Brisbane Roar FC

Brisbane Roar
Full name Brisbane Roar Football Club
Nickname(s) The Roar
Short name BRFC
Founded 2005 (2005)
Ground Suncorp Stadium
Capacity 52,500
Owner Bakrie Group
Chairman Rahim Soekasah
Manager John Aloisi
League A-League
2017–18 A-League, 6th
Website Club website
Active teams of Brisbane Roar FC
A-League team (Men's) W-League team (Women's) Youth & NPL team (Men's)

Brisbane Roar Football Club is a professional Australian soccer club based in Brisbane, Queensland.[1] and has won the domestic title on three separate occasions, as well as holding the longest unbeaten record of 36 league matches without defeat.[2]

Brisbane competes in the country's premier competition, the A-League, under licence from Football Federation Australia.[3]

The club was formed in 1957 as Hollandia-Inala, and became Brisbane Lions, before it transitioned into Queensland Roar, playing under that name from the inaugural 2005–06 season of the A-League until the 2008–09 season.[4] Since joining the A-League, the club has won two league Premierships, three Championships and has competed in five AFC Champions League competitions[5]

Brisbane Roar holds the record for the longest unbeaten run at the top level of any Australian football code, which stands at 36 league matches without defeat.[6] Brisbane Roar are also the first and only club to win back to back Hyundai A-League Championships.

The club plays home matches at Suncorp Stadium, a 52,500 seat multi-use venue in Milton, with First team training taking place at Logan Heritage Park which also hosts the clubs administration staff. In March 2018, the club relocated its Playing and Administration Headquarters to a purpose built, $9 million Center-of-Excellence in Logan hosting training, sports science and medical facilities for the A League team, W-League team and over 16 youth development teams; the new CoE also host the club's administration staff as well .[7].

Brisbane Roar is the only club in the A-League not to have lost a Grand Final.

The youth team competes in the National Youth League and the women's team competes in the W-League. Commencing in 2014, the youth and women's teams also compete in the NPL Queensland in order to maintain fitness and further develop their abilities. The youth team competes in the senior men's division while the women's team compete in the U15 boy's division. The youth and women matches are played at various locations across Brisbane, including Heritage Park, Goodwin Park, QSAC, A.J. Kelly Park, Perry Park and occasionally Suncorp Stadium.

History

Origins and formation (1957–2004)

The origins of Brisbane Roar are traced back to the founding of Hollandia-Inala in 1957, by Dutch immigrants. The club was based in the Brisbane suburb of Richlands. After adopting the name Brisbane Lions in the 1970s, the club joined the National Soccer League (NSL) as one of the founding clubs in the 1977 season and competed until the end of the 1988 season before reverting down to the Brisbane Premier League thereafter. In the 1990s, the club again changed its name to Queensland Lions after coming to an agreement with the Australian rules football club, Brisbane Lions.[8][9]

At the time of conception of the A-League, teams from several capital cities were preferred to form the foundation clubs. By June 2004, two of the twenty submissions for joining the league were sought by partnerships formed in Brisbane, the capital of Queensland.[10] On 1 November 2004, the group headed by Queensland Lions were chosen as operators of the Brisbane team. On 2 March the following year, Queensland Roar FC were officially announced. The clubs's first-ever board consisted of chairman John Ribot, a former CEO of both National Rugby League clubs Brisbane Broncos and Melbourne Storm, deputy chairman Gary Wilkins, former Queensland and Australian international player, and CEO Lawrence Oudendyk, who was also Queensland Lions CEO.

Early years (2004–2009)

Roar playing at home in 2006.

Miron Bleiberg was appointed as the then Queensland Roar's inaugural manager on 2 March 2005. Under pressure from the fans to deliver on his promises of attractive, attacking and successful football he resigned on 12 November 2006 following a poor start to the 2006–07 season. After much speculation, Bleiberg was replaced by former Australian national team coach, Frank Farina just three days after Bleiberg's resignation.

Frank Farina's arrival led to a mini-revival which saw the club narrowly miss out on what would have been the Roar's first finals appearance, on goal difference. The 2007–08 season, however, saw Farina make up for the shortfall of the previous season, qualifying for the finals for the first time in the club's history. A memorable performance in the second leg of the semi-final saw the Roar defeat arch rivals 2–0 (2–0 agg.) Sydney FC in front of a (then) club record 36,221 fans to qualify for the preliminary final against the Newcastle Jets. The Roar would controversially lose 3–2 to the Newcastle side, who would ultimately go on to win the Grand Final. Farina again qualified for the finals in 2008–09, where the Roar dispatched of Central Coast Mariners 4–2 on aggregate, however they ultimately lost, again in the preliminary final, to Adelaide United after failing to capitalise on their dominance.

In 2009, the club was officially renamed to Brisbane Roar Football Club due to two other Queensland-based clubs entering the competition; that being Gold Coast United and North Queensland Fury.[11]

On 10 October 2009, Farina was arrested by Queensland Police for Driving under the influence. He was initially suspended by the Roar and asked to show cause as to why he should not be sacked for tarnishing the name of the club. It was announced that assistant manager, Rado Vidošić would step into a caretakers role until a decision had been made which would include the M1 Derby, which the Roar lost 1–0 at home. Farina was ultimately sacked on 14 October 2009, with the club tasked with finding a replacement for the remainder of the 2009–10 season.

