Professional Footballers Australia
the 2016/17 PFA a-League report Supporting the Players Building the Game
1 From the Chief Executive
Welcome to the inaugural constant state of change and transition. Many of these challenges can be solved This environment of anxiety is counter- through a sensible discussion while others A-League Report prepared productive to the players, the clubs and need a long-term plan with a host of groups the industry. The global nature of football working together. by the PFA. ensures it will always be fluid. However, that every A-League club used more The current Collective Bargaining Agreement Any analysis of the 2016/17 season must pay players over a 5-year cycle than the expires in two seasons – we need to ensure tribute to what Sydney FC achieved. Whatever world’s biggest clubs – who play more that when the next opportunity to re-design threads we can pull from the season, it is hard than double the matches – shows the the competition is available, the players’ voice not to admire the team that was brilliantly led current employment framework and the is heard and we can influence those areas by Alex Brosque, inspired by Milos Ninkovic salary cap that sits at the heart of it, is that are fundamental to pursuing a career and marshalled by Danny Vukovic and, not to simply not working. as a footballer: the right to an employment be biased, PFA President Alex Wilkinson. framework that creates a positive career path; • The resistance to flexible match safe and equitable match scheduling; and As always, the players delivered a gripping scheduling continues to be a concern. performance standards on match days and at Grand Final in front of a sell-out crowd before Whilst we have seen steps in the right training that allows players to maximise their record television ratings. The afternoon was direction, the players and Australian development as footballers. a fitting tribute to two exceptional teams and football continues to be diminished clubs. when A-League matches are played on international breaks and clubs competing All the best for season At the PFA, our brief is to look beyond the at the continental level are not given great spectacle and performances and make appropriate recovery time. Each sport in 2017/18. sure the foundations upon which players are Australia is building a 12-month calendar, building their careers are solid. It is our job it’s time for the A-League to build a to make sure that, whilst the players are on calendar that drives football – not one centre stage, we are looking ahead to ensure that is reverse engineered around other the sport is moving in the right direction. sports. It is this responsibility that motivates and underpins the 2016/17 PFA A-League Report. • Pitch quality continues to regress; yet we all know that a quality surface is This report shows us there are challenges in fundamental to performance. To see a number of areas; 30% of our showpiece stadia rated by the • The trend of player churn continues to players across the season as averaging have a significantly negative impact on less than 3 out of 5 should not be players and, in many instances, their tolerated by the sport. families. More than 50% of players are coming off contract each year, dictating a
2 3 CONTENTS
Employment Framework 6 Player Churn 8 Match Minutes 12 Competitiveness 14 Foreign Ownership 17 Coaching Stability 18
Match Scheduling 20 International Breaks 22 International Comparison 23 Scheduling and Recovery 24
Performance Standards 26 Technical Report 28 Injury Report 34 Stadium Ratings 42
44 5 Employment Framework Snapshot
