Opinion

A brilliant beginning, but the Lowy years end in tears

The end to an era is often speculated, predicted and pontificated about in a tediously drawn out fashion. But when it actually happens, it is invariably swift and brutal.

And so that's how the Lowy family exits Australian football. A 15-year reign that began with Sir Frank Lowy in 2003 now ends, rather abruptly, in a month from now, when Steven Lowy will avoid seeking re-election as Football Federation Australia chairman.

Undoubtedly, the best man for the job in the post-Soccer Australia vacuum was Lowy senior. Even then-Prime Minister John Howard cajoled him to do it and, for a time, the Westfield magnate was invincible. Football sprang up everywhere, just like his shopping centres. Both seemed unbeatable.

But he was never the same man after being burned on the 2022 FIFA World Cup bid. Finding out what really happened thereafter became a personal crusade. He believed he would ultimately be vindicated in searching the globe for the smoking gun, no matter the cost or time.

Feeling deeply wronged by the sport's global establishment, he suddenly felt no need to apologise in clearing a path for his son, Steven, to take charge closer to home.
Trouble was brewing long before the handover but only sprouted when the agitators, many of them part-timers, no longer feared the leader. As such, Lowy junior's tenure has been mired in the kind of trench warfare that wouldn't look out of place in an Oliver Stone film.

First things first: stepping down is the right move. The pending abdication avoids an inevitable political assassination.

Great change will now take place at FFA headquarters. A new style of leadership is inevitable and FIFA's reforms are now all but certain to be implemented, followed by new faces and fresh voices.

However, if the Lowy family truly cares about football as much as they say they do, there’s now an opportunity for a different kind of contribution. More on that later.

The decision to walk will soothe some of the anger that has enveloped the game. It will also spare Steven Lowy the full force of history's nastier recollections.
But it must be said that the declaration comes late in the day. He ferociously stuck to his guns when challenged, firstly by professional clubs, then state league clubs, followed by fans, players, coaches and at least half of the state federations, not to mention FIFA itself. He only threw in the white flag when it became clear the fight would be stopped.

Crafty politicking very nearly enabled the democratic retention of power. They called it opening the game to more stakeholders; others called it gerrymandering.

The board bought time from FIFA in every known way and then invented a few more. This entire process is closing in on two full years. Ergo, most of the chairman's tenure has taken place in a war zone.

Never mind personal ambition, it is sad for the sport that Steven Lowy couldn't deliver on his dream to lift football up the pecking order. But he also inherited a ticking time bomb from the moment he was very quietly slipped into the sport's most prestigious office.

That in itself was a mistake. When the heat came, the moral mandate that every leader ultimately requires was absent.

What will his tenure be remembered for? Efforts to stay in power, mostly. And lots of cost-cutting. During his spell, this maddening civil war sapped much of our raw enthusiasm for the sport we love. Watching games became a chore. The past two A-League seasons blurred into a messy haze.
On weekends, we gathered to talk how a 9-4-1-1 would work off the field, scarcely discussing how a 4-4-1-1 works on it. It was as depressing as any time I can remember, the NSL's death-days included.

Again, the Lowy family can't be solely blamed for this - and certain other stakeholders have been guided by little more than naked self-interest and self-promotion. Better the devil you know? We'll find out soon enough.

In any event, Steven Lowy professes to have a lifelong love of the sport, whether he's in charge of it or not. If that's true, I urge him not to back away entirely, but to take on a new role: pioneering a culture of Australian football philanthropy.

More than anything, it is in our youth football, community football and in women's football that needs the help of people like him. The registration fees at junior level, for example, fuel so much grassroots resentment up the pyramid.
Thank goodness for Westfield's prolonged and unrelenting support of the Matildas, something that has played a huge role in helping them become full-time (or close to it) – all whilst providing the company with brand exposure worth several times what they paid. Talk about a win-win. There must be more of these opportunities out there.

In any event, that's where I hope to see the Lowy family digging in. If they love the sport, and truly want to leave a legacy, I can't think of a better place to start.


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5 min read
Published 18 August 2018 7:30am
By Sebastian Hassett


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