Wednesday News Headlines – March 29th, 2017

Soccer

• WCQ: Socceroos d United Arab Emirates: Crowd: 27,328 @ Allianz Stadium
• Tues WCQ FTA – Aus v UAE – 256,000 (Syd 80,000 melb 95,000 Bris 43,000 Adel 23,000 Per 15,000) – on 9Go!
• Tues WCQ STV – Aus v AUE 178,000 FS50

AFL

• Thunder, Dockers divorce rumours persist
• Adelaide face the first of their delayed FTA tv matches this weekend
• FRANKSTON has until June 30 to convince AFL Victoria it should be readmitted to the VFL in 2018.

A-league

• Roy Masters writes that Rugby league and rugby union show why expansion could damage the A-League
• The West Australian asks Why are junior soccer fees so much more than Auskick?
• Melbourne Victory have agreed a five-year strategic partnership with Victoria University (VU), Australia’s leading sports university. VU will provide the Australian soccer side with sports science and performance support for its Academy programs. The collaboration will create opportunities for VU undergraduates studying Master of Sports Science and Master of Sport Business and Integrity to participate in internships and to work placements. 
  

NRL

• Dozens of the game’s leading players emerged on Monday night declaring it was “essential” that the NRL agree to give them a fixed share of the code’s revenue in pay talks, saying they hoped their objectives could be achieved civilly. [Also in The Australian]
• Massive AFL Crowd Numbers Embarrass The Struggling NRL

Super Rugby

• The Daily Telegraph understands that the Force will be the Australian team scrapped should the Super Rugby competition be cut to 15 teams, the model SANZAAR prefers for 2018-19.
• ARU boss Bill Pulver says no decision has been made on Super Rugby changes
• Western Force chairman Tony Howarth says the club’s efforts to succeed have been undermined by Australian rugby powers.
• The Australian Rugby Union has denied it has sacked the Western Force, the Force insist they are very much a going concern, but it may well be that their survival depends on how airtight is a legal clause signed when the national body took control of the club.
• The WA State Government has left open the possibility of withholding millions of dollars in road trauma funding from the Western Force after claims the team will be axed from the Super Rugby competition.
• THE Rugby Union Players Association has signalled it would oppose the ARU telling Western Force players which franchise to join next year in the event an Aussie team is axed.

General

• The latest Australian Multi-Screen Report has found that Australians are spreading their viewing across multiple screens, with television still the most watched.
• Just two days after confirming its 20 year partnership with CUB’s VB had come to an end, Cricket Australia has announced Lion’s mid-strength XXXX brand has signed a four year sponsorship of the sport.