A-League club Western United close to collapse after licence withdrawn

Financially beleaguered club Western United has had its licence withdrawn as part of Football Australia’s regulatory processes, a step which threatens the outfit’s existence just three years after it won the A-League Men championship.

An independent board set up to assess each club against the licensing criteria decided on Thursday Western United has not met its requirements. It means the club – which is adamant the sale to US investors is imminent – is blocked from competing in FA-sanctioned competitions, including the A-Leagues.

Football Australia issued a statement on Friday afternoon: “Football Australia is able to confirm that the first instance board [FIB] – an independent body established under the National Club Licensing Regulations – has convened and determined that Western United FC has failed to meet the criteria required to be granted an A-League license. As such Western United FC’s licence has been withdrawn, effective immediately.

In a statement the club said it was “bitterly disappointed by the decision” taken by FA and the FIB, and that it would be “exercising its right to appeal the decision with faith of a positive outcome as the sale of the club and injection of capital from [new investors] KAM Melbourne continues to progress”.

The Australian Professional Leagues (APL) executive chair, Stephen Conroy, said his organisation awaits the outcome of the appeal process.

“We’ve been advised by Football Australia on the determination by FIB to withdraw Western United’s conditional licence,” he said. “This is an FA, AFC and regulatory process, and we won’t comment further until the regulatory process and any appeal has been completed.”

The licensing regulations are designed to “safeguard the credibility and integrity” of Australian football competitions and cover criteria such as financial standards. The initial deadline for clubs to comply was May, but FA was working with multiple clubs to help them meet the criteria until the amended deadline of 31 July.

The board’s decision is based on documentation provided by Western United, along with recommendations from FA. Western United have been late in paying players this year and are currently subject to a Fifa-imposed transfer and registration ban.

View image in fullscreen Western United players walk out at the club’s Ironbark Fields before an ALM match in January. Photograph: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

FA said the licensing process is designed to protect the game.

“This outcome, while regrettable, reflects Football Australia’s ongoing commitment to upholding the integrity, stability, and fairness of competitions for all clubs, players, and stakeholders,” they said.

The makeup of the FIB – set up for this licensing process – remains unclear, though its members are required to be independent from FA, the APL and clubs.

The threat to the Tarneit’s outfit existence comes as owners seek to finalise a takeover by the US-based Kaminski group, which was announced in May.

skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Football Daily Free daily newsletter Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football Enter your email address Sign up Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion

Western United only joined the A-Leagues in 2019 in its most recent round of expansion alongside Macarthur, which started a year later.

Initially the project’s vision – of a club in a growth corridor that owned its own stadium, funded by a real estate development partnership with Wyndham City Council – was widely praised.

Although the club has completed its training and office facilities at Ironbark Fields, a greenfields site in Tarneit where it holds most of its home matches, construction on the main stadium has been delayed.

Wyndham City council’s director of corporate services, Mark Rossiter, said the news was disappointing particularly for fans but that ratepayers would not be affected by the situation.

“We understand the club still has some appeal options and Wyndham will use that time to consider what this means for our partnership with Western Melbourne Group,” he said.

“It is important to note that council and ratepayers are completely protected by the robust commercial and financial contracts that are in place between council and Western Melbourne Group. We continue to believe this is a unique initiative that has the potential to unlock an extraordinary level of public value, and we remain committed to realising this vision.”

The men’s captain, Ben Garuccio, signed a new two-year deal last month, but was unable to play in the Australia Cup defeat to Sydney FC in late July due to the Fifa registration ban.

A winding up process established by creditors of the club, including the tax office, is under way in the federal court. The club has outstanding debts of more than $16m. On Friday afternoon, the matter was adjourned until 28 August.

Western United lodged its 2023-24 accounts with Asic last week, which showed a loss of $11m for the year and the value of its liabilities exceeding its assets by $55m.

The coming A-League Men season is due to commence in late October.

Click here to read article