53% 44% of A-League players were of A-League contracted coming off contract over the players were in their first course of the season year at their club 34% 2.4 of players coming off is the average number of contract were under 22 seasons players had been at their club 4.7% of match minutes were 9.2% played by debutants. of match minutes were (Higher than all of the ‘Big 5’ played by players under 21 European leagues) 68.49 3 is the average number of clubs have won nine of the matches of each coach’s A-League’s 12 Premierships. reign 25.9% of match minutes were played by foreign players
THE A-LEAGUE IS ONE Employment OF THE MOST VOLATILE LABOUR MARKETS IN 6 Framework WORLD FOOTBALL7 7 Employment Framework AVERAGE NUMBER OF SEASONS at the club of the 2016/17 playing squad Player Churn 4 3
2
1 % OF PLAYERS 0 coming off contract
/17 16 0 /16 2 15 NUMBER OF CONSECUTIVE SEASONS AT CURRENT CLUB 0 /15 2 14 An International Comparison 0 53% 2 52.3% 55.8% 5 A-League Average 4
3
2
1
0
1-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 51-60 61-70 71-80 81-90 91-100 Ages of players coming off contract at Stability of 100 UEFA Clubs from Most Stable to Least (1-10 being the top ten most stable clubs). the conclusion of the 2016/17 Season: Source: CIES Football Observatory er 0-2 nd o nd 20: 2 2 3 a ve U 2 r: THE A-LEAGUE CONTINUES TO TRACK 11% 23% 66% POORLY ON CONSISTENT EMPLOYMENT AT 8 INDIVIDUAL CLUBS9 9 PLAYERS USED PER CLUB NUMBER OF PLAYERS USED IN LEAGUE MATCHES The 2016/17 Season An international comparison for the past five seasons
120 nited oar ast M City U R Co ar ne de ne l in ur i a ra e o la b t r b e s n s l i e d r e
A B C M 100
24 25 22 23 80 Victo Jets y rne ry tle lor u as G o c b th l w r e e e
M N P
60 21 23 25
Pho FC on en y t ix e g in 40 n ll d e y
S W
20 23
n Syd ey W rn a te n s d Source: CIES Football Observatory e e r
e
W
r s THE NUMBER OF PLAYERS English Premier League, Ligue 1, Serie A and La Liga clubs play ten 26 used in each of the last additional league matches when compared to A-League clubs with five seasons the Bundesliga season seeing teams play an additional seven. All five of these leagues also have bigger permitted squad sizes in their respective domestic competitions. 300
255
150
10 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 11
10 AVERAGE AGE % OF MINUTES Employment Framework of players used by foreign players
gue sliga a de Le n - u Match Minutes A B 60
40 27.3 26.2 20 gue ea S .L L MATCH MINUTES J M played by age 2016/17 0 A-League Bundesliga J.League MLS
# Who Made an 27.6 27.4 AGE Total Minutes Played Total Appearances Appearance The A-League’s regulations fall between the J.League’s 3+1 rule and U21 57 23,715 440 the Bundesliga’s open model. MLS shares 160 international slots among 22-27 87 107,318 1,530 its 20 clubs.
28-33 66 92,385 1,207 34+ 23 34,018 420 % MATCH MINUTES PLAYED Total 233 257,436 3,597 by debutants in the 2016/17 Season An International Comparison
5
4 % OF MATCH MINUTES 50% 3
played by age group 37.5% 2
1 25%
0 Dylan McGowan (Adelaide United) was the 12.5% A-League Ligue 1 EPL Bundesliga La Liga Serie A only player to play in every minute of the regular A-League season (2,430). Six other *135 A-League Matches, 220 EPL Matches, 220 Serie A Matches, 220 La Liga Matches, players played in all 27 matches: Ben Garuccio 0 220 Ligue 1 Matches, 162 Bundesliga Matches were used for the calculation (Adelaide), Alex Wilkinson and Bobo (Sydney FC), Connor Pain (Central Coast Mariners) and U21 22-27 28-33 34+ Leigh12 Broxham (Melbourne Victory). 13
12 Employment Framework Competitiveness
NUMBER OF PREMIERS An international comparison for the past 12 seasons PERFORMANCE RECORD
8 20 1 Only the 2 6 A-League and the MLS 15 3
Average position league 4 competitions operate a 4 salary cap. 2 10 5
0 6 Ligue 1 MLS A-League J.League EPL Bundesliga Serie A La Liga
5 7 Note: Premiers classified as the League / Regular Season winners. For the MLS this was the Supporters Shield 8
