After three years of A-League expansion debate, D-day has finally arrived.

The FFA board will meet late this afternoon to decide on which new clubs will join the existing 10.

Next season (2019-20) was set down as the original date for the new teams to enter the competition but the previous board’s decision to delay the announcement – due in October – has cast serious doubt as to whether the new bids have sufficient time to hit the ground running.

While everyone has worked on the proviso of two new teams or nothing for the 2019-20 season, but why can’t FFA consider adding one new team for next season?

The 2010-11 campaign – Melbourne Heart’s first season and North Queensland’s last – was the only A-League season with 11 teams, with 30 games per team compacted into 30 rounds.

Gold Coast and Western Sydney Wanderers are the other two expansion clubs in the A-League’s short history, and the four case studies show that boutique, rectangular stadiums and/or marquee players (Robbie Fowler the best example) don’t guarantee success.

Population, demographics and a geographic anchor (identity) are critical components, underlined by the Wanderers’ stunning success.

If one team is added for 2019-20, then the winning NSW bid is the one. Macarthur South-west Sydney is understood to be the FFA’s preferred NSW candidate ahead of Southern Expansion, hence they should be the one.

With 20,000-capacity Campbelltown Stadium ready to go and the bid backed by property mogul Lang Walker and supported by passionate, local businessmen, they appear ready to hit the ground running and provide Sydney with a new batch of derbies which can provide the A-League a shot in the arm.

South-west Sydney are trying to lure former Socceroos captain Mile Jedinak home, and that would help provide the 2019 season with a massive shot in the arm alongside local rivals the Wanderers, who’ll be back at the improved and rocking 30,000-capacity Parramatta Stadium.

A Victorian team is likely to win the second license, with Team 11 believed to be favourites.

Add them in the following season (2020-21), and the A-League will be transformed, and clubs galvanised and financially stronger off the back of independence.

Today is a watershed moment for the A-League and Australian football, with in excess of $100 million of collective offers sitting on the table.

With each of the expansion bids offering license fees in excess of $10 million and committing mass resources – in most cases, six-figure sums – into the expansion process, FFA can’t just ditch the others.

Dialogue must continue with the four clubs/consortiums that miss out, with an eye on teams 13 and 14 plus a new, professional second division which should start within three years.

If the FFA adopts a strategic, long-term view, Australian football has the potential to be more exciting and dynamic than it’s ever been by 2021.