]

Great video. The way that Geoff Gallop (who was the worst choice to run football) intended to have both a new Sydney and Melbourne in the league when the allowed a bidding war was allowed broke hearts of football fans outside of the so-called "Metropolitan Bubble". Fun fact: the former owners of Melbourne Victory, Harry Stamoulis and Robert Belteky were the architects behind the Tasmania A-League bid.

[@doss.360]

Great vid Brad, wondering if our convo about Western before the game with Cody helped with the vid. Our support is fortunately growing stronger (slowly) and it's mostly thanks to the love that the club has for us fans. Looking forward to the next vid!

[@ALeagueCouchCritics]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@sheldonnouchy2533]

Great video, love the channel.

[@ALeagueCouchCritics]

Glad you enjoy it

[@Hereticals]

Southern expansion was a joke, and only had any momentum because of the civil war between Football Illawarra and the Wolves. No one in the Illawarra wanted any team apart from the Wolves.

[@brentonjc]

Western United's name is ridiculous ... containing no reference to their actual location. Adelaide and Perth are more "west" than they are. They should be referencing "Melbourne" in their name somehow ... that would at least give them an identity. Every other team in the league references their location in their name.

[@TheMiniMaestroMan]

This is a bit of an odd question, but do you think an expansion team in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea could work? They're mad about Rugby League and the crowds they get are huge. There needs to be a proper second-division where teams with less financial power can establish themselves and grow a fanbase. Wollongong, Hobart, Darwin, Canberra, Cairns, Toowoomba, Geelong, Bendigo, Christchurch, Sunshine Coast, Fremantle, Gold Coast, Townsville would all be much better options. I know the last two had their own clubs as well at one stage. Auckland is a step in the right direction. 20 teams in the first division, 20 teams in the second-division with promotion and relegation between the two. First go into new cities and new markets, THEN start adding teams in cities with already exisiting franchises once that foundation has been laid. I'll be honest and say, I hope both Western United and MacArthur go bankrupt. Both have had their fair share of problems and hold the league back significantly. I watched a Western game because of Riku Danzaki (he had a short-lived stint with Motherwell here in the SPFL) and the attendance is dire, the atmosphere is dire, the ground is dire. MacArthur can't get new players because they haven't paid off their previous manager. Just get them both gone and start fresh. I don't care about the respective success of either club when it does nothing to service the game in Australia.

[@declangaming24]

They need to revamp the Australian league it's like the MLS sign old ageing stars the A league needs a full revamp Promotion/relegation ect. In Australia I've won the double and Asian Cup by bringing in foreign players.

[@Kylie-dt8rp]

South Melbourne, Tasmania and Sydney United all would have been better options.

[@paras5435]

Decent commentary but the background music is too loud and annoyingly not required

[@ALeagueCouchCritics]

Thanks for the feedback

[@PhilipMatee]

great vid, that's Jeff Hopkins though not Geoff lord

[@ALeagueCouchCritics]

Yeah not sure what happened there 😅

[@deluxxxedriver4420]

wtf is belgravia leisure

[@tangiers365]

They are both good teams but should have joined the A-league after more important areas like Auckland (finally in now), Canberra, Hobart, Qld 2 etc

[@hamdog9703]

I think the real strength of the Auckland bid is the failure of the kingz and knights, partially due to where their stadium is based. Anyway COYN FUCK JAFAS

[@AusMedic89]

Both poor choices at the time (Fck Murdoch and foxtel) but both are here to stay and have played decent football on the pitch and won trophies. Lets hope they can build their fan base and grow their attendance.

[@BetAgain2]

A League is a failure not because lack of talents but because it covers too vast an area. Remember WA alone is bigger than Italy. Soccer must be played within each state. Top 1 or 3 teams must compete in Australian Champions League after regular season. Even Manchester City sometimes cannot fill its stadium They need supporters from away teams. Are you willing to take a flight from Melbourne to Perth even if you are a hardcore supporter? That is like taking an international flight from Rome to Paris every two weeks. I know I just wasted my 7 minutes writing this. A League is a failure. You cannot revive a dead granpa.

[@markcroydon3195]

Team 11 were killed by the horrible Labor State Government. The stadium was going to be a huge asset for City of Greater Dandenong, Casey and Cardinia, but the Labor State Government would not allow any state funding. This is the same Labor State Government that was providing millions upon millions for Aussie Rules stadium upgrades.