Professional Footballers Australia have called for an independent commission to run the A-Leagues in place of the battling APL, and for the A-League Women’s competition to turn fully professional following the upcoming Women’s Asian Cup.

They’re but two of 21 recommendations made in ‘Ready For Takeoff – the Player’s Vision for the A-League Women,’ released on Wednesday in response to the domestic league’s prolonged stasis which, in combination with the boom of other leagues globally, has seen it slide from relevance

Tameka Yallop played in the league’s first season in 2008 as a 17-year old. Now 34 and Co-President of the PFA, she’s as well placed as any to feel that while there has been considerable foundation and history built in that time, we are now at a critical juncture to ensure its future follows in a similar manner.

‘It’s something I’m certainly passionate about, the future of women’s football. When I was younger I wanted it to be the best it could be, and I don’t think it’s done yet even though I may be coming to the end of my career,’ she told Box2Box.

‘There’s still so much we can improve for the future generations so I’m hoping that, having seen the bulk of this work and how much has gone into the report, that it is listened to and is actioned upon.’

As full-time professionalism has become the norm across Europe and the United States over the past decade, Australia’s part-time model, once industry standard, has rapidly fallen behind the times. Top Aussie players used to split their time between the USA and home, playing alternating six-month leagues in each, and be comfortably of Matildas standard.

But while the full-time professionalism that has bloomed across the UK (since 2017-18) and Europe has raised the stakes, while the A-League Women’s has largely stood still. The league has grown in number of teams and games, but not greatly enough in terms of finance, security and playing standards, to keep pace.

‘In our change room at Brisbane there are so many young players that are aspiring Matildas and they want to be playing the best football they can, they want to be in the best environments. At the moment, you do see players breaking into the national team having to leave the league and go overseas – to improve themselves and be in the best full-time environments they can be’, said Yallop.

‘There is so much desire from young players to make this league something that’s stable enough, right here at home, that will keep producing Matildas players into the future.

‘There are so many players overseas that would absolutely love to come back and play in Australia, play in front of all the fans we have here, family and friends, of course. This is something that’s very widely engaged with, passionate about, coming from younger players as well.’

Image: Aleksandar Jason

Yallop’s career path reads exactly as any aspiring women’s footballer of her generation would have written it: graduating through the W-League at a young age and moving through stints in the US, UK, Norway among others, she’s now back at her hometown club playing out her final years as an esteemed veteran.

Crucially, the domestic league was always strong enough for her to return to when required, and kept her in the window for further opportunities abroad. All of this meant constant availability for the Matildas; 135 caps (and counting) across four World Cups, three Olympic Games & the 2010 Asian Cup win.

But with fewer and fewer domestic-based players being called up to the national team, what does the next generation’s ideal career path look like? Ready For Takeoff addresses the need for action, for there is a chance the best of the aspiring generation will spend little to no time playing in Australia, at all.

Conversely, having a league attractive enough to field active Matildas fuels the ambitions of those around them, the pathway to the top visible, and the experiences of our elite shared among the next tier.

‘The presence of actually having players that you know have represented the Matildas at World Cups, Olympics, played in top leagues [is crucial]. If you can see it and touch it then it must be real and that means you can achieve it, too.

‘But that kind of experience is hard to come by, especially in this league. It does really create sort of a passion and a drive for the younger players if they can see it there.

‘A full-time program makes all the difference. Providing that top quality product and fan engagement means players can actually focus on it, and then you do really see a shift in the quality of football.

‘I think across the board, you would see the benefits, not just in the playing and developing of the football on the field as well, but the fan engagement and, I think, establishing the league as a major sporting code for women here in Australia again.’