Speaking today after the FFA's AGM, Lowy said he expected that football would ride out the financial storm.

He said: "If anything, it has accelerated the need for expansion."

While the first two expansion clubs - North Queensland Fury and Gold Coast United - will venture into new territory next season, Lowy all but confirmed the arrival of a second team in both Melbourne and Sydney for version six of the fledgling competition.

Asked when the eleventh and twelfth Hyundai A-League licences will be granted, Lowy confidently predicted a decision would be made in a matter of months.

He revealed: "We're talking to a Melbourne (based consortium) which we have already given a preference for one (of the new licences) and we are working with a Sydney syndicate that may materialise in the next few months."

The chairman is in no doubt support for the code in Melbourne and Sydney is strong enough to accommodate an additional Hyundai A-League franchise.

"The one-team per city (concept) was very good up to now but I think we need to double up on that," he said.

"First of all for Sydney spectators it would be good for them if they could watch a game every week … Sydney or Melbourne should be able to support two teams."

"I mean (with a population of) four or five million people, and of course the distances are far and West Sydney has a definite place in this competition and we're confident that we'll find the right consortia and it will be successful."

Meanwhile, FFA CEO Ben Buckley said the degree of secrecy surrounding the bid for a second Melbourne team is not cause for concern.

"The people who are backing it are very successful business people in their own right, they have a lot of football knowledge on their board but I think they're just making sure they don't put the cart before the horse," Buckley said.

"They want to get the licence, they want to get it secured and I'm sure they'll be public at the appropriate time."

"You can take it from me, it's real and they're good quality people."

Buckley hinted there could be midweek games in the A-League to accommodate the expanded league which would cut into the scheduling of winter football codes.

He also said that an eariler start to the A-League was less likely in the future with the preferred model of August or later the option they most favoured.

Lowy said he'd met with AFC officials yesterday about Wellington Phoenix's involvement in the A-League and was confident of a resolution regarding AFC's query over a foreign team in the A-League.

Buckley said today a number of tweaks were planned for Australia's youth system including kicking off new national teams at Under 14 level for both girls and boys.

He said: "We're looking at amendments to the AIS programs in terms of the age groups which is being worked through at the moment which wil have a flow on effect to the state institutes as well as initiating national teams at the Under 14 level."

Such an amendment would provide better preparation for Australian teams now competing in AFC Under 16 level tournaments for girls and boys, of which Iran is the current holder for boys.

"There will also be a review of refereeing at community and grassroots level at all aspects of referees which hopefully will flow up to the elite programs," added Buckley.

"And there is a review of the futsal programs which is due at the end of this year. And there is a national skills test which will be rolled out in 2009 as well as the national curiculum."

Other changes planned include online registration for clubs and volunteers to self register their teams to increase efficiency at community level.

And Buckley added that there had been support from the member federations at today's AGM for a development charter which would see the states and federations working in unison with the FFA on making sure community football and elite pathways are administered with consistency across the country.