0 9
# of Championships # of Premierships # of GF Apperances
# Finals Series Apperances Average League Position
Three clubs have won nine out of the 12 Premierships in the A-League era. Those clubs have qualified for the Grand Final 12 times out of a possible 24 places. 15
14 Employment Framework Employment Framework Competitiveness Foreign Ownership
MATCH COMPETITIVENESS Goal deficits % OF FULL FOREIGN OWNERSHIP of A-League Clubs 60 50%
40 The number of 40% matches decided by three goals or 20 more has risen 30% # of matches # of steadily over the past five seasons. 20% 0
2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 10%
0% Draws 1 Goal 2 Goals 3 Goals 4+ Goals 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016 /17
MATCH COMPETITIVENESS An International Comparison 2012 - 2017
% Decided By % Decided By % Decided by % Decided by % of Draws League 1 Goal 2 Goals 3 Goals 4+ Goals
A-League 23.3% 41.8% 19.8% 8.9% 6.2% The increase in foreign investment in
Bundesliga 24.2% 34.4% 23.9% 10.9% 6.6% the A-League has coincided with increasing foreign investment in J.League 23.9% 43.9% 19.7% 7.9% 4.6% the major European leagues, with 57% of clubs MLS 25.8% 40.7% 20.6% 9.1% 3.8% in England’s top two divisions now 16Note: The Bundesliga and the J.League competitions do not operate salary caps. foreign-owned 17 16 Employment Framework Coaching Stability
AVERAGE NUMBER OF MATCHES AVERAGE AGE in the head coaching role of A-League coaches 150 50
47.5 100
Average 45
50 42.5
40 0 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016 /17
Note: Does not include caretaker coaches
18 19 Match Scheduling Snapshot
39 matches were missed Brisbane Roar were afforded less rest by A-League players due to between matches during their participation international call-ups during in the 2017 AFC Champions League (ACL) FIFA breaks than J.League clubs participating in the ACL
6.86 days was the average break between From Round 1 of the 2016/17 Season until the matches during the 2016/17 Season 2017 Grand Final, A-League clubs participated in an average of 30.3 matches. This included FFA Cup and AFC Champions League matches
Match On five occasions Brisbane Roar had three Maximum match time* for an A-League days or less between matches player is 2,430 minutes. J.League and Bundesliga players can play 3,060 minutes scheduling *Regular season only
20 21 Match Scheduling & Match Scheduling International Breaks International Comparison
NUMBER OF A-LEAGUE MATCHES MISSED due to international call-ups during FIFA international breaks Teams Season Matches
United Roar oast Ma e City e Victor 10 2016/17 135 e e C ri rn rn y id n al n u u a a r e o o l b t r b b e s n s l l i e e d r e
A B C M M 18 2016/17 306 2 2 1 4 5
le Jets ry C n Phoen ydney st lo F to ix S W a G y g rn a c h e in e n t n l t 2016 l d 18 306 w r d s e e e e y e r 2 stages
N P S W e
W
r s 20 2016 340 1 1 4 15 4 2 conferences
Note: Finals/Play-offs were excluded. Total: 39
80
THE NUMBER OF 60 MAXIMUM (REGULAR SEASON) MATCH TIME MATCHES MISSED 40 due to international call-ups AVAILABLE FOR AN A-LEAGUE PLAYER IS during FIFA international breaks 20 over the past three seasons 0 2,430 MINUTES J.LEAGUE AND BUNDESLIGA 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 PLAYERS CAN PLAY 3,060 MINUTES23 22 23 AVERAGE NUMBER OF DAYS BETWEEN MATCHES Match Scheduling includes A-League, FFA Cup and AFC Champions League matches Scheduling & 8 Average RecoverY 6 4
2 NUMBER OF REST DAYS BETWEEN MATCHES includes A-League, FFA Cup and AFC Champions League matches 0
