On his first day at the Club, new CEO Peter Filopoulos, penned an open letter to fans.
Dear Valued Perth Glory Members and Fans,
I am delighted to be on-board as the Chief Executive Officer of Perth Glory Football Club and thank Chairman, Tony Sage and the Board of Directors for giving me this exciting opportunity to lead the Club. As a family, we are excited to have moved to Perth to become part of the Perth Glory family and look forward to meeting as many of you as possible along the journey.
When this opportunity emerged, I was genuinely excited about the prospect of joining the most historic Club in the Hyundai A-League. I vividly remember the birth of Perth Glory Football Club in 1995 when in the role of CEO at leading NSL Club, South Melbourne FC. The entry of Perth Glory into the NSL was one that had an enormous impact on the competition. Perth Glory managed to raise the bar to new heights on and off the field and all of a sudden, all other Clubs were working harder to emulate the achievements of Perth Glory.
To me, Perth Glory represents the biggest opportunity for a sports administrator of any professional Club in the country. It is the only Hyundai A-League Club in the western seaboard of Australia in a market where grassroots participation is growing at an unprecedented level. We know very well the ability of Perth Glory to capture the hearts and minds of the WA community. I want to be a part of a Perth Glory that leaves its mark on history for the right reasons, to create an environment where everyone is scrambling for a ticket at the gate.
A lot of people were left hurt by what occurred last season, but I am very confident that some very valuable lessons have been learnt and that appropriate measures are now in place to ensure that our members, sponsors, fans players and staff alike never have to endure a situation like that again. While my focus is clearly on the road ahead my hope is that the events of the past will serve as a catalyst to unite us and only make us stronger!
I believe that the Perth Glory Football Club has enormous upside and my objective is to work with the Board, Management, Members, Fans, Government and the Community to ensure that as a Club we continue to grow and build success on and off the field. The Perth community needs to have a thriving professional football club and as a collective, we can work together to ensure we build a strong framework. When I was announced as CEO, I was quoted in saying that “Perth Glory is a gem waiting to be polished. It set the benchmark of what a football team should be during the NSL days and now it’s time to get the Glory days back on and off the field, for the benefit of the game, the members and the fans.” I meant every word, however, to achieve it, we need your continued dedicated support.
My first priority is to begin developing a five (5) year master plan for the Club with key milestones on and off the field with a clear strategy and direction. My eyes are firmly on the exciting road ahead and not on the one in the rear view mirror. Together we will move forward.
Since my appointment, the warmth of the Perth Glory community through messages I have received has overwhelmed me. I am very happy to see so much passion and energy that exists for the Perth Glory Brand.
As the new CEO, I would like to thank and congratulate you on your loyal and continued support as we enter the exciting 11th Hyundai A-League season. The last 12 months has no doubt been challenging for all involved at the Club and your continued support is vital to continue the quest for our on-going success. If you haven’t renewed or signed up for Membership for 2015/16, I urge you to do so. Our strength is in our numbers and I know that Perth Glory in the not too distant future can reach well over 10,000 Members. I challenge the Perth Glory community to get on-board and send a strong message to the rest of Australia that we are STRONG and we are BOLD and we are UNITED. All football fans in Australia will be looking towards our Club to see how we have responded to the last 12-months. Some say our task will be tough, I say bring it on!
My appointment as CEO and the re-appointment of Anthony Radich to the club as Chief Operations Officer is a clear indication of our intent to ensure Western Australia maintains a thriving, passionate and exciting football community.
I am also pleased about some of the positive developments at Perth Glory FC in the past 12 months.
- We are now the only Club in the Hyundai A-League with a true development pyramid with our NPL and NYL teams from Under 12s through to Youth Team. The NPL and NYL teams have performed magnificently on the local and national stage and the football department assures me there are some impressive and promising youngsters coming up through our ranks.
- We have also embarked on a new journey by taking the Women’s team in-house. To cap it off we’ve appointed Glory legend Bobby Despotovski as senior coach and former club captain Collette McCallum as his assistant. This clearly shows we are serious about fostering our own and with an intent to win silverware.
- Head coach Kenny Lowe and his team are working diligently to get the right mix of players to contest the league title. This is not a pipe dream. It’s a real plan of action that is being carefully and gradually crafted. Let’s not forget what Kenny and the team were able to achieve last year. In Kenny I find a passionate, dedicated and ambitious coach who wants to achieve and look forward to working closely with him.
We will soon be hosting a series of fan forums across Perth to hear from you and work with you over the coming season. I am looking forward to hearing constructive ideas how we can together make Perth Glory FC bigger and better. In particular, I am interested to hear from the members and fans how we can together create the best fan engagement experience of any Club at nib stadium, to turn it into our fortress and make the fans and the team as one.
As your CEO, I am determined to work with everyone at the Club to put the Glory back into Perth. I look forward to the exciting journey ahead.
Go Glory!
Peter Filopoulos
Proud and Paid Up Member No. 19239
Chief Executive Officer
Perth Glory FC
You can join Peter Filopoulos as a Perth Glory FC member and guarantee yourself a seat at every home game this Hyundai A-League season for as little as $295. Click here to find out more.
