The Beautiful Game

When FIFA’s chairman of the Ethics Committee Hans-Joachim Eckert released the 42 page summary of Michael Garcia’s investigation into the bidding of the 2018 & 2022 World Cups it was no shock to anyone that Russia and Qatar hosts of the 2018 and 2022 editions of the World Cup were cleared of any wrongdoing. Eckert’s summary stated that Russia “made only a limited amount of documents available for review” as the computers which had been leased to the Russia Bid Committee had been returned to their original owner and subsequently destroyed in the meantime. The report cleared Russia of any wrongdoing stating “the evidence available is not sufficient to support any findings of misconduct by the Russia 2018 bid team”. However, the summary report attributed blame to the English and Australian bids stating both had “potentially problematic facts and circumstances" in their bids and stating that they had undermined the integrity of the bidding. Australia was heavily crit

The A-League is in absolutely no doubt its healthiest ever state - record attendances and record memberships, combined with a higher degree of marquee quality is getting fans and administrators excited this year. Add to that, some bloke from Spain amongst the plethora of quality foreigners seen around the league, a dedicated channel for football on Fox Sports, and live Friday night SBS coverage, it appears everyone is matching this increased interest with improved media to keep fans in the loop, however one Melbourne clubs is bucking this trend. Melbourne City have seemingly implemented an almost blanket ban on media relationships from higher ranking officials to their player, meaning most media communication is being done by the coach. The move is one of many changes implemented by the City Group that was seen when they first took over at Manchester City. As a result there has been a significant decrease in the amount of information fans and other media outlets have acc

Just under 44,000 crammed into Etihad Stadium to witness what has been described the best Melbourne Derby ever. The match itself was incredible. A hotly contested first half, and a comeback of epic proportions. The hype in the lead up to that game however played just as crucial a role in the derby's success, as it always does, fueling the electric atmosphere of both Melbourne Victory and Melbourne Heart  City fans. That profound atmosphere was in part driven by one player - David Villa. Prior to the Derby, Villa boasted a perfect A-League record of 2 goals from 2 games, saving City from defeat. Two bumper crowds flocked to see the Spanish superstar, over 20,000 in Sydney and over 15,000 in what is now City's largest ever non-derby home attendance. Melbourne City can also boast record membership numbers (having just eclipsed 10,000) and unprecedented Media coverage. David Villa has left an impression on Australian football, but to what extent has Australian footb

David Villa once again left his mark on the scoreboard and the table with a match defining strike that gave City a share of the points against Newcastle. It was a pretty surreal sight to see David Villa celebrate that goal but that wasn't limited to his own presence. All tiers of AAMI park were open and a 15,000 strong crowd cheered on Melbourne City in what is now their largest ever non-derby crowd and the only time the entire AAMI park has been open for an A-League game Melbourne Victory weren't playing. It is a remarkable feat that shows how far the other Melbourne team has come but with change comes loss and the early rebirth of Victory's cross-town rivals has come at a cost of Melbourne Heart's identity. As I watched Villa run arm in arm with Australian team mates it wasn't the goal that shocked me, it wasn't his presence, the sizable crowd or the open stadium. It was the colour. Watching the game I felt like I could have been looking into any r

Did FFA Cup scheduling rule our any chance of a  Palm Beach win? This week Palm Beach, ended their fairy tale season fittingly in the grave yard of Gold Coast Football. A 5-0 demolition at the hands of a quality Central Coast outfit leaves a bitter taste in the mouth of a club that had an almost faultless season. Palm Beach dominated in Queensland posting a remarkable 17 wins from 26 games in the season proper, 7 points from their nearest rivals. The Sharks also added a State Level NPL Grand Final win, a National Level NPL Semi Final berth and of course a Semi-Final berth in the FFA Cup. It was a hugely successful year for the Sharks, topped off with strong crowds of over 2,000 to watch them in the FFA Cup that would surely set them up financially for season to come. However despite the accolades something doesn't sit well. A 5-0 loss to Central Coast. A team that despite playing great football did itself face a tight turnaround from the previous weekend's match,

The A-League is back and with it comes the fanatical, vocal support unlike anything in Australia. Victory opened the season this year against the Wanderers in what is, hands down noisiest match the league has to offer. This fixture's timing in particular was rather fitting considering the importance the League has placed on first round impact in recent years. Over two thousand Wanderers faithful made the trip south to support their beloved team against  Australia's biggest club and even as an outsider, boy did they deliver. Melbourne was treated to 90 minutes of passion similar to that of the early seasons of the A-League that Melbourne was once accustomed to... It's no secret the atmosphere at Melbourne games isn't what it once was. Amazingly an a different type of growth either end of the ground has changed the match day experience. The South end have grown like a maturing professional and organised chanting is seldom at best. It's participants are c