Barely a week after the A-League grand final was played and won by Melbourne Victory, teams are already jumping into off-season friendlies against some of the biggest clubs in world football.
English powerhouses Chelsea, the current Premier League champions, Liverpool, arguably one of the biggest clubs in the world, and Tottenham Hotspur, as well as Spanish side Villarreal, will play friendly matches against Sydney FC, Adelaide United and Brisbane Roar in Australia in May, June and July. On top of these fixtures, football fans will be treated to three games at the MCG with Manchester City, Real Madrid and AS Roma to play each other in July in the International Champions Cup (ICC) – a tournament which will occur annually in Australia for four years.
This incredible plethora of football, occurring in the middle of the A-League’s off-season, is set to delight fans and clubs alike. Never before has Australia been host to so many quality European clubs and had them playing against a mixture of local and other overseas opposition. Football in Australia will be at the forefront of the sporting public’s minds in the middle of other football codes’ seasons – a pretty incredible feat in itself.
Capacity crowds are expected at Manchester City vs Real Madrid in Melbourne, as well as at Sydney FC vs Chelsea and both of Liverpool’s games against Adelaide United and Brisbane Roar respectively. These fixtures all have exhausted allocations of tickets meaning capacity crowds of 100,000 at the MCG, 83,500 at ANZ Stadium, 53,500 at Adelaide Oval and 52,500 at Suncorp Stadium are expected. These numbers, should they come to fruition, speak highly of the pulling power football in Australia has.
The interest generated by these fixtures is expected to translate into TV ratings as well, with the Seven Network broadcasting Sydney’s clashes with both Tottenham and Chelsea, while Channel Nine will show all three matches in the ICC as well as Liverpool’s games against Adelaide and Brisbane. So much football on free to air television is an added bonus for football fans and football in Australia, allowing it to reach a much wider audience than if it was to be shown solely on subscription television.
There has been a lot of money thrown around to secure these matches, particularly by each state’s respective government. It has been reported by the Daily Telegraph that Liverpool have been paid a figure around $1.5 million by the South Australian government to play against Adelaide United. The Victorian government would not disclose how much money it had spent on securing the rights to the first ICC tournament – or how much would be needed to ensure the event’s long-term future in Melbourne. However, for all this money, it is clear that governments see football as something with enough worth to be investing in – a big positive for the sport in this country.
Furthermore, there is enough expected interest and revenue coming in from the hosting of these matches to justify spending these amounts of money, proving that football is a valuable part of the Australian sporting landscape. The global appeal of football has been tapped into and governments are looking to make it advantageous for themselves, which is good news for supporters. Fans are obviously one of the biggest benefactors from these visits. Supporters of all the visiting clubs as well as general football fans will experience high quality, European football in their own backyard. They will be able to see their favourite teams and players in the flesh, maybe for the very first and only time. With most of the teams promising to bring full strength squads over, the talent and skill set to be on display is enough to excite any football fan.
As for the A-League clubs involved, the experience and exposure to be gained by partaking in these friendlies is astronomical. The opportunity for clubs to test themselves against such high-quality opposition is invaluable. These players will be coming up against some of the best and most talented athletes in the world, another truly priceless experience. There is also the hope that interest can be generated about Australian football and the three A-League clubs playing against these sides in the global footballing community. The exposure for Sydney FC’s, Adelaide United’s and Brisbane Roar’s brands globally by being associated with these clubs is an exciting prospect filled with possibilities.
While Australia has had big name clubs visit its shores and play in friendlies before – with Liverpool visiting in 2013 and Manchester United and Juventus playing the A-League all-stars team, to name a few – there has never been this many at a similar time to each other. This jam packed off-season gives football in Australia the opportunity to cement itself as an important part of the wider sporting landscape in Australia.
Offseason friendlies in Australia
Villarreal v Adelaide United, May 29, Coopers Stadium
Tottenham v Sydney FC, May 30, ANZ Stadium
Chelsea v Sydney FC, June 2, ANZ Stadium
Villarreal v Brisbane Roar, June 3, Suncorp Stadium
Liverpool v Brisbane Roar, July 17, Suncorp Stadium
Liverpool v Adelaide United, July 20, Adelaide Oval
Manchester City v Real Madrid, July 24, MCG
Manchester City v AS Roma, July 21, MCG
Real Madrid v AS Roma, July 18, MCG
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