Power-Demons At Adelaide Oval
Adelaide Oval will host a match in round 24 as part of a $12m AFL funding deal for SA clubs
PORT Adelaide will host Melbourne at the historic Adelaide Oval in round 24 this season as part of an AFL investment of $12 million into South Australian football over the next three years.
The Power will be the major beneficiary with a total investment of $9 million.
A third of that money ($3 million) will come in the form of a grant, while the remaining $6 million will be loaned to the SA Football Commission, and in turn reinvested in Port Adelaide, as three separate grants over the next three years.
Power chief executive Mark Haysman said the funding was 'unconditional', denying the club had received orders from the AFL or the SA Football Commission, as to how to spend the money.
"It gives us the opportunity to plan and there's more [financial uplift] to come at the back end of the year once the distribution from the broadcast rights is finalised and the collective bargaining agreement is done," Haysman said.
"That will give us the visibility of exactly what we'll get year-on-year and give us a chance to plan. We haven't had that ability over the last couple of years because we've been going year-by-year.
"Now, we can plan and we can make sure we make the right decisions for our football club around where we invest, and our football department is a priority for us."
Following an agreement with the SA Football Commission announced on Thursday, the AFL said the funding for the clubs would ensure a smooth transition from AAMI Stadium to a refurbished Adelaide Oval in 2014.
Adelaide and Port Adelaide, financially hamstrung by a poor stadium deal and dwindling attendances at AAMI Stadium in recent years, had appealed for assistance from the AFL.
The agreement will see the first ever AFL match at the city-centre venue in this season's final round.
"Football in South Australia needs two strong clubs in Port Adelaide and the Adelaide Crows competing strongly on the national stage and the AFL competition wants both teams to have every chance to bring success to their supporters," AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou said.
"This financial model negotiated with the SA Football Commission for the two AFL clubs in South Australia is aimed at ensuring the long-term health of both clubs, with the benefits of two strong football clubs flowing through to all levels of football in the state."
The SA Football Commission won't be required to start repaying the debt of $6 million until the move to Adelaide Oval, which is expected to generate up to an extra $3 million a year for the both the Crows and the Power, is complete.
The AFL will also provide the SA Football Commission with the facility to draw $1.5 million per year over the next three years, which Commission chairman John Olsen suggested would be used to provide additional support to the eight SANFL clubs.
The Crows are expected to be $1 million a year better off after Thursday's announcement, but their support won't come in the form of a lump-sum handout.
Instead, the SA Football Commission will 'unlock' additional seats and corporate facilities in the current configuration at AAMI Stadium, allowing Adelaide to generate an estimated extra $3 million in revenue between 2012-2014.
"This is not an ASD [Annual Special Distribution] or a handout for us. It's an opportunity to be able to grow the business by getting some more access to product in terms of corporate [facilities] and membership," Crows chief executive Steven Trigg said.
"We've been working with SANFL on the basis primarily that we should try and do here what we're going to Adelaide Oval with.
"If the membership structure looks like it does at Adelaide Oval, we should be working towards it here and if we get a certain amount of freehold corporate inventory, we should be working towards it here, so we can start to get ready.
"There's some strategy behind it … and if you add it all up it will come to about $1 million worth of uplift to us."
Olsen said Port Adelaide's clash with Melbourne in round 24 would be the "one and only" AFL game played at Adelaide Oval ahead of the permanent move in 2014.
However, the Crows are keen to explore the possibility of playing a NAB Cup game at the inner-city venue next year, if construction on the redevelopment hasn't already begun.
The terms of package will also see the SA Football Commission and the AFL review both the Adelaide and Port Adelaide Football Club licences to determine the best governance structure for both clubs ahead of the move to Adelaide Oval.
