It has been some time since the conclusion of the A-League Men’s and Women’s seasons and plenty of work has been and will continue to be undertaken this off-season as we strive for a successful 2023/24 campaign across the Club. With that in mind, we wanted to take the opportunity to advise you, our members and fans, on some of the important updates heading into the upcoming season.
In preparation for next season, we are looking to improve in every facet. One area is the way our members and fans can access and enjoy our matches. Whilst not everything is confirmed just yet, the Club is focusing on a range of key areas that are important to you.
SANCTION RELATED UPDATES:
Membership Cards
We are pleased to confirm that every member will be able to access our matches using their physical or digital membership card in 2023/24. We know that our General Admission, South and North End members were required to redeem a ticket via Ticketek for the majority of last season and we also understand that this presented a barrier to attendance and put an extra burden on those in the affected areas to be part of match days. After working hard with a number of stakeholders (including the League and AAMI Park), we are pleased to advise that this process will not be imposed on any members for season 2023/24 and members can again scan in using their membership card.
South End Tarping
Ongoing conversations between APL and AAMI Park have ensured that our South End members and fans will not be impacted by tarping next season.
North End
A wide range of conversations have been, and will continue to, take place with all stakeholders to make sure we can provide the best access and match day experience to our North End members and fans.
Under the sanctions provided last season, we are subject to a further automatic sanction of 10 competition points and $100,000 fine if any sanction breach occurs over the next 3 seasons and for each instance in which they do. We are planning with this in mind, but also with a view to ensuring we can provide enhanced match day experiences for you and working closely with stadium management to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience in the North End. As these discussions occur and plans are finalised, we will communicate a full update ahead of next season.
Ticket Purchase
The group ticket limit of four (that was outlined by FA’s sanctions) will be lifted from our home games next season.The standard group ticket limit of ten will be applied again as per previous seasons.
Away Matches
We are not expecting any away bay restrictions to apply for our travelling members and fans next season, but we are working through this on a case by case basis with all venues and opposition Clubs. We will keep you updated.
Security
Planning is well underway to ensure our members and fans feel safe and respected attending Victory matches.The Club and its supporter marshals are working closely with stadium management and its security providers to ensure the unique nuances of football supporters are understood and to allow a loud, colourful and safe match day experience for all Victory fans.
NON-SANCTION RELATED UPDATES:
AAMI Park Upgrades
By the time you arrive back to AAMI Park for the 2023/24 season, you will notice a range of significant upgrades to the stadium as a legacy from the FIFA Women’s World Cup. AAMI Park have replaced the current screens in the north-east and south-west corners with two, state of the art screens, improving your experience in the stadium. You will also notice new LED sports lights that will enhance the theatre and visibility of match day as well as digital signage outside of the stadium that will improve your entry experience. There will also be a range of pitch surface and corporate area upgrades to the stadium. To find out more details about the upgrades, click here.
Member Survey and Social Club
Thank you to all our members who took the time to complete the 2022/23 annual member survey. The feedback you have provided is critical to the Club and is central to our decision making.
One of the key themes from the survey was a clear desire from our members to see a social club return after our A-League Men’s home games. While we are continuing to work through the structure, format and rollout of our new era social club, we are pleased to confirm we will be re-launching the program for season 2023/24.
777 Football Update
As part of the global 777 partners football network, Melbourne Victory’s Men’s and Women’s football department have been busy connecting with fellow 777 clubs for a range of development and scouting opportunities.
Our staff visited Vasco da Gamma in Brazil and Standard Liege in Belgium. This is another example of the exciting opportunities that our strategic partnership with 777 will continue to present to our Club.
Member Working Group
The Member Working group will return once again this season and we would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the MWG over the past couple of seasons. You may have seen that applications for next seasons working group are open until Friday 30 June 2023. If you would like to learn more about the MWG or if you are interested in applying, please click here.
Member Forum
We are looking forward to hosting our annual Member Forum prior to season 2023/24.
The participants will be: Chairman, John Dovaston, Managing Director, Caroline Carnegie, A-League Men’s Head Coach Tony Popovic, A-League Women’s Head Coach, Jeff Hopkins and Director of Football, John Didulica.
Further information about the time, location and how to register your attendance at the forum will be communicated in due course.
Ask us anything:
There is an opportunity for you to submit a question or provide feedback at the bottom of this email. Simply click the button below and your questions will be addressed in a series of Club communications ahead of the Season.
We understand that last season was a difficult one for everyone involved at Melbourne Victory… our Members, fans, staff, coaches and players, all included. However, we have been committed and continue to be committed to making this Club the best Club in the country. Our incredible fans are the lifeblood of the Club and hopefully the changes in this update will go a long way to improving your experience watching and following Melbourne Victory.
There has been plenty of work done behind the scenes by football and administration staff to make the 2023/24 season the best season it can be, but the work is only getting started. We will make your experience at Melbourne Victory the best possible and we hope this update is the start of a successful season for all involved.
We can’t wait to get started on an exciting year with a renewed commitment to transparency and open communication (which was often difficult at times last season with our off-field distractions). We know this is critical to all of us and making our Club as strong as it can be.
This update is primarily based on member and fan arrangements for season 2023/24. Soon, we will be providing a football related update that will cover news and developments for all our football programs encompassing Academy, Men’s and Women’s squads.
2023/24 season membership renewals will be sent from this week and new memberships will be on sale from Monday 3 July.
Now is the time for the Victory family to stand together! We look forward to seeing you in the stands to support our boys and girls in blue for Season 2023/24!
We look forward to seeing you in the stands to support our boys and girls in blue for Season 2023/24!