Postecoglou era (2009–2012)

Besart Berisha, became the clubs top-scorer.

Ange Postecoglou arrived mid-season armed with the task of picking up the pieces of a season in tatters. Postecoglou's first season ended as the worst in the club's short history, finishing second from the bottom. Postecoglou completed a turn-around in the 2010–11 season. He made wholesale changes to the squad, commencing with the replacement of the "old-guard" of Charlie Miller, Craig Moore and Danny Tiatto and brought in his own squad which was a mixture of youth and talented experience. Under his brand of possession/attacking football, he would lead the team to win the club's inaugural premiership and go on to complete the club's first Double by also wrapping up the championship in a memorable 2011 A-League Grand Final in front of a then club record 50,168 supporters. The club went on an Australian sporting record 36-match unbeaten run which commenced in the 2010–11 season and ran through to the 2011–12 season. After much speculation on his future at the club, it was reported that Postecoglou had signed a three-year contract extension.[12]

With such a successful season behind him, there was much talk as to whether the Roar could equal or better that in the 2011–12 season. Their title credentials were in doubt when the club went on a club-record worst losing streak of five matches immediately following the ending of their record 36-match unbeaten streak. Postecoglou remained steadfast in the club's footballing philosophy and the club went on to record just one loss in the last 14 games of the regular season to finish league runners-up. Unable to retain the Premiers Plate, Postecoglou led the club to back-to-back championships in the 2012 A-League Grand Final in front of a club-record 50,344 supporters. Postecoglou also led the Roar's initial foray into the 2012 Asian Champions League as reward for their success in the previous season. Success was mixed, picking up two draws from four matches.

On 24 April 2012, Postecoglou left the club by way of mutual consent, citing a desire to seek "a new challenge".[13] Ange leaves the club as the most successful manager in the club's history.

On 26 April 2012, it was reported that Postecoglou did not, in fact, sign a new contract at the conclusion of the 2010–11 season due to the uncertainty around the club's ownership at the time. That allowed his original two-year contract with the club to expire at the conclusion of the 2011–12 season and leave to join Melbourne Victory without the Victory needing to pay out his "contract" with the Roar.[14]

Mulvey era (2012–2014)

On 25 April 2012, Rado Vidošić was promoted to the manager's position after serving seven years as Assistant Manager under the three previous managers before him.[15] On 18 December 2012, Vidošić was removed as coach, taking up the role of technical director for the club, with Mike Mulvey, then coach of the Melbourne Victory women's named as his replacement. Vidošić was only manager for 13 matches before transferring to the new role, similar to the one offered to Postecoglou before his exit earlier in 2012.[16] At the end of the 2012–13 season, the Roar finished in 5th place, carried by striker Besart Berisha's 14 goals during the season. The club made it to the semi-finals in the finals series, bowing out to premiers Western Sydney Wanderers 2–0.

The 2013/14 season began in terrific style, with the Roar winning 8 of their first 10 games. This form continued for the rest of the season as the club became dominant premiers. Players like Ivan Franjic, Luke Brattan and Dimitri Petratos shone while the return of former captain Matt McKay bolstered the midfield. Brisbane won the grand final 2–1 after extra time against Western Sydney Wanderers. Club talisman Besart Berisha and star utility Ivan Franjic would leave the club over the off-season for Melbourne Victory and Torpedo Moscow respectively.

Aloisi era (2015–present)

After a run of poor results at the beginning of the 2014–15 season, Mulvey stepped down from the head coach role. Frans Thijssen was appointed caretaker coach for the remainder of the season. Captain Matt Smith left the club in December to join Bangkok Glass, and was replaced by former captain and club favourite Matt McKay. The season ended with the club recovering to finish in 6th position and qualify for the finals series. Brisbane were knocked out by Adelaide United in the elimination final 2–1.

On 26 May 2015, John Aloisi was appointed head coach. Amidst off-field drama regarding the club's ownership during his first season as head coach, Aloisi led the Roar to an encouraging 3rd place on the ladder, narrowly missing out on the championship in the last game of the season and finishing only one point behind eventual champions Adelaide.

The 2015/16 performance was sufficient for the Roar to enter qualification for the 2017 Asian Champions League. After defeating Global F.C. and Shanghai Greenland Shenhua F.C. in 2017, Brisbane qualified for the ACL for the fourth time in their history. Brisbane were knocked out in the group stage, winning just 1 match, and losing four, including a 6–0 to Ulsan Hyundai FC. This 6–0 loss, coupled with the Western Sydney Wanderers' 5–1 loss to Shanghai SIPG F.C. on the same day led to Fox Sports commentators Mark Rudan and Mark Bosnich labelling the matchday as "the darkest day in Australian club football".[17][18][19]

