Written by Emmanuel Heretakis
The launch of the OFC Professional League (OPL) is drawing closer and South Melbourne FC have submitted a bid to join the competition.
The OPL is a FIFA initiative aiming to increase the standard of Oceania football. The new competition will feature eight teams and will run from January to May each year.
Despite Australia no longer being member of the Oceania Football Confederation, and South Melbourne currently playing state level football in Victoria, ‘Hellas’ has emerged as a surprise potential entrant into the new competition.
South Melbourne’s bid is not entirely out of the blue though. For South Melbourne, the OPL provides an opportunity to elevate the club’s operation and somewhat marks a return to the past, as the club officially holds the title of the Oceania Football Club of the 20th Century. For FIFA, the inclusion of an Australian club will support the OPL by offering higher operational standards and commercial opportunities.
Overall though, many fans still have unanswered questions about the potential move, although a holistic assessment of the Australian football environment may provide some answers.
A shift to summer football
Both South Melbourne and Sydney Olympic will already be participating in a new competition this year, with the Australian Championship (AC) running from October to December.
In combination with the OPL running from January to May, the new competitions will likely shift South Melbourne’s focus to a summer season of football, just as A-League clubs operate. In this case, South will likely field a Senior Squad between October and May (to compete in the AC and the OPL), and a Reserves Squad between February and September (to compete in the NPL Victoria).
Enhanced player professionalism
The OPL will require extensive travel throughout the Pacific region which will make it difficult for players to play football and hold down steady jobs, as is the case for many NPL players, including those in South Melbourne’s current squad.
To manage this, South will likely need to recruit players on the fringes of a football career, likely young players not working outside of football, or older players between A-League contracts. As such South will need to provide a fully professional training environment. This would likely include more training sessions during the week, increased logistical support, and increased football department staffing.
Enhanced youth pathways
Changes to the Senior Squad will have flow on effects. The Reserves Squad will likely step up into the winter NPL competition and consequently the club’s U23 player pool will grow. In combination with the enhanced top-down investment in the football department, the club’s Youth pathways would be expected to improve. Similar to A-League clubs operating this model, the club would likely see a trade-off between youth development and the level of its results in the NPL competition.
Growth in off-field staffing
Travel and regulatory requirements of the OPL will also require increased administrative staffing. These increased costs will also contribute to investment in the club’s revenue centres. Additional staff will be required to grow the off-field business including the management of government grants, development of sponsorship networks, and improvement of member services.
Increased reliance on non-commercial revenue
The OPL is set to receive significant investment from FIFA as necessitated by the high costs of travel and challenging commercial realities of the region. South Melbourne will also likely rely on non-commercial funding sources potentially from FIFA and Australian Government bodies. Non-commercial funding increases stakeholder management intensity but also opens up unique opportunities for the club and its partners.
Changing relationships with government
The Australian Government values engagement with the Pacific, having notably entertained a $600m commitment for Rugby League led engagement with Papua New Guinea. The OPL offers a relatively cheap and impactful form of sports diplomacy which South Melbourne finds itself in the middle of.
The competition may enhance South Melbourne’s relationships with Government bodies, not just directly through funding sources, but indirectly via existing relationships including the local council (City of Port Philip), community ground manager (Parks Victoria) and manager of its stadium (State Sports Centre Trust).
Fan engagement
A change in the Senior Squad’s season to summer will also see a shift in fan focus to summer. Although the history of Australian football suggests this should increase crowds, the AC and OPL offer less guaranteed home games than the existing NPL competition. The AC only guarantees three home games and the OPL only seems to guarantee home games if Melbourne is selected as a ‘fixture hub’.
OPL may provide a long-term opportunity
In the case where South Melbourne enters and prioritises an A-League or National Second Division competition in the future though, the OPL may still find a place in the club’s long-term operations. In the case where the OPL is financially lucrative, South Melbourne may elect to prioritise that competition anyway. In the case where Australian Competition comes to take precedence and the OPL remains financially sustainable, South Melbourne may elect to field a Reserves Squad or a Development Squad in the OPL. This second option appears to be how A-League clubs Wellington and Auckland plan to use the competition.
Conclusion
The potential of South Melbourne to compete in the OPL comes with many questions. It’s clear that entry into the competition will require a change in the club’s operations. If nothing else, the episode confirms that Australian football is full of surprises and when the OPL eventually kicks off in January (or not) I’m sure it will reveal many more.
 is drawing closer and South Melbourne FC have submitted a bid to join the competition. ){kind=link}