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The A-League is currently completing its 20th season with a very competitive league ladder and entertaining games, producing over 500 goals to date.
With an 11% increase in viewership, according to Soccerscene, interest in the game seems to be growing at a solid pace, and coincidentally perhaps, reflects player participation growth in 2024 also of 11% over 2023 levels to over 1.9 million.
While these results are, as I said, solid, is it time to start evaluating how the APL can continue to evolve the league by undertaking some changes to the current league model that could further add excitement, fans and additional games for broadcasters as well as support player development.
I am not proposing changes be adopted now or even in the short term, but given most teams have contracts for participation in the A-League through to 2034, there is an opportunity to start examining the league. Particularly, its relationship with the forthcoming Australian Championship second-tier competition and how it could look different once promotion and relegation become feasible.
I have, to kick off the discussion, chosen one of my personal favourite league models, the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL). This is because it offers a good mix of a typical home and away league season, known as Phase 1, together with an end-of-season Phase 2 in which several rounds are played among the top and bottom clubs exclusively to determine the league champion and the club to be relegated.
I like this format because it allows clubs to retain the points they have accumulated during Phase 1 of the competition when competing in Phase 2, as opposed to the current finals series played in the A-League which is fundamentally a new mini knock-out competition with no real reward to the club finishing top in the regular season.
Since 2000, the Scottish Premiership has operated in two phases, with a 12-team Premier League and other leagues below it. In the Premier League, after completing 33 rounds of home and away games in Phase 1 of the League, the 12 clubs split into two divisions for Phase 2 of the League.
In this second phase, the top six clubs play each other once, five games in total, with the clubs retaining the league points from Phase 1 and fighting out the Champions trophy over the five rounds in Phase 2.
Naturally, those clubs that have accumulated more points during Phase 1 of the competition have an advantage, but with five rounds to be played against only the top clubs in the league, there are 15 league points to win. This could make for five exciting and competitive rounds, given that places in Europe as well as the league championship are up for grabs
Rangers and Celtic contest the ‘Old Firm Derby’. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, the bottom six clubs at the completion of Phase 1 of the league also play each other in Phase 2 of the league, five games, with the bottom side at the conclusion of Phase 2 being relegated to the Scottish Championship for the following season.
Again, 15 points are available, which could make the difference between survival and relegation, providing a lifeline or an end-of-season crash for struggling clubs.
Applying the SPFL model in the A-League in say 2034/35 season, when promotion and relegation should be available, and hopefully we have at least 14 teams competing, would see the following structure (assuming a 14-team league):
Phase 1 – 26 home and away rounds played between all 14 teams.
Phase 2(a) – the top seven clubs at the conclusion of Phase 1 retain all competition points accumulated in Phase 1 and play a further 6 rounds between themselves to determine the League Champion. The top two or three clubs qualify for Asia competitions.
Phase 2 (b)- the bottom seven clubs at the conclusion of Phase 1 retain all competition points accumulated in Phase 1 and play a further six rounds to determine who is relegated to the Australian Championship tier for the following season.
If desired, a challenge game between the bottom A-League club and the top Australian Championship club could determine who will play in the A-League the following season, adding another exciting dimension.
Pros
1. Fairer End of Season – Football purists often decry the end-of-season final series currently used in the A-League, preferring a first-past-the-post championship model.
The SPFL model potentially provides the best of both worlds. The Phase 2 games allow the top teams to retain their Phase 1 league points and position, while they compete for the championship over a final six rounds.
Adopting this Phase 1 and 2 model in the A-League could replace the current Finals series, which does little to reward the premiers at the conclusion of the current home and away league season.
It ensures that the league leader at the conclusion of the Phase 1 home and away games is challenged by the top teams in the league to earn the Champions trophy, while not losing the competitive advantage it has strived to build throughout the season.
(Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)
2. A Clear League Champion – In the current A-League final series model, the finals series is almost an entirely different competition to the home and away league, with the only reward being home ground advantage to the higher placed teams.
It also creates the confusing “who are the real champions” question once the season is done. Will it be the winners of the premiership home and away seasons, or the winners of the short play-off finals series? Adopting the SPFL model would provide a clear champion who has finished the year ahead of its rivals at the end of the season, including during an end-of-season six-round phase played by the top teams.
The Phase 2 rounds played by the bottom half of the ladder ensure all clubs remain in a competitive league environment as they fight off relegation until the season conclusion.
The Phase 1&2 model reduces the dead rubber games through the season as teams compete to place themselves in the top half of the competition and then to win the championship or continental places or avoid relegation.
3. Broadcaster and Fan Benefits – The broadcaster and fans get six additional rounds of competition, each of which has bearing on the league championship and in continental leagues (i.e Asia competitions), as well as a distinct relegation battle.
4. Player Development – All players get extra competitive games across the league, which bodes well for player development and the Socceroos. This is something Australian coaches have wanted for several years to help boost player skills and standards.
Keegan Jelacic (Photo by Matt Roberts/Getty Images)
Cons
1. No Grand Final – There is no “grand final” game as such; however, this solves the “where should the grand final be played issue” and stadium reserving matters related to that. In addition, the Phase 2 games are equivalent to the finals series played out by the top half of the competition, as well as a relegation battle played by the bottom half of the competition.
2. Run Away Ladder Leader – The issue as to one club being runaway leaders at the end of Phase 1 is, in my view, not really a problem, as there are competition points to be fought for in Phase 2 between the top teams. In Scotland, Celtic’s string of dominant seasons in recent years is unlikely to be replicated in Australia due to salary capping and a more even competition.
3. Model Confusion – The structure may take some explaining to the uninitiated, but it does provide a point of difference with other codes in Australia, and I believe could become a fan favourite if sold well.
The model concept is an interesting alternative and might provide a good point of differentiation from other football codes in Australia. It’s not perfect but then neither is the current model.
I also note that the SPFL is about to undertake a review to determine if it will continue to use this model going forward or if another model will suit better in the future, although they are not unhappy with the fan response to this current Phase 1&2 model.
As I said at the outset, with 10 years until we probably get promotion and relegation due to club participation agreements with the APL, there is plenty of time to look at alternatives, to ensure that the league progresses.
But I believe this is a good hybrid model between a straight first past the post season and a finals series season end, and can reduce the number of dead rubber games at the mid-way point of the season.
If the SPFL model interests you, check out the SPFL league website and follow how it plays out over the next few weeks as it enters Phase 2 of the competition this weekend.
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