Brisbane Roar's 2017/18 season started promisingly, with the signing of former Serie A marksman, Massimo Maccarone, and former Ligue 1 duo, Fahid Ben Khalfallah, and, Eric Bautheac. Roar's first competitive match of the season was a round of 32 FFA Cup tie with Melbourne Victory FC at local ground, Perry Park. The home side started with an experimental side with some players playing in positions they were not usually deployed in. The game ended in a shambolic fashion for Aloisi's side, who lost 1-5 to their Melbourne opponents with the only positive coming from Petros Skapetis, who scored his first goal for the club with a shot coming from outside of the box and nestling in the top left corner of the Victory net. the season did not improve much with Brisbane without a win after 6 matches. The Roar finally got their first win of the season at home to Melbourne City FC , the score was 3-1 with central defender, Avraam Papadopoulos scoring an unlikely brace. Brisbane Roar slowly climbed the A-league ladder with wins against Western Sydney Wanderers FC, Adelaide United FC, and, Perth Glory FC in the new year. After finishing third on the A-league table in the 2016-17 season, Brisbane Roar gained entry into the second qualifying round of the Asian Champions League where they were drawn against Filipino minnows, Ceres-Negros F.C.. The match was to be played at the Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre. This match proved to be arguably the worst moment in the club's history. Roar started the match resting several key players for their next A-league match against, Central Coast Mariners FC on the weekend. Massimo Maccarone put the men in orange ahead in the first half but Ceres soon drew level before the break, this was were it started to go wrong for Brisbane. Early in the second half, Eric Bautheac was substituted on to bring some quality to the Roar's side, a few minutes later, the Fox Sports camera picked up the that the numbers on the back of Ivan Franjic's jersey were starting to peel off. soon after the referee stopped the game and told Eric Bautheac that he was to be removed from the game as the numbers on the back of his shirt had come off to the extent that they were no longer legible for the referee to see, the Frenchman complained to the referee but went to the sideline to wait for a replacement jersey. As he stood on the side of the pitch it soon became obvious that the Brisbane Roar sideline staff did not have a replacment jersey for Eric Bautheac with his number, 22, on the back of it. The French Marquee soon became angered as the Roar were required to carry on the match with ten men while their teammate was finding a solution. The Brisbane Roar kit man finally decided that the best solution was to use fellow player, Franjic's spare jersey with the number 77 on the back and tape over the back number to make it appear to read as 22. Bautheac soon entered the field of play again with an embarrassing makeshift number on his back and continued to have to come on an off the pitch to constantly have his number redone to the referee's liking. Eric Bautheac scored a late goal in the match but it wasn't enough to stop the Roar crashing out of the competition at the hands of the highly inferior Filipino side who had been lucky to make it that far into the competition in the first place. Pictures of the back of Bautheac's makeshift number went viral across the world and Fox Sports pundit Mark Bosnich called the indecent "embarrassing" and that it "Was absolutely ridiculous"[20]. After this horror show, Brisbane Roar's results slightly improved with more wins against Central Coast Mariners FC, Adelaide United FC, and surprise victories over then current champions and future premiers, Sydney FC and future grand final winners, Melbourne Victory FC. Brisbane ended the regular season with wins over Central Coast Mariners, and, Perth Glory. Brisbane Roar scraped a sixth place finish on the table earning just two more points than seventh placed Western Sydney Wanderers. This sixth place finish gave the Roar qualification for the A-League Finals Series, where they played Melbourne City in a preliminary final away. The Brisbane based side put on a poor display and were outplayed with the performance being reflected on the scoreline, 2-0.

Crest and colours

Previous club crest (2005–14)
Roar's first kit

During the first two seasons the Roar played in a predominantly orange home strip with blue shorts and maroon socks. Queensland sporting teams traditionally play in maroon but the original home strip kept with the colours used by the team in its earlier incarnations. The colours of orange and blue honour the club's Dutch origins. On 31 July 2007 the club announced that it had ordered a strip that was half orange and half maroon, but that the colours were manufactured for prominence on television. For season three the home kit had been redesigned, the home strip is still orange but features maroon sleeves, the shorts are maroon instead of blue and orange socks are worn. Danny Tiatto and Craig Moore modelled in the strip launch on 1 August 2007[21]

Before the 2009–10 A-League season, in accordance with the name changing of the club from Queensland Roar to Brisbane Roar, the club's logo was also changed with "Queensland" being dropped to make way for "Brisbane". On 20 May 2009, Reinaldo and Sergio van Dijk unveiled a new kit for the club, which would be worn for the next two seasons. The club stuck with the maroon and orange they had used for the last kit, but instead opted to drop the white slashes on the home kit. The orange used for the previous kit was brightened to the one used in season 1 of the A-League, with the design of both the new home and away kits changing. The slashes were dropped for a shoulder-pad style. The maroon shoulder pads would be displayed on an orange body, with maroon shorts. This was reversed on the away kit, with the shoulder-pads being orange on a white body with orange shorts.[22]

Prior to the 2011–12 A-League season, the club announced that maroon, which had featured in some way on the clubs' kits since the A-League inception, would be removed and replaced with black.[23] On 5 September 2011, the club released their kits for the upcoming season. The club showed off their home kit, which was orange with black diagonal shoulders with a thin, white line under the black. This was supported by orange with black banded socks. The away kit would turn out to be predominately black, with only the orange shoulders on the top with the white line underneath and the black with orange banded socks. The same pants would be used for both the home and away kits, which would sport two orange bands and a white band on black pants.[24] The kits released were almost identical to the same design used by Tottenham Hotspur during their 2010–11 season with the only difference being full diagonal sashes and a collared neck instead of a "V" neck.