# of # of 3 Day # of 4 Day # of 5 Day # of Home # of Away Club Matches Breaks Breaks Breaks Matches Matches (RD1 - GF)
AUFC 31 1 4 6 15 16 AFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE BRFC 36 5 4 7 18 18 Average number of days between domestic league and group stage AFC Champions League matches: J.League v A-League participants CCM 27 1 1 3 12 15
MCFC 30 3 2 0 15 15 6 MVFC 32 1 2 4 16 16 Brisbane Roar were NJ 27 0 1 3 14 13 4.5 afforded on average less rest between PGFC 29 1 1 4 15 14 matches during their 3 participation in the 2017 SFC 31 1 4 0 17 14 AFC Champions League 1.5 than their Japanese WPX 27 1 2 2 15 12 counterparts
WSW 33 3 4 3 15 18 0
24 24 25 Performance Standards Snapshot
653 matches The A-League averaged missed due to injury 3.03 goals per match (Higher than the MLS, J.League and Bundesliga)
2.4 players missing due to injury on average each match per club 2.42% decrease in the number of matches missed through injury compared to the 2015/16 Season 10.4% decrease in the total cost of injuries compared to the 2015/16 Season Melbourne City were the A-League’s most dominant team in terms of ball possession, 65.3 matches averaging missed through injury Performance on average per club 56.9% per match
26 Standards 27 27 GOALS Performance Standards GOALS PER MATCH
a ue lig ue A-League Technical ag es g a e d e S L n - u .L L Report A B J M
3.03 2.87 2.62 2.81
BENCHMARKING THE A-LEAGUE AGAINST % OF GOALLESS DRAWS
e ga INTERNATIONAL LEAGUES gu sli ue a e ag e d e S L n - u .L L Data supplied by Opta A B J M
5.19% 4.58% 12.30% 15.29%
Scoring breakdown
30%
25%
20% % of goals % of
15%
10%
0-15min 16-30min 31-HT 46-60min 61-75min 76-FT
28 A-League Bundesliga J.League MLS 29 29 PASSING AND AVERAGE POSSESSION Performance Standards POSSESSION RANKINGS
A-League Technical Total passes per Top 2 possession teams: match FC Bayern: 69.1% Report A-League: 890.9 Bundesliga: 896.0 Dortmund: 61.8% J.League: 934.2 MLS: 835.0 Kawasaki Frontale: 61.3% CREATION Urawa Reds: 60.8% Shot Conversion Shots on Target Passes completed Melbourne City: 56.9% A-League: 75.8% Columbus Crew: 55.1% A-League: A-League: Bundesliga: 76.7% J.League: 80.6% Bundesliga: 11.5% Bundesliga: 35.4% Sporting Kansas City: 54.9% 11.8% 36% MLS: 77.7% J.League: 10.2% J.League: 32.7% MLS: 10.7% MLS: 34.6% Brisbane Roar: 53.0%
Passes long A-League: 13.9% Bundesliga: 15.2% Shots per Match Shots from Outside the Box J.League: 14.4% MLS: 16.6% A-League: A-League: Top 2 placed teams: Bundesliga: 25.0 Bundesliga: 38.5% J.League: 25.7 25.6 J.League: 42.6% 39.5% MLS: 26.4 MLS: 38.9% Passes forward FC Bayern: 69.1% A-League: 37.9% Kawasaki Frontale: 61.3% Bundesliga: 37.4% J.League: 38.7% Urawa Reds: 60.8% MLS: 37.1% RB Leipzig: 52.7% Goals from Set Pieces Crosses per Match Melbourne Victory: 50.9% A-League: A-League: Passes in attacking half Sydney FC: 49.6% Bundesliga: 30.1% Bundesliga: 27.4 29.1% 28.6 A-League: 53.0% J.League: 27.2% J.League: 29.1 Colorado Rapids: 49.4% Bundesliga: 54.2% MLS: 30.3% MLS: 35.1 J.League: 61.4% FC Dallas: 48.6% 30 MLS: 61.7%
30 31 REFEREEING Performance Standards
A-League Technical Penalties per 100 matches A-League: 40 Report Bundesliga: 32 J.League: 20
MLS: 32
DEFENDING AND MATCH STYLES Fouls per yellow card A-League: 6.9
Bundesliga: 7.7
J.League: 9.4
MLS: 7.4
Yellows per match A-League: 4.4 Tackles per match Fouls per match Bundesliga: 3.7 A-League: 36.8 A-League: 30.0 J.League: 2.7 Bundesliga: 37.5 Bundesliga: 28.1 MLS: 3.3 J.League: 29.6 J.League: 25.3 Reds per match MLS: 36.4 MLS: 24.6 A-League: 0.21
Bundesliga: 0.18
J.League: 0.07
MLS: 0.21
Offsides per match Interceptions per match A-League: 4.7 A-League: 35.5
Bundesliga: 4.6 Bundesliga: 41.2
J.League: 4.6 J.League: 35.7
32MLS: 4.0 MLS: 34.9 33
32 Performance Standards A-League injury report METHODOLOGY
During the 2016/17 A-League Season, the PFA collected and recorded the occurrence of all injuries causing players to miss matches.
