But seriously Pants explain to me how the Heart will dominate the competition with that in place? I just don't see how its possible.
I got asked by AFL fans the other day to explain this to them using AFL clubs. My reply was its like the Melbourne Heart have gone from being St Kilda off field (solid but not spectacular) to Collingwood, Essendon and Hawthorn combined.
But with the salary cap still in place I fail to see how that makes them unbeatable on the field.
Well, look at the AFL for comparison. The top four teams in the league most years are generally close to the top in the off-field spending as well, which is why the AFL is still looking at equalisation plans to even out the off-field arms race. I don't think anyone will ever dominate the A-League to the same extent as the usual suspects in the top European leagues, but I think, with all other things being equal, Heart does have a few competitive advantages:
1. Based in one of the big two cities, which could be important for international players/marquees.
2. Behind Sydney, Melbourne also produces the best home grown players and so could be an attractive destination for players looking to 'go home'.
3. They will build a training base that will be as good as - if not better than - anything else in the league. So if the money is the same at the Heart, or another club, will you sign with the club that has absolute world class facilities where you'll also be able to spend some time in Manchester in the preseason, or the one that's still doing the wheelie bin ice baths?
4. Friendlies against Manchester City/New York City, presumably on a pretty regular basis.
5. Regular appearances in Asia down the track, assuming the changes that are implemented are successful.
6. Related to point #4 and like point #5 this will depend partly on whether they experience pretty immediate and consistent success, but like AFL clubs, the ability to play in blockbuster games and get big crowds at home and away.
7. A far better international scouting network than anyone else has.
8. This is down the track, but with the City connection, I'd imagine the parent of every talented young soccer player in Melbourne (and perhaps interstate) would want their kid to go to the locally-based City academy.
And while they can't quite throw money around like Manchester City, they can pay whatever they want for an international marquee player and pay a large amount outside the cap to an U23 Australian marquee player.