The promise of financial assistance for interstate fans is unlikely to quell backlash to the A-Leagues' announcement that the men's and women's grand finals will move to Sydney until at least 2025.
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The A-Leagues announced their three-year deal with the NSW Government on Monday, bringing an end to 17 years of tradition that permitted the highest-ranked team to host the decider.
The deal was approved by the Australian Professional Leagues (APL) board but faced instant criticism from fans and industry figures alike - including that supporters would pay more to travel to Sydney for a lesser grand final experience.
The nomadic grand final distinguishes the A-Leagues from rival Australian codes and has helped home fans reap the rewards of their teams' successes.
The A-Leagues have celebrated large crowds under that model. Of the five most attended games in ALM history, four were grand finals.
Melbourne Victory forward Maja Markovski called the change a "Big L (loss)", while Socceroo Craig Goodwin, who appeared in a video promoting it, said fans were worse off.
"They are the ones that create the atmosphere and culture and what makes the game great," he wrote on Instagram.
"Like many fans around the country ... I too am disappointed in this decision."
But APL CEO Danny Townsend stood his ground on Monday.
"You don't make bold decisions as the CEO of a league without expecting backlash," he told a press conference.
"(But) you've got to have the conviction."
Townsend sold the idea as the Australian fan's chance to embark on a sporting pilgrimage, like that which English supporters take to Wembley for the FA Cup Final.
In reality, the distances covered are significantly larger and the financial costs much more taxing. The furthest team from Wembley in this year's FA Cup competition, Carlisle United, is based 500km from the London ground, compared to the almost 4,000km that separates Perth and Sydney.
"The fans of Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide and Wellington are obviously the worst hit," Perth Glory chair Tony Sage told AAP.
"It's going to cost someone from Perth $3,000 with accommodation and airfares to get to a grand final and that's the minimum cost.
"If a family of four want to go, that's $12,000 or $13,000."
Townsend acknowledged the financial burdens imposed by the decision had influenced fan reaction but said the A-Leagues were already looking at ways to make the fixture affordable.
The A-Leagues will introduce a two-week break between the semis and grand final to allow fans to plan a trip to Sydney.
"We want to make sure that every football fan in the country has the opportunity to get to Sydney to celebrate football," Townsend said.
"We've got partners, airlines and hotels, that we'll be working with and stakeholders that will allow us to put our best foot forward."
AAP understands any such assistance would be a first of its kind and that in previous seasons, away fans have not had access to cut-price fares or deals that would make travelling for a grand final more accessible.
The A-Leagues will reportedly bank an eight-figure payday from the agreement but state Minister for Sport Alister Henskens declined to disclose the fee paid when pressed, claiming that doing so would jeopardise the NSW Government's negotiating powers.
In 2008, Central Coast and Newcastle contested the only ALM grand final played at a venue outside either club's home city, with the Mariners' home ground deemed too small. The match drew the lowest crowd of the competition's first nine grand finals, at 36,354.
But Mr Henskens does not believe crowd figures would be an issue for future grand finals, even if no Sydney teams qualified.
"I have no doubt with the hundreds and hundreds of thousands of registered football players in NSW, with the great fanbase and the fact that Sydney is an incredible place to travel to, that we will have a successful event here in Sydney," he said.
Australian Associated Press
