SYDNEY, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Former English Premier League (EPL) CEO Richard Scudamore has been appointed as a special advisor to Australia's A-League on Wednesday, with the hopes he can raise the profile of the domestic football competition.
Overseeing the EPL from 1999 to 2018, Scudamore is credited for increasing the competition's overall revenue from a value of around 190 million U.S. dollars to over 4.0 billion U.S. dollars during the two-decades he was in charge.
Speaking with local football news outlet the World Game, Australian Professional Football Clubs Association Chairman and Western Sydney Wanderers club owner Paul Lederer said they "are delighted that Richard has agreed to work with us."
"His leadership of the EPL saw the organization become renowned for its commercial success as well as its contribution to other leagues and communities," he added.
But with A-League crowd sizes and television ratings shrinking in recent years, Scudamore's new job will not be easy.
Round one of the domestic competition kicked off last weekend to a 7.2 percent decline in ticket sales compared to last year's opening fixtures and to make matters worse, television audiences fell by almost half.
But hoping to provide "ongoing strategic counsel and tactical input," Scudamore believes he may be able to turn things around.
"I am obviously delighted to be involved at such an important and exciting time for the professional game in Australia," he said.
"The strategic planning that has taken place is impressive and I believe I can very much help build on that work."
