KEY POINTS:
The heat is on soccer bosses Graham Seatter and John Morris to resign following revelations that the game in this country is again teetering on financial collapse.
New Zealand Football's seven federations, with United Soccer 1 expected to lead the charge, are set to call for chief executive Seatter and board chairman Morris to walk.
The move seems certain after it was revealed that on the same day Seatter last week assured the Herald his association's finances were in healthy shape a staff meeting was called at which the real situation was exposed and pleas were made for drastic cost-cutting in such basics as the use of cellphones and vehicle expenses.
On the field every player from the very youngest is now likely to be hit by a levy, understood to be $10, with the prospect of affiliation fees also increasing as the association wrestles with another embarrassing financial blow-out.
The dire situation, pre-empted at a meeting with the association's seven federation chief executives and chairmen late last year, was fully outlined in a confidential report which reveals a fourth successive year in which the balance sheet is in the red.
This report, much to the chagrin of Morris, has since been leaked and shows an expected deficit for the 2007 financial year of more than $800,000.
Morris, on holiday in Australia, confirmed staff had met and the call to cut spending was made.
"Over the last three years our costs have increased by $3 million," said Morris. "We have made it clear that across the board expenditure has to be trimmed."
NZF now has 19 fulltime office staff, seven federation-based development officers and two staff on the local organising committee for the 2008 Fifa Under-17 Women's World Cup.
"We have to review everything including staffing," said Morris. "If no further money comes in, we will have a loss of $834,000 for the year. We have money in the bank but it would have been more but for two terrible incidents - the poor turnout for the match against Vanuatu and the cancellation of the Fiji game."
The New Zealand Football Championships clubs will be seeking immediate assurances that their stake - they pay $65,000 each to enter that competition - is protected.
"Having to levy players is nothing new. When I was playing I was levied twice," said Morris.
It is six years since the body had to go to the membership. On that occasion only senior players were hit, with each being billed $25.
"In reality, the whole model is not working," Morris. "All national sporting bodies are struggling. We don't have any spare money.
"Our affiliation fees have not increased for four years. Allowing they could have been raised 4 per cent a year, we are down 16 per cent on what we should have had. We want to talk to the federations about that. There have to be changes."
Like most sports, NZF is kept afloat with handouts. The bulk of their income coming from gaming trusts, Sparc, the TAB and grants and loans from Fifa and the Oceania Football Confederation.
In their five-year strategic plan, NZ Soccer (as it was in 2005) projected surpluses of $86,000 and $174,000 in 2006 and 2007. These projections followed a 2005 loss of $400,000. Worse, all money in accumulated reserves has also been used in trying to keep the association afloat. Even with a healthy TAB World Cup payout, there was still a big loss in 2006.
Seatter and Morris remain hopeful of government compensation over the canned World Cup qualifier in October after a Fijian player was refused an entry visa.
Seatter has asked for compensation of between $500,000-$600,000 for the loss from that game and costs associated in having to go to Apia in June for the re-scheduled fixture. Morris, working with Sparc chairman John Wells, says NZF will get something "but not that much."
Morris also points to the disastrous returns from the cup qualifier against Vanuatu in Wellington.
"It was certainly not a board decision to take that game to Wellington especially as it came around the time the Phoenix were involved with the LA Galaxy fixture. You have to ask Graham Seatter why the game was played there. It cost us about $250,000."
Asked whether any questions about Seatter's performance had been raised, Morris said: "Graham is still in the job. He has been given certain directives. I know he is keen to continue in the role."
Of the board's position, Morris said: "The federations have been told there are certain options. We told them they can sack/replace us or we can resign. Nothing like that has been suggested."
