It’s the biggest job in Australian football, with a seven-figure salary and oversight of everything from the Socceroos to the U6s in your local park.But as a Melbourne-based headhunting firm seeks what will be Football Federation Australia’s fourth chief executive, to succeed David Gallop by December, major questions are being asked about what the role should entail — and who should get it.The successor to Gallop, whose pay package is $1.2m plus bonuses, will have no oversight of the A-League and its clubs after the latter’s owners fought for and secured autonomy from the game’s governing body.With a radically reduced income, FFA’s board of directors have sought to sketch out how the role will be different, and the skills that will be needed to help rejuvenate a game that has struggled increasingly for several years.Stream live coverage of La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and the EFL Championship with beIN SPORTS on KAYO. Get your 14 day free trial & start streaming instantly >MORE IN SPORT

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For the first time, the board has signalled it intends to recruit a CEO with experience of and love for football. It is a role in a state of flux, and part of the brief that recruitment firm Russell Reynolds has had is to engage with potential candidates over how it will unfold in the post-A-League era.Importantly the new CEO will be expected to source extra funding, via government in particular, as the bulk of FFA’s current income switches to the independent A-League.A swath of male and female national teams will need funding, with the Olyroos and Matildas both approaching qualifying tournaments for the Olympics in the short term and every age group needing more games in the long run.

The new CEO will have to plan relations with the state bodies, with calls in some quarters for them to be abolished and replaced with a single national structure — something the states themselves will likely fight tooth and nail.Relations around the world are also a key focus, especially in Asia. Then there is the major issue of a potential national second division, currently the subject of a board-led working party.In recent weeks The Daily Telegraph has canvassed opinion widely across the game and though up to 10 candidates are believed to be in the running, half a dozen of these have been mentioned repeatedly — as either interested in the role or targeted by headhunters.

Some, such as Tony Pignata and Peter Filopoulos, have largely domestic-focused backgrounds. Three have spent time at the players’ association (PFA), while three have worked overseas for years.Who the right candidate is will be partly a result of how the FFA board defines the role. The international engagement is significant, and both Brendan Schwab and James Johnson have extensive experience in sports diplomacy.

Equally, questions have been asked as to whether either would be tempted back to Australia, with Johnson having left FIFA to join the City Group in a senior role only 10 months ago and Schwab holding a powerful position representing some 85,000 athletes.Didulica offers the perspective of having worked in clubland, as a players’ advocate and at FFA, while Filopoulos has targeted government relations to boost funding for facilities in Victoria.Pignata can point to club success, while Peter Abraam shapes as the external dark horse — a former player and fan, but who has worked outside the game.With the headwinds buffeting the sport showing no sign of abating, getting the right leader with a palpable sense of confidence in the game is a vital decision.

https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/football/contenders-come-to-fore-as-football-federation-australia-seeks-david-gallops-successor-as-ceo/news-story/6b5152446f323c5ff9c19613a9db4310

Thanks Redkat.
Tony P would do me I think.

James Hird will be Gallop's replacement

Thanks for the paste for those who dont have access. 

Pignata all the way!.

yep, Tony Pignata seems to be the obvious choice. 

Peter Filopoulos for mine, though I can live w/Pignata at the helm so long as he doesn't give in to personal agendas.

Is this real? 

Thats what I Hird

(I'll make my own way out)

hahahahaaa

@BA

“I’m not saying I’m a proponent of promotion and relegation all I’m saying is what the sport should look like in 10 or 20 years and if promotion and relegation is one of those things well that’s fine, but it’s not ready now in the medium or short term, it’s a long- term play.”

https://neoskosmos.com/en/43947/peter-filopoulos-my-vision-for-australian-football/

https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/it-s-an-absolute-soap-opera-hird-s-new-life-buying-and-selling-european-soccer-clubs-20190903-p52nii.html
 The guy has more prior experience in the game than JON, Buckley and Gallop before they took the job 

https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/it-s-an-absolute-soap-opera-hird-s-new-life-buying-and-selling-european-soccer-clubs-20190903-p52nii.html 

if he becomes the head of the ffa it will be the biggest story ever the media would go wild 

nominees for what forum posters should get a look in...  

all those links have firewalls......
Fuck Hird in our game, we've had enough trolls with no Football background.
Surely Pignata screams YES all day.

I'm quietly confident his views on the topic have warmed since that interview; even if they haven't, he'll have the AAFC's bloc to contend with...and we know they won't back down on opening up the pyramid.

Pity he's all but persona-non-grata @ Essendon now; he could've lobbied the club to field its own ⚽ side, if not in the HAL then in the NPL maybe...

Prefer Peter or tony.

but a bit left field... Andrew Orsatti?

oh thats great, are you serious, not a chance.

Orsatti is not a bad left field play.

I want to see far less money spent on CEOs and for FFA to start paying some of their staff better wages.

Some of their coaches are being ripped off. 

I've seen them have young, underpaid bar staff, managing drunks on licensed premises.

Perhaps FFA should stop hiring bar staff and spend that money on yoof development

Then I think you will be happy with the new CEO's pay.  Its a much smaller job so the pay should drop too. You would have to say roughly half DG's current.  That will knock out a fair few of the people named as their asking price will be too high.  

The reality is, the right CEO makes such a difference to the enterprise you are always happy with what you pay them.  Unfortunately, the talent pool is shallow and lots of people who should never get there become CEO's.  That's why you need a good Board to hire the right CEO.

He would certainly be Frank Farina's choice.  

Just on who it could be was at a business seminar last year and under discussion was senior management roles and whats needed.... one aspect I found interesting and I am sure I read this elsewhere as well is that CEO positions in areas that receive a lot of social media ... so sport was one such industry ...  many people or many capable people would not consider it, as the personal abuse online was beyond how they saw their life's journey...

My guess no matter who we pick within twelve months we will find fault in many areas... 

Its a tough gig ... BTW this in no way defends Gallop it simply says by nature we tend to tear down whoever is in charge... 

yes I hear you in bold, this is because mostly we keep having CEO's that are puppets/muppets in the past to Lowy agendas.
IF we finally got someone who made the noise and actions moving forward with decent plans some of the wrongs you can stomach as long as they weren't massive ones, they'll still cop some stick.
We can all take the wrongs as long as there's a higher % of good.

I never said anything about Hird joining the FFA, just that it's a shame he's not Essendon's club president/whatever the position's called) so he could weed out cultural anti-⚽ sentiment, to the point they would someday consider picking up from where Collingwood and Carlton left off in the NSL(but done properly this time)...

As far as AFL industry figures involved w/FFA admin, I say never again. I *could* live with that Rohan Connolly guy involved as a PR/media liaison, but nothing to do w/the actual governance of the game itself.

I hope you are right ... but I can only repeat what I heard and its not only about Football...

I can't think of a sports admin person in Australia who is not constantly criticised on social media... and I said don't read this as in any way defending Gallop or Buckley or JON ... 

Its not only CEO's... many officials are equally not to keen... I know of one example of a young man who played at reasonable level and many considered he had a Football  career ... he got hurt and could no longer play and went into referring and was raising thu the ranks... he  looked at the abuse especially online and kinda retired to referring over 35 to keep fit...

Social media I find is far more negative than positive and all I am saying is this does keep some capable people away...