Football Australia says grassroots and national team programs will not be affected by the posting of a record $8.5 million loss – but interim chief executive Heather Garriock has hinted that the federation could be set to shed some jobs.
FA’s annual general meeting was held on Friday, with Anter Isaac – the only candidate up for election – retaining not only his place on the board but his position as chair.
But Isaac said he was “not satisfied” with FA’s financial results, which come despite record revenues of $124 million, and following the sudden departure of James Johnson as chief executive after a five-and-a-half year stint in the job.
Isaac attributed the loss to heavier investments in national youth teams and associated travel costs, FA’s unpopular new digital registration platform PlayFootball v2.0, and an “expected credit loss” of $4.1 million, the vast majority of which is money owed by the Australian Professional Leagues, the operators of the A-Leagues, from what sources say is a bigger debt to the federation of over $11 million – although FA would not go into detail about that credit loss figure or what is behind it.
That money is not expected to be recovered – but is not a write-off, Isaac insisted – although there are disagreements between the two bodies about money that is apparently owed the other way.
“I can tell you that our relationship with the APL … is the one of complete cooperation, collaboration,” he said.
Football Australia chair Anter Isaac.Credit: Getty Images
“We are working hand-in-hand with them to not only on strategic initiatives that will help the game prosper at the professional level and grassroots, but also dealing with some historical matters that we’re very close to resolving. It’s a very positive relationship at the moment, the best that I can remember in a long time.
“We have zero concerns about the commercial relationships we have with APL. Our relationship with APL is probably characterised in two ways. There’s the commercial relationship and then there’s the strategic relationship. On both counts, it’s very strong. It’s positive and improving all the time.”
FA projects it will post a smaller deficit in 2025 and then a surplus in 2026.
Asked if FA’s financial position would materially impact any footballing initiatives, Isaac said: “In a nutshell, it won’t. We’re still going to continue serving and supporting all of our national teams in the football community and so forth.”
Former A-Leagues commissioner Nick Garcia (left) and executive chairman Stephen Conroy.Credit: Getty
However, Garriock, who was appointed interim CEO when Johnson resigned earlier this month, mentioned “right-sizing the business” as a way that FA could recover its finances, with the federation’s head count having grown significantly during Johnson’s tenure.
One major incoming staff appointment is the impending announcement of a new Matildas coach. Garriock said this would happen in June; Joe Montemurro is the man expected to take the job.
Meanwhile, Isaac said the search for a long-term replacement for Johnson was already under way, although he declined to give a specific timeframe for the appointment, and nor did Garriock confirm or deny her interest in retaining the role on a permanent basis.
“We will look everywhere. The process has commenced,” Isaac said.
“We are speaking with a couple of executive search firms, and the board is working on that, on that process now. We will also include stakeholders in that process, and we’ve done that in the past, and we do that for a very significant reason … we want moving forward, that anyone that enters or comes into this business, understands that this company is an extension of our stakeholders. This is very different from what’s happened in the past.”
Johnson has since been appointed to a powerful new role in Canadian soccer as chief executive of Canada Soccer Business, effectively putting him in charge of the sport’s commercial operations in that country ahead of their home World Cup in 2026, to be co-hosted by the United States and Mexico.
There was only one other candidate who was up for election at the AGM: former Football Queensland chair Ben Richardson, who withdrew when it became apparent he would not have enough support from FA’s members. Garriock had also nominated for re-election but withdrew in advance to take up the position of interim CEO.
The AGM was held behind closed doors, with media not permitted to observe, a decision Isaac said was made in consultation with FA’s members.
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