After two seasons in the diagonally sashed kit, both yielding Final Series football, the first season, winning the Grand Final, Puma released a new set of kits, including, for the first time, an alternative strip, deemed by the club as an "Event" kit. The home kit consisted of the usual orange, with black sides, black arm cuffs and a black V-neck collar, which also had a white piece of round-collared fabric attached, which had 3 centrally based lines, white in the centre, orange on the left and black on the right with white on the outside of the black and orange lines. The away kit reverted to the white with orange sides, black arm cuffs and a black V-neck collar. As with the home kit, the away kit had an orange piece of collared fabric attached to the collar, which had 3 centrally based lines, orange in the middle with a white stripe on the left and black on the right of the orange stripe with orange on the outside of the black and white lines. The alternative, or "event" strip, was silver with a top left to bottom right, orange diagonal sash. It also had black arm cuffs and a black V-neck collar with the inner silver fabric and the 3 centrally based stripes. Silver stripe in the middle with a black stripe on either side of the silver stripe and silver on the outside of the two black stripes.[25]

On 15 August 2014, before the 2014 FFA Cup game vs Stirling Lions of the 2014–15 season,the Roar would reveal that Umbro would be making their kits for the next 4 years, ending a 4-year tenure with Puma.[26] Two days later, Brisbane Roar changed their logo to a more "traditional" shield type crest, the biggest change since the club was renamed ahead of the 2009–10 season.[26] The revelation received mixed reviews, some saying it lost the plastic, American franchise logo feel and some saying it's too bland and that not enough time was put into it. Another 2 days later, the Roar would release their new Umbro home kit, ditching the black pants and going with an all orange kit. The top would be completely orange with white piping on the collar with the pants being orange as well and have a white vertical strip going 3/4 of the way up the sides of the pants from the bottom, topped off with orange socks.[27]

Sponsors

Period Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor (AL) Shirt sponsor (AFC)
2005–2006 Reebok — —
2006–2007 Jayco
2007–2011 The Coffee Club
2011–2013 Puma The Coffee Club
2013–2014 —
2014–2015 Umbro Griffith University
2015–2016 Steadfast —
2016–2017 16Visa.com
2017–2018 Central Home Loans —
2018– Actron Air

On 30 November 2007, the club signed a two and a half year deal with cafe chain The Coffee Club to be their main shirt sponsor.[28] The Coffee Club would re-sign with the Roar in August 2010 for another 3 years, making it one of the longest sponsorship deals in the A-League.[29] After the club's licence was taken back by Football Federation Australia in March 2011, the Coffee Club committed their future to the club, signing a $2 Million dollar, 3-year contract extension, sealing their future as sponsors until at least 2015.[12]

At the conclusion of the 2010-11 A-League season, the League's collective kit deal with Reebok came to an end meaning that all A-League clubs could enter into their own separate kit manufacturer agreements. On 2 August 2011, the Roar announced that Puma would be the clubs' first kit manufacturer decided by the club, and agreed to a three-year deal with the sports brand. The club announced that Puma will manufacture the official playing kits for all Brisbane Roar teams, including the Youth and Women’s teams as well as replica kits and other merchandise.[30]

Before the start of the 2014/15 A-League season Brisbane Roar announced that Umbro would be replacing Puma as the clubs playing kit and apparel partner for the next four seasons.[31]

On 24 February 2015, it was announced that Griffith University would be the principal kit Sponsor for the 2015 AFC Champions League campaign.[32]

On 3 July 2015, it was announced that former front shirt sponsor, The Coffee Club will not renew its sponsorship with the club for the 2015/16 season. It was then announced that Ladbrokes will be the front shirt sponsor for the Roar's friendly against Liverpool on 17 July 2015.[33]

Steadfast were announced as "Principal Partners" and "Front of Shirt Sponsors" by the club on 10 August 2015 for the duration of the 2015-16 A-League season. Steadfast had previously sponsored the rear of the men's teams' shirts and this new partnership will see the Steadfast logo feature on the shirts of all three Brisbane Roar teams.[34]

Season 2017/18 commenced without a formal sponsor in place so the Roar featured the Starlight Children's Foundation branding on the front of its kits for the initial rounds of the 2017–18 A-League season.[35][36][37]

In February 2018 Roar announced Central Home Loans (CHL) had been secured as principal partner and would feature on the front of the men’s shirt for the remainder of the season[38]

in July 2018 Roar announced Australian icon ActronAir as their new principal partner with the company logo due to feature on the front of both the men and women’s team shirts[39]. The value of the two-year deal was undisclosed.

Stadium and facilities

Brisbane Roar play home matches at Lang Park.

