Football Federation Australia (FFA) yesterday kicked Gold Coast United out of the A-League after a furious row with the club’s owner, billionaire mining magnate Clive Palmer.
The decision, which will take effect from the end of the season, followed a recent outburst when Palmer labeled the league “a joke” and his club as “insignificant.”
Fellow billionaire and Australian soccer chief Frank Lowy attacked Palmer for his “illogical, confused and damaging” comments, while slamming the team for wearing jerseys that said “Freedom of Speech” during their last game.
Lowy, who has been chairman of shopping center giant Westfield for 50 years and has a A$4.98 billion (US$5.38 billion) fortune — marginally less than Palmer’s — said he was left with no alternative but to terminate the Gold Coast license.
It will leave the A-League with just nine teams.
“As custodians of the game, we had to act to protect the integrity of the Hyundai A-League on behalf of the other nine clubs, players, coaches and most importantly, the fans,” he said.
Gold Coast, bottom of the domestic competition, had their license taken away due to contraventions of FFA policies, deliberate defiance of an FFA direction and repeated public statements that brought the game into disrepute.
Lowy said he made repeated attempts yesterday to talk directly with Palmer about a smooth completion of the season for the sake of the other teams, but they went unanswered.
“The FFA will do everything possible within its power to see the players see out the season on the pitch,” he said, but added that Sunday’s match against the Phoenix in Wellington may have to be postponed.
Gold Coast have four games left to play.
Lowy said he was sad and disappointed that it had to come this, but added: “We can’t let anybody thumb their noses at us saying ‘we’re going to do what we want to do, but I want to stay.’”
Just ahead of the termination announcement, Palmer tweeted: “We intend to fight this ludicrous decision by FFA in the courts. Frank Lowy is an institution who now belongs in an institution.”
Last week, he said it would be a major blunder to take away the club’s license.
“We will injunct them in the Supreme Court and we will fight them in court to a standstill,” Palmer, who has vast coal and other mining assets in Australia, said then. “I have been involved in major business transactions in my life and in 68 litigations and our record is 68 to zero.”
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two