May 8, 2018 - want their own club to support. âWhen Wanderers were created, Sydney also fought against it, so the foot
Media Release Tuesday 8 May, 2018.
SYDNEY SEMI-FINAL CROWD PROVES CASE FOR SOUTHERN Southern Expansion’s Chief Executive Officer, Chris Gardiner, says the disappointing 17,000 crowd for Sydney FC’s home semi-final in the “Big Blue” against Melbourne Victory last week demonstrates that a third competitor in the nation’s most populous city was an absolute imperative for the code. Responding to recent comments from Sydney FC Chairman Scott Barlow regarding Southern’s bid for a professional licence, Mr Gardiner called out Sydney’s failure to engage the largest catchment area of any club in the nation. “Congratulations to Sydney FC staff and fans for their on-field success this season, and we were careful not to respond or comment at an important time for the game during Grand Final week, but this only serves to crystallise their failure to engage Australia’s largest football market.” Mr Gardiner said. “The area that Sydney claim to represent, has two and a half million people, 100,000 participants and is covered by no fewer than 5 NRL teams – Roosters, Rabbitohs, Manly, Dragons, Sharks – with easily over 75,000 members and yet after 12 years we get 17,000 to a final. Incredible. “Comments about cannabilisation of Sydney FC in our Southern region are ridiculous, if not embarrassing. They recently stated that a third of their approximately 15,000 Members came from the Southern Region – at best, 5,000 Members. But there are over 40,000 registered Football players in the Southern Region. “Any suggestion that football should not engage the remaining 35,000 participants, not to mention tens of thousands of other football lovers, is staggering. The Sutherland area alone has the largest participant base of any sport in the nation, and even Sydney FC openly admit that 90% have failed to engage with them. “Further, our research says that people identify extremely strongly as being from the Southern region, certainly not from the eastern suburbs, which is why they are currently lost to the game and want their own club to support. “When Wanderers were created, Sydney also fought against it, so the football community knows they have form. However, Sydney FC’s membership actually rose. This is what healthy competition does. “Sydney needs at least three, and medium-term four, clubs and we all know how important it is that we finally get this market right. If we fail in Sydney, we fail, period. We are very confident that decisions about the long term maximisation of this market will be made in the interests of the game and based on solid research data and I might add that our only aim is to see football win as a whole. To this end, we have reached out to Sydney FC and had immensely productive talks with Wanderers about working together to maximise opportunities for the game and ensure the whole market is
compensated for and feel a part of the game. We see the three entities collaborating in future to benefit the entire league. It has certainly sparked an intense rivalry between the two regions, and we can’t wait to meet on the field of play.” Southern’s Chairman, Morris Iemma, called on Sydney FC to work with Southern to create the equivalent of the NRL’s Roosters-Dragons ANZAC Day clash, which continues to grow in popularity. “41,000 people went to the ANZAC Game last week. A Sydney versus Southern battle in a rugby league match. That’s what we want, that’s what we’ll create, for football”, Mr Iemma said. “There’s more than enough fans in Sydney, and the Southern region in particular, for expansion. Sydney FC claim they have 5,000 Members in the Region. Our local NRL teams, the Dragons and the Sharks, have over 35,000 Club members in our region. “The Dragons had 18,000 attend both WIN and Jubilee matches. As they played the Rabbitohs at Jubilee – on a week-night – just down the road over 11,000 fans were at the Sharks’ home game. This region is keen on sport – and now they want their own football team, playing at their muchloved local grounds. “The FFA’s own strategy document identifies match experience in local stadia as the key for future growth. Our independent research backs what’s happening with local NRL games this year – our fans will come to games close-by in their local stadia. They want live games, not far from home. We can mobilise our local Association base in each catchment area. We will utilise the transport links that connect our catchment areas so strongly. We will fill our stadia, and the match day experience in those smaller stadia will be amazing. “ Southern’s Head of Football, former Socceroo Craig Foster, also pointed out that playing out of three local stadia, one in each area of Southern’s catchment, is an immense strength of the club. “The whole point of football trying to better engage the participant base was to create stronger connections to community, and part of this is having games local, in small stadia, packed out, with incredible atmosphere, something Southern will have in spades. Other codes, and even former ALeague matches in our region prove that taking the games to the people works brilliantly in a region where the value of community is so important, which is loud and clear in our market research, and the excitement from the region as we continue to engage is exceptional” he explained. “Along with Western Sydney, the Southern region has the most talent, most participants and highest football passion in the country. Everyone locally believes they should have had their own club from the start, and this pent up frustration is a key driver of engagement, excitement, passion and patronage. “Neighbour against neighbour, just like the best derbies in the world, the rivalry is going to be a massive boost for the game.”
Southern Expansion media contact: Richard Lenarduzzi 0411 254 390