Since their inception, Brisbane Roar have played their home matches at the 52,500-capacity Lang Park (known as Suncorp Stadium for sponsorship reasons) in the inner-city suburb of Milton. The stadium was also the home ground for the Brisbane Strikers in the now-defunct NSL. The stadium was also one of five venues in the successful 1993 FIFA World Youth Championship where the ground hosted seven matches. Suncorp Stadium has hosted Australian international fixtures, games at the 2003 Rugby World Cup, 2008 Rugby League World Cup and concerts, including the U2 360° Tour.[40]

At the beginning of the 2010–11 Season, during negotiations with the operator of Suncorp Stadium, there were suggestions that the club may move its home games to Ballymore Stadium where the club had its administration and training facilities. However, the owners of the club opted to stay at Suncorp Stadium on a new restructured contract that would ensure the financial viability of hosting games at the more expensive Suncorp Stadium.[41]

Following the flooding of Suncorp Stadium in the 2010–2011 Queensland floods, the Roar were forced to move two home games against Wellington Phoenix and Melbourne Heart to the regular home of Gold Coast United at Skilled Park on the Gold Coast. These matches are the first 'home' league fixtures that the Roar have played at a venue other than Suncorp Stadium in the club's history.[42]

In a spectacular 2011 A-League Grand Final, the 50,168 strong fans would make history, being the largest crowd to watch both the Roar and a football match in Brisbane. This was bettered the following season when 50,334 people saw Brisbane defeat Perth in the 2012 A-League Grand Final.[43] The attendance of the 2012 Grand Final would be bettered two years later when the 2013–14 Premiers, the Roar, would do the double, beating Western Sydney Wanderers in the 2014 A-League Grand Final in front of 51,153 passionate fans.[44]

During their 2015–16 campaign, the Nathan campus of Griffith University became Brisbane Roar's new training base, with the Roar’s contract at long-time training venue Ballymore Stadium expiring, and the field at their previous Perry Park administration base not meeting the standards required by the Roar.[45]

In 2016, Brisbane Roar announced the club would move to a permanent administration and training facility in Logan City. The $9 million Logan Metro Sports Park will also be the headquarters to the club's academy, youth and women's sides, as well as Football Brisbane.[46]

In mid-2017, Roar announced a 5-year deal with QUT to locate their U12-U16 Academy teams at QUT's Kelvin Grove sportsground in Brisbane's North.[47] Prior to the commencement of the 2016–17 season, it was announced that Brisbane would return to Ballymore until their new Logan training centre is complete.[48]

In March 2018 the club formally opened their state-of-the-art Logan Center-of-Excellence with Administration moving in immediately and pre-season training for the men’s team commencing in June 2018[49]

Affiliations

Ownership and finances

Currently, the club is owned by:

Brisbane Roar was established by Queensland Lions SC in March 2005 as the team that would represent Brisbane in the newly formed A-League. Queensland Lions held a majority share in the club through to 2008. It is understood that in 2008 the 25% share owned by Queensland Lions was bought by the Roar board at a discount. This led to financial instability in the club and rumours of the club handing back its A-League licence to Football Federation Australia (FFA). On 16 April 2009 reports surfaced that the FFA were willing to purchase up to a 55% share in the Roar to ensure its financial stability. This 55% encompassed CEO Lawrence Oudendyk's 15% per cent interest, the 25% previously owned by Queensland Lions and the 15% share owned by Rob Jones and Rob Jansen. FFA advised that any takeover by the FFA would see Oudendyk replaced as CEO.[56] Ultimately a new Brisbane-based ownership structure was formed with investors Emmanuel Drivas, Emmanuel Kokoris, Claude Baradel and Serge Baradel taking over 100% ownership of the club.

On 30 April 2009 the FFA confirmed their offer to take a controlling share in the Roar.[57] The new ownership group declined the FFA's assistance on 22 May 2009.[58] The owners' commitment to the club was reinforced in a statement released by Emmanuel Drivas on behalf of the owners on 12 April 2010 after further speculation that the Roar would require financial assistance from the FFA after a poor 2009–10 season.[59]

In March 2011, just a week after the club won its first Grand Final, the FFA would take back the club's licence, agreeing to fund the club until new owners were found. Football Federation Australia CEO Ben Buckley thanked the previous owners for pouring money into the Roar, who could not keep up with the future costs for the club.[60]

On 4 October 2011, The World Game reported that Indonesian mining magnate, The Bakrie Group, would takeover ownership of the club from the FFA under a 10-year term. Under the terms of the deal, The Bakrie Group paid A$8 million for a 70% share of the club, with the FFA retaining the remaining 30% share. Under the terms of this deal, the Bakrie Group had the option to purchase a further 20% stake in the club with the FFA holding the remaining 10% share. Following this change of ownership, the new chairman of the Roar was announced as Dali Tahir.[61]

After becoming the first majority-share foreign owner of an A-League team, on 6 February 2012, the FFA announced that Bakrie had acquired 100 percent ownership of the Brisbane club.[62]

