Clive Needs To Go

Its disappointing to hear that yet another A-League club, Gold Coast United, are struggling financially after it was revealed that billionaire owner Clive Palmer has notified the FFA of his intention to withdraw his support of the club.

Must say the timing is very suspect with the FFA just concluding a rescue package for North Queensland we now have the leagues richest owner deciding that he can no longer sustain the losses the club is currently experiencing.

Not that you can blame Clive. If the reported $4 Million loss is correct it would be a bitter pill to swallow to see your fellow start-up club receive a extra 2.5M from the FFA while you are continually writing cheques with no support.

So the new newest clubs introduced to the league last year are both effectively out of money after one year. The question must be ask how this was allowed to happen. How could the business models be so wrong that both clubs are experiencing double to triple the losses to what they were expecting going into their first year.

I find it hard to fathom that professional business men can get it so wrong. Its not like they didn't know what costs to expect, with eight clubs before them going through the exercise recently virtually all of the start up costs would be known. I can only assume that both club vastly underestimated the revenue they would generate.

There is no doubt that both clubs have struggled to attract the crowds that they initially forecasted but this alone does not account for the vast losses both experienced. I suspect attracting the corporate dollar is where both clubs have struggled. Every professional football club relies a lot on the sponsorship dollar and it is the area that clubs can get so very wrong.

This is why the broader ownership model that the FFA so desperately wants for their clubs is so important. It allows a much greater chance of tapping into the business community of the club's region and puts money directly into the clubs coffers.

Although I would hate to see the club fold (as I feel it important in the long term for the A-League to have a team on the Gold Coast) I would not be upset to see the end of Clive's involvement. I get the impression that his one man show has actually held back the broader community within the Gold Coast from investing in the club and no club can sustain this for the long term.

I just don't see Clive as the type of person who inspires people build a relationship with the club. The Club at the moment is a difficult beast to love. A change in leadership would be the best thing for it, at the very least a radically different vibe from the club is needed for it to survive.

,