Football's bid to smash cricket

Socceroo striker Tim Cahill says the A-League’s Summer of Football that features 10 matches in 11 days over the festive period will build on the exciting start to the season.

The A-League Summer of Football begins tonight with Brisbane Roar taking on Western Sydney Wanderers at Suncorp Stadium, with all 10 A-League clubs in action twice between now and January 2.

Three of the 10 games will also feature double headers with W-League matches and Cahill believes this will build on the league’s impressive start which has seen TV audiences, crowds and club memberships increase.

“Summer of football is fantastic,” he said. “Everyone talks about how amazing the A-League has been, I think we can all agree it’s been great start.

"You look at the numbers for TV viewers and also the excitement of the games. I think 10 games in 11 days is a big step for us and for everyone that involved in the game.

"You’ve also got the double headers that are involved with the girls."

He added: “Now we’ve got to make this one of the top sports in the country.

"Let’s start transitioning the numbers to the kids that play in grassroots into becoming supporters and filling our stadiums up.

"You’ve got to look at the positives of what we are creating together, like the broadcast deal that’s going to make the league bigger and stronger.”

FFA CEO David Gallop said it was important to promote both football’s competitions during this period to compete with others sports like Cricket’s popular Big Bash tournament.

“We have to make sure that the A-league and the W-League are providing compelling entertainment,” he said.

“The last few months has demonstrated that both competitions are. We are in a competitive environment and this period things get more competitive and we’ve always been conscious of that.

“We come out of a relatively clear period and now into a more congested period and that is why we need to be continually promoting the skill if our players - what they are doing on the pitch both in the A-League and the W-League every week.

“It’s great entertainment, it’s great football and we want to give people the opportunity to get out and see it in this holiday period.”