On 30 June, it was reported that the Roar's owners, The Bakrie Group, were 9 billion dollars in debt, after having promising to inject 3.5 million dollars into the club. It was later revealed that players and staff, who were due to paid on 15 June – had yet to be remunerated for the month amid growing concerns over the ongoing viability of the three-time champion under the control of the Bakries.[63]

It was announced on 10 July 2015, Brisbane Roar owner The Bakrie Group will sell the A-League club and a new owner would own the club later that month.[64] On 25 July the Football Federation Australia threatened to wind up the Brisbane Roar due to unpaid debts[65]

Support

Brisbane Roar supporters at an A-League match against Western Sydney in 2013

Brisbane Roar maintains one of the highest average attendances in the Hyundai A League, normally above the competitions' season average, and in the 2016/17 average crowds were 14,152.[66]

Brisbane has two main supporters groups. The first (and oldest) is 'The Den' which is the 'Active Support Group' located in Bay 332 of the Northern stand of Suncorp Stadium, where they have been since the inaugural season of the A-League.[67][68] The second and more recently formed, is the 'Roar Supporters Federation' or 'RSF' which is a broad based supporters group intended to give a voice to all fans with club owners and management.[69]

In October 2017, fans launched a dedicated supporters group for Brisbane's W-League side – 'The Roar Corps'[70] to be modelled on support groups in the American National Women's Soccer League.

Rivalries

  • Perth Glory - the rivalry with Glory stems from the 2012 A-League Grand Final which Brisbane won 2-1 thanks to a late, and controversial, penalty from Besart Berisha. Such was the feeling amongst Perth fans they bombarded Roars social media and the vitriolic sentiment filtering through to the club such that Roar elected to keep future team travel schedules over to Perth confidential[71]. Relations were further strained when Roar poached striker Jamie MacLaren[72] who was dissatisfied at Glory, and then in 2018 striker Adam Taggart followed the same path to Brisbane further straining relationships when Glory owner Tony Sage took to social media to attack the transfer[73]
  • Sydney FC  – As the Roar were originally the only A-League team from Queensland and in keeping with the long-standing rivalry between New South Wales and Queensland, specifically for Queensland and all things Sydney-centric, the Roar developed a natural rivalry with Sydney FC. This was initially evident by the increased interest reflected in attendances at home games against Sydney FC. The first evidence of this rivalry on a football pitch was the 2007–08 A-League Finals Series when Brisbane Roar (then known as Queensland Roar) secured victory over Sydney FC after two hard fought legs with the second leg being played in front of a then club record crowd of 36,211 at Suncorp Stadium. After being fairly tame on the pitch for the following seasons, the rivalry between the biggest clubs in their respective states re-ignited after Sydney FC ended the Brisbane Roar's record-breaking 36-game unbeaten streak in the A-League on 4 December 2011. The return clash in Brisbane saw an on field confrontation between Sydney's Pascal Bosschaart and Brisbane's Besart Berisha following Brisbane Roar's late 2–1 victory at Suncorp Stadium.[74]
  • Gold Coast United – Now defunct. Known as the M1 Derby, it shared the name of the main highway between the two cities, the M1. Due to Brisbane's close proximity to the Gold Coast, Brisbane Roar's geographical derby opponent was naturally going to be Gold Coast United. The glitzy Coast side only won 1 more game between the two (4 to 3), having won the first 3 games, all in Gold Coast's first season of 2009–10. They would, however, win only 1 of the 6 other games the two sides would play. The rivalry, however, concluded on 5 April 2012 when Football Federation Australia officially announced the axing of the Gold Coast side.[75] There was also a rivalry with (now defunct) North Queensland Fury due to both clubs being in the same state although it was widely considered a regular match due to the distance between the two teams. The Fury was axed just a year prior to Gold Coast United being culled.

Players

First team squad

As of 7 August 2018[76]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
2 New Zealand FW Dane Ingham
3 Australia DF Luke DeVere
4 Australia DF Daniel Bowles
6 Greece DF Avraam Papadopoulos
7 Denmark MF Thomas Kristensen
8 Australia MF Jacob Pepper
9 Australia FW Adam Taggart
10 Australia FW Brett Holman
11 France FW Éric Bauthéac
13 Australia MF Stefan Mauk
14 Spain MF Álex López
15 Australia DF Stefan Nigro
17 Australia MF Matt McKay (Captain)
18 Australia MF Joe Caletti
19 Australia DF Jack Hingert
No. Position Player
20 Australia FW Shannon Brady
21 England GK Jamie Young
22 Denmark MF Tobias Mikkelsen
23 Australia FW Dylan Wenzel-Halls
24 Australia DF Connor O'Toole
25 Australia MF Rahmat Akbari (Scholarship)
26 Australia FW Nicholas D'Agostino
27 Australia MF Adam Sawyer (Scholarship)
31 Australia GK Brendan White
33 Brazil FW Henrique
34 Australia DF Aaron Reardon (Scholarship)
35 Australia MF Jay Barnett (Scholarship)
36 Australia FW Daniel Leck (Scholarship)
37 Australia FW Bryce Bafford (Scholarship)
40 Australia FW Mirza Muratovic (Scholarship)