The PFA A-League Injury Report was formulated from publicly available injury data ABOUT THE INJURY REPORT accessible through the following key sources:
Established in 2005, and now in its The report played a significant 11th edition, the PFA A-League Injury role in forming the foundations for During the 2016/17 A-League Season FFA weekly Ins and Outs Report is a fundamental tool in the PFA’s the implementation in 2011 of the (excluding the A-League Finals Series, efforts to ensure the health and safety Minimum Medical Standards, which are Asian Champions League and FFA Cup), the PFA monitored all players (N = 298) of of its members through the constant incorporated into the A-League Collective Official A-League match previews/ all clubs. monitoring of the occurrence of injury. Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the reviews The information contained within this PFA and Football Federation Australia The collection of the data included: report describes the latest trends of injury (FFA). occurrence in the A-League and identifies Official media releases Number of injuries potential injury patterns. The findings of the report are utilised to inform the PFA’s discussions with the game’s stakeholders Official websites Injury location regarding the measures and regulations necessary to ensure the health and safety of the players. Official games missed Player feedback due to injury
In this report, injury is defined as “any physical complaint sustained during a competitive game or training that resulted in a player being unable to take part in, at a minimum, the player’s next official A-League game.” Based on the data collected about injury occurrence and related games missed, descriptive 34 analyses were conducted. 35 2016/17 A-LEAGUE INJURY SNAPSHOT METHODOLOGY
In order to calculate the cost of injury, the following formula was used: $3,930,093 THE TOTAL COST OF INJURIES
FOR THE 2016/17 SEASON
) Cost of = Player ) A-League x Players )) 130 Injury Payments / Matches on Team Sheet INJURIES
2016-17 A-League A-League # of Players 653 5.02 Salary Cap + Regular Season on Team MATCHES MISSED AVERAGE MATCHES Flexibilities = 27 Matches Sheet = 16 DUE TO INJURY MISSED PER INJURY
Club-by-club breakdown of matches This formula is designed to estimate costs on a missed through injury conservative basis and it does not include: Club A 16%
Club J 3% Club B 9% Club I 7% the cost of marquee the A-League the cost of medical payments and Finals Series, AFC care and treatment Club H 3% replacement players Champions League to injured players Club C 14% and FFA Cup
Club G 10%
Club D 14% Important Note: The accuracy of the PFA A-League Injury Report’s results and analysis is dependent upon the accuracy of the sources of information from which it is derived. Accordingly, the PFA does not warrant that the results are an exact and complete record of player injuries. They are, however, an 36 accurate summation of the publicly available information provided by FFA and club sources. Club F 18% Club E 6% 37 36 NUMBER OF INJURIES LOCATION OF INJURIES Comparison to previous seasons
TOTAL 180 130 Injuries | 653 Matches missed 160 CONCUSSION 4 Matches missed | 2 Injuries 140
120 BACK ILLNESS 12 Matches missed | 1 Injury 20 Matches missed | 6 Injuries 100
