‘There was genuine interest’: Why Ronaldo knocked back A-League offer

So does the A-League, which is desperate to harness the feel-good factor the Socceroos’ run to the World Cup’s round of 16 has done for football in Australia after a period of decline at domestic level.

Nani’s signing was part of a three-year marquee strategy from the competition to boost broader interest through signing big-name players, some of whom could become available straight after the World Cup.

One such possibility is ex-Liverpool star and Uruguayan captain Luis Suárez, 35, whose contract with boyhood club Nacional expires on December 31, and who was part of the 35-name marquee hitlist A-League chiefs drew up earlier this year.

Uruguayan captain Luis Suárez is poised to become a free agent at the end of December.Credit:Getty

Other targets could become available in the coming weeks, too, as most players towards the back end of their careers usually wait until after their final World Cups before thinking about payday moves to frontier football regions like Australia, the United States, Japan, China or the Middle East – and even if they have contracts on foot, they could ask for releases in January.

“The feelers are certainly out,” Townsend said.

Loading

“As countries get knocked out and players in their last World Cup probably think about their future, they start to be far more willing to have conversations.

“Coming to Australia is a big call, and that was actually one of the difficulties in engaging marquees in the previous off-season, particularly ones that were still active in the national teams. They said, ‘I don’t want to make a big move to Australia in a World Cup season.’ That was a barrier.

“Obviously, Nani was retired from international football, so he didn’t have the lure of the World Cup to think about, but there were players we spoke to whose focus was all about the World Cup, and quite rightfully so. How those conversations re-start will play out in the January window.”

Whether any more high-profile players follow Nani to Australia remains to be seen, but Townsend said the best ambassadors the A-League could possibly ask for were already signed to local clubs.

Loading

There are eight players from the Socceroos’ World Cup squad – including goalscorers Craig Goodwin and Mathew Leckie – who are now back with their A-League teams and set to play their first games since Qatar this weekend, and the hope is their accomplishments against world-class players will help convince audiences that the standard of play is much higher than what most people assume or perceive.

“It helps turn that narrative around, which is great. It’s helpful for our clubs as well – when we’re looking at the global player market, the respect for Australian players gone up enormously, which is great for the football economy here,” Townsend said.

“If you looked at those live sites, the average ages of the attendees was probably 18, 19, 20 years old. They’re young, they want to have a good time, they want to express themselves, they want to be with their mates. That’s what our game does uniquely well – the active support is something that draws those type of people.

“When these [new] fans come for the first time, they need to be entertained. They need to be able to express themselves.

“There’s not a simple solution, it’s a combination of a lot of different components that will draw those fans across from being excited by the World Cup to being excited by what’s going on at A-League stadiums all over the country.”

Watch every match of the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League on Stan Sport. Returns for the Round of 16 in February 2023, with all matches streaming ad-free, live and on demand.