Women's squad

Youth team squad

Club officials

Management

Position Name[77]
Chairman Indonesia Rahim Soekasah
Director Indonesia Helmi Rahman
Managing Director Australia David Pourre
Chief Executive Officer Indonesia Faisal Arief Subandi
Football Director Australia Pedj Radinovic

Football Staff

Position Name
First Team[78]
Head Coach Australia John Aloisi
Assistant Coach Australia Ross Aloisi
Goalkeeping Coach Australia Jason Kearton
Football Manager Australia Danny Tiatto
Football Executive Assistant England Melissa Tunstall
Head of High Performance Australia Chris Mallac
Kit Manager Australia Brody Sams
Head Physiotherapist England Stuart Leake
Assistant Physiotherapist Australia Alex Downie
Performance Analyst England Jason Wickham
Youth Team[79]
Youth Team Head Coach England James Robinson
Youth Team Assistant Coach Australia Chris Grossman
W-League Team[80]
W-League Head Coach Australia Melissa Andreatta
W-League Assistant Coach Australia Garrath McPherson
W-League High Performance Australia Jessie Griffin
W-League Team Manager Australia Stephanie McPherson
Academy
Academy Director Wales Drew Sherman

Office Staff

Position Name[77]
Events & Operations Manager Australia Nicholas Shirlaw
Events & Operations Coordinator Australia Jessica Dillon
Membership & Ticketing Manager Australia Joshua Springfield
Partnerships Manager Taiwan Nancy Hsu
Media Manager Australia Shane Stefanutto
Digital Coordinator Australia Aaron Cooper
Community Football Manager England Andy Pinches
Community Football Team Leader Australia Dene Almond
Community Football Team Leader England Martin Wilkes
Sporting Schools Coordinator Australia Laura Bryant
International Relations – Admin Indonesia Rizka Laya
Accounts – Admin Indonesia Novita Dumais

Honours

Domestic

Premiers (2): 2010–11, 2013–14
Runners-Up (1): 2011–12
Championships (3): 2011, 2012, 2014
Finals appearances (10): 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18

Continental

Brisbane have competed in the ACL on five occasions, reaching the group stage on three of those occasions: 2012, 2015, 2017

Records

Season League/Division Tms. Pos. s. Pos. af. FFA Cup AFC CL
2005–06 A-League 8 6 – – –
2006–07 A-League 8 5 – – –
2007–08 A-League 8 4 3 – –
2008–09 A-League 8 3 3 – –
2009–10 A-League 10 9 – – –
2010–11 A-League 11 Premiers Winner – –
2011–12 A-League 10 2 Winner – Group stage
2012–13 A-League 10 5 4 – Play-off
2013–14 A-League 10 Premiers Winner – –
2014–15 A-League 10 6 5 Round of 16 Group stage
2015–16 A-League 10 3 3 Round of 32 –
2016–17 A-League 10 3 3 Round of 32 Group stage
2017–18 A-League 10 6 6 Round of 32 Preliminary Round 2
Key
  • Tms. = Number of teams
  • Pos. s. = Position in league during regular season
  • Pos. af. = Position in league after finals series