80
GROIN 60 19 Matches missed | 7 Injuries SHOULDER 25 Matches missed | 2 Injuries 40
20 QUAD ARM 45 Matches missed | 9 Injuries 6 Matches missed | 2 Injuries 0
2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17
Note: Minimum Medical Standards were introduced at the end of the 2010/11 A-League HIP Season. Calculations based on a 27 match season. KNEE 14 Matches missed | 5 Injuries 244 Matches missed | 30 Injuries
HAMSTRING CALF 67 Matches missed | 18 Injuries 16 Matches missed | 5 Injuries LEG 3 Matches missed | 2 Injuries ANKLE 75 Matches missed | 14 Injuries ACHILLES 39 Matches missed | 4 Injuries
FOOT UNSTATED 35 Matches missed | 4 Injuries 29 Matches missed | 19 Injuries 39 38 AVERAGE NUMBER OF PLAYERS unavailable each match per club due to injury
3.5
3.25
3
2.75
2.5
2.25
2
1.75
1.5
1.25
1
2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17
40 40 41 AVERAGE OVERALL RATING BY STADIUM - PITCH Performance Standards during 2016/17 as at Round 27 PFA A-League Stadium 5 Ratings 4 3
2
1
0
nib Stadium AAMI Park ANZ Stadium GIO Stadium QBE Stadium Etihad StadiumHunter StadiumAllianz Stadium Yarrow Stadium Westpac StadiumCoopers Stadium SpotlessSuncorp StadiumSimonds StadiumWaikato Stadium Stadium Mt Smart Stadium Coffs Intn’l Stadium Central Coast Stadium Campbelltown Stadium
ABOUT THE Regular stadia Additional stadia PFA A-LEAGUE
STADIUM RATINGS In 2009 the PFA R3 Coopers Stadium rating: 5 WEEKLY AVERAGE PITCH RATING R7 nib Stadium rating: 5 introduced the PFA 2016/17 R10 & R12 Suncorp Stadium rating: 1 A-League Stadium Ratings R23 & R25 Allianz Stadium rating: 1 System. Designed to measure the quality of football pitches across the 5 A-League, it measures four key criteria of the
playing surface: overall quality, hardness, pace 4 and smoothness. Additionally, it recognises fans as a key pillar for the growth of the A-League. 3 The PFA A-League Stadium Ratings are voted on by selected players at the end of each match, who rate each criteria from one to five, with five being the highest. 2
1 R1 R3 R5 R7 R9 R11 R13 R15 R17 R19 R21 R23 R25 R27 42 R2 R4 R6 R8 R10 R12 R14 R16 R18 R20 R22 R24 R26 43 43 WEEKLY AVERAGE ATMOSPHERE RATING
5 OVERALL AVERAGE - PITCH Season by season comparison 4
5 3
2 4
1 3 R1 R3 R5 R7 R9 R11 R13 R15 R17 R19 R21 R23 R25 R27 R2 R4 R6 R8 R10 R12 R14 R16 R18 R20 R22 R24 R26 2
R2 Melbourne Derby R5 Etihad Stadium rating: 5 R19 ANZ Stadium Rating: 2 1
2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 ATMOSPHERE RATING Season by season comparison
5
ATMOSPHERE RATING 4 Overall average 2016/17 3
5 2
4 1
0 3 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17
2
1
0
nib Stadium GIO Stadium Etihad Stadium QBE Stadium Hunter Stadium WaikatoYarrow Stadium Stadium AAMI ParkCoopers (MVFC) StadiumSimonds StadiumSuncorpAAMI Stadium ParkSpotless (MCFC) Stadium Westpac StadiumSimonds Stadium Mt Smart Stadium ANZ Stadium (WSW) Coffs Intn’l Stadium Central Coast StadiumCampbelltown Stadium ANZ Stadium (Sydney FC) 44 Regular stadia Additional stadia 45
44 COURAGE WORLD CLASS INTELLIGENCE TRUST RESPECT
Professional Footballers Australia Inc. 221/757 Bourke Street, Docklands, Victoria, 3008, Email: [email protected] Tel: 1300 650 497
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