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Brisbane Roar". FootballTop.com. 2015.
  2. ↑ "Sydney FC ends Brisbane Roar's 36-game unbeaten run". Herald Sun. 2011.
  3. ↑ "A-League owners to be offered far longer licences by Football Federation Australia". www.adelaidenow.com.au. 28 October 2013. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  4. ↑ "Win or lose, Brisbane Roar are poised for the lion's share". smh.com.au. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  5. ↑ "Australian clubs in the AFC Champions League - Wikipedia". en.m.wikipedia.org. Retrieved 2018-06-30.
  6. ↑ "Brisbane blaze into history books". Football Federation Australia. 26 November 2011. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 28 November 2011.
  7. ↑ "Roar set for full-time move back to Ballymore". The Roar. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  8. ↑ "Lions to unveil new name". AAP Australian Sports News Wire. Australian Associated Press. 27 January 2005. They received a five-figured compensation package in exchange for allowing the Lions the use of its name following the merger of Brisbane and Fitzroy AFL clubs.
  9. ↑ "Queensland Roars into Hyundai A-League". suncorpstadium.com.au. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  10. ↑ "Official A-League History". Football Federation Australia.
  11. ↑ Barrett, Chris (5 May 2009). "Queensland Roar are no more". Brisbane Times. Archived from the original on 23 May 2009.
  12. 1 2 Monteverde, Marco (19 March 2011). "Coach Ange Postecoglou outlines plans for Brisbane Roar after signing new contract". The Courier-Mail.
  13. ↑ "Brisbane Roar's grand final winning coach Ange Postecoglou announces he will leave the club". Fox Sports. 24 April 2012.
  14. ↑ O'Brien, Bren (26 April 2012). "Ange Never Signed Roar Contract". FourFourTwo.
  15. ↑ "Rado Vidosic named Brisbane Roar coach". Football Federation Australia. 25 April 2012. Archived from the original on 28 April 2012.
  16. ↑ "Brisbane Roar announces major Football Department restructure". Football Federation Australia. 18 December 2012. Archived from the original on 21 December 2012. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
  17. ↑ "This is the darkest day". Fox Sports Australia. News Corporation. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  18. ↑ Somerford, Ben. "'DARKEST DAY IN AUSTRALIAN CLUB FOOTBALL'". FourFourTwo. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  19. ↑ Puterflam, Michael. "Mark Bosnich and Mark Rudan on 'the darkest day in Australian club football'". Fox Sports Australia. News Corporation. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  20. ↑ https://www.foxsports.com.au/football/asian-champions-league/brisbane-roar-v-ceresnegros-acl-playoff-live-coverage-score-report-highlights-video/news-story/acf816a9a217f5a5e41dc74c44c2b414
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  22. ↑ "Roar hoping they change their stripes". abc.net.au. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  23. ↑ "Brisbane Roar embrace orange but ditch maroon". The Courier-Mail. 2 August 2011.
  24. ↑ "Brisbane Roar unveil new playing strip". brisbaneroar.com.au. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  25. ↑ "Brisbane Roar unveal 2013/14 PUMA kits". brisbaneroar.com.au. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  26. 1 2 "Brisbane Roar unveil new club crest". brisbaneroar.com.au. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  27. ↑ "Roar reveal new Umbro home kit". brisbaneroar.com.au. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  28. ↑ "Roar's cup deal revealed". FourFourTwo. 29 November 2007. Retrieved 7 January 2008.
  29. ↑ "Brisbane Roar re-sign major sponsor The Coffee Club" (PDF). coffeeclub.com.au. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 March 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  30. ↑ Lato, Daniel (2 August 2011). "PUMA partners with Brisbane Roar". GOAL!. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013.
  31. ↑ "Brisbane Roar and Umbro announce long-term partnership". brisbaneroar.com.au. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  32. ↑ "Griffith "Roars" in Asia Champions League". Griffith University. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
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  34. ↑ "Roar and Steadfast are proud partners". Brisbane Roar. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  35. ↑ "NEWS: Roar proud to support Starlight Children's Foundation". Brisbane Roar FC. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  36. ↑ Monteverde, Marco. "Brisbane Roar still have name of company run by sacked managing director Mark Kingsman on their jerseys". The Courier Mail. News Corporation. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  37. ↑ Monteverde, Marco. "Brisbane Roar: Brett Holman excited by team's prospects in A-League this season". The Courier Mail. News Corporation. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  38. ↑ "Welcome CHL". Brisbane Roar. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  39. ↑ "Brisbane Roar Partnership - ActronAir". ActronAir. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  40. ↑ Nancarrow, Dan (9 December 2010). "U2 fans find what they are looking for". Brisbane Times.
  41. ↑ Monteverde, Marco (7 May 2010). "Brisbane Roar opt to stick with pricey Suncorp Stadium as home ground". The Courier-Mail.
  42. ↑ "FFA announces details of Brisbane Roar matches rescheduled after Queensland floods". Fox Sports. 19 January 2011.
  43. ↑ "Roar go back-to-back amid drama". Football Federation Australia. 22 April 2012. Archived from the original on 28 April 2012.
  44. ↑ "Roar win third A-League Grand Final". FIFA. Archived from the original on 2 May 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  45. ↑ Monteverde, Marco. "A-League: Brisbane Roar set to establish training base at Griffith University". Retrieved 29 June 2015.
  46. ↑ "Brisbane Roar to move to first permanent home at Logan". abc.net.au. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  47. ↑ "REPORT: Brisbane Roar FC Managing Director Update". Brisbane Roar. Retrieved 2017-09-16.
  48. ↑ "Brisbane Roar set for Ballymore return as battle with QRU simmers down". couriermail.com.au. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  49. ↑ "Brisbane Roar officially open state-of-the-art Logan training base". Hyundai A-League. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  50. ↑ "GREAT NEWS: Souths United become an Academy partner". Brisbane Roar. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  51. ↑ "Gold Coast City announced as new academy partner". Brisbane Roar. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  52. ↑ "Olympic FC become academy partner". Brisbane Roar. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  53. ↑ "Partners | BRFC Academy". BRFC Academy. Retrieved 2018-07-22.
  54. ↑ "Partners | BRFC Academy". BRFC Academy. Retrieved 2018-07-22.
  55. ↑ "Club Membership - Player Development Project". Player Development Project. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
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  57. ↑ Monteverde, Marco (30 April 2009). "FFA rescues the Roar by buying a controlling stake". The Courier Mail.
  58. ↑ Monteverde, Marco (23 May 2009). "Football Federation Australia remains committed to aiding A-League club Brisbane Roar". The Courier Mail.
  59. ↑ "Roar owners pledge support to club". TVNZ. 12 April 2010.
  60. ↑ Monteverde, Marco (8 March 2011). "FFA to cash out Brisbane Roar after A-League grand final". The Courier-Mail.
  61. ↑ "Brisbane Roar takeover complete". The World Game. 4 October 2011.
  62. ↑ Hitipeuw, Jimmy (6 February 2012). "Bakrie Group Buys Full Stake in Brisbane Roar". Kompas. Archived from the original on 8 February 2012. Retrieved 6 February 2012.
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