"I've said from day one I regard it as a privilege to be in the role; I love the job, but I'm sensible enough to know one day it will come to an end.". He is from Australian. "Expansion is going to make things much tougher for clubs in the short term," says Gale, speaking as Richmond CEO. "Yep, she let her guard down there!" But, Mrs Demetriou, you're going to have to stop him putting up his hand - he's too smart for his own good.' In his role as head of the AFL Commission, he was responsible for a number of changes, including the expansion of the league from 16 to 18 teams, the restructuring of the tribunal system, and the brokering of two new television rights deals. ", "Hmmm. This is no doubt true - but not the whole truth. "I'm forever reading for work, reports and documents and whatever. [6], In 2011, Demetriou was involved in securing a record breaking A$1.25 billion TV rights deal for the period of 20122016. "), Andrew Demetriou, 49, sits in his modest, shiny office, meditating upon world domination. You go through very, very dark periods, and I just threw myself into work. I've said to my staff and to myself that everyone's got to modify their lifestyle. But, yeah, he's always on call. Then there's Purebaby, to add a bit of fun. Demetriou has been highly influential in the AFL Commission's desire for a team to be based on the Gold Coast. She and Andrew married soon afterwards (friends recall him saying he wished he'd done it earlier), and Bassett fought the illness for three years. Exports to about 70 countries. Gallop refuses to admit publicly to anything other than total confidence in rugby league. ", Demetriou had spent his years with Bassett teaching and developing his business interests, primarily in a company manufacturing acrylic teeth, called Ruthinium. And because he was so good at both footy and cricket, that probably aggravated some people: 'How come you're better than us, you bloody wog?' First Name Andrew. In April 2014, it was announced that Gillon McLachlan, Demetriou's then deputy, would be his successor. But Toorak, Melbourne's most prestigious suburb, can seem a long way from Coburg. (Kardashian is the star of US reality TV show Keeping Up With the Kardashians.) For Demetriou, Australian rules will always be the game that embraced him and gave him social and professional status; that supported him during a great tragedy in his life. If you asked him what his future with the AFL is, he would say, 'Oh, I'll do it for five years and then I'll retire to Lake Como.' The AFL chief executive, whose successor could be named as early as May, has declared a wish to serve out the 2014 football season, demanded and received great loyalty from his staff who became emboldened themselves by a leader they regarded as fearless. Andrew is currently non Executive Director of Crown Resorts, Chairman of Capital Health Group and Cox Architects and sits on the Australian Reconciliation Council. "He's a boy from Cypriot parents who used to muck around in the backblocks of Coburg, and I think he's a very driven man.". I don't know why people are so obsessed by that." Demetriou has been a remarkable leader of Australias greatest and most successful football code. Two years later, Demetriou had begun to learn his lesson. His best season was 1983, playing 23 of a possible 24 games, the club's campaign ending with a thumping in the preliminary final. So, these clubs are great survivors. I played golf once three or four years ago, and when I got home after six hours " - he pauses, smiling - "no, no. We don't own this game. ", Admits O'Neill, "We all have to play to our own competitive advantages, but I envy the AFL their deep pockets. "Of that opening remark, Lindsay recalls: "It was a throwaway line, really. In 2002 he married his current wife Symone, and they have three daughters and a son. Seven years later though, Demetriou praised the Swans for their new attacking style of play under coach John Longmire and rated them as serious contenders for the premiership. "I think anyone who has strong views about things and seeks by dint of their own strength of personality to force things through, always runs the risk of alienating people," observes Sydney Swans president Richard Collis. "It's true," he says now. Even in his own code, many have been horrified by the prospect. "He really stood out," says Unglik. "The Sydney Swans went there in 1981. Learn How rich is He in this year and how He spends money? 1988 He had a brief move to Hawthorn in 1988, but played only three games and kicked one goal. In seven years in the job, he has transformed how, where and by whom Aussie rules is played. And I read the form guide, which I love. Footy was a great way to pick up $20,000 or $30,000: that's how I bought my first home. And it was as AFLPA CEO in 1998 that he secured a historic collective-bargaining agreement that delivered a significant pay rise to the competition's 600-odd players. Today it's like heaven in comparison. Chief executive Andrew Demetriou is kissed by his wife Symone during an AFL press conference at AFL House on March 3, 2014 in Melbourne, Australia.. Does he ever have time on his own? "Andrew Demetriou's first appointment to the Australian Football League hierarchy in May 2000 was characterised as a case of poacher-turned-gamekeeper. About expanding into new territories. It had got a lot easier by the time Andrew went through - his cohort was that big '60s influx of migrants - but I know he copped it on the footy field. Or, as he would put it, giving people options. View the profiles of professionals named "Andrew Demetriou" on LinkedIn. Business was booming, but romance, he told friends, was over. "I remember my mum telling me about going to a parent-teacher night when Andrew was in grade 2," says James. He was a good, though never a great, player. People credit Bassett and her circle with helping form Demetriou culturally: there's a famous story, told by several people, of a memorable day when he astounded everyone by leaving an AFL game early to attend an Andrea Bocelli concert. Andrew Demetriou and family pose with La Trobe deputy chancellor Dr Philip Moors AO (left) and vice-chancellor Professor John Dewar (right). Demetriou appears to have a knack of finding common ground. In 2005 Demetriou criticised the Sydney Swans and then-coach Paul Roos, labelling the team's play as "unattractive" and "ugly". This is what we do. "It's either that or Andy," says Symone. He looks momentarily uncomfortable, as if he's never thought about it. For the South Melbourne and Port Melbourne player, see, Proposed relocation of the North Melbourne Football Club, "Pssst: Introducing Doctor Andrew Demetriou", "We reveal AFL boss Andrew Demetriou's $7m Toorak base", "AFL boss Andrew Demetriou scores .4 million", Demetriou earned his $1.8 million, says AFL chairman, AFL secures TV rights deal for next five years worth $1.253 billion, "Ugly ducklings to make up for the sin of St Kilda", Love is in the air as Andy and Dickie revive flagging relationship, AFL chief Andrew Demetriou likes Sydney Swans' flag chances | Herald Sun, Tackle happy - Official AFL Website of the Sydney Swans Football Club, "What you need to know about the AFL's new boss, Gillon McLachlan | News.com.au", "Fans should see red over the hypocrisy of footy going green", "Acquire Learning: Andrew Demetriou's new education venture facing ASQA scrutiny amid allegations of unethical behaviour", "Andrew Demetriou to lead Acquire Learning | afr.com", "Acquire Learning goes into voluntary administration", AFL boss Andrew Demetriou revisits playing days, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Andrew_Demetriou&oldid=1120957313, Australian rules footballers from Melbourne, Australian people of Greek Cypriot descent, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in Australian English, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2015, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 9 November 2022, at 19:01. Access the best of Getty Images with our simple subscription plan. "History will tell.". Demetriou is best known for his position as CEO of the Australian Football League. Andrew Demetriou was born on 14 April, 1961 in Australian, is an Australian rules footballer, born 1961. Just quietly: Andrew Demetriou has lost another gig. It's not worth it." He was betraying the sports . "Andy Demetriou" redirects here. "We are living in an age of scrutiny that we've never experienced before and it's not just football. Jennifer Hageney is the first wife of Andrew Shue, an American actor with whom she has three children named Nathaniel Shue, Aiden Shue and Wyatt Shue. "Whatever it is, I honestly don't know. Lead commercial strategy and business development, major event partnerships, production and venue hire for Carriageworks, Australia's largest multi-arts organisation. His parents, Tony and Chrysi, met in the early 1950s, married and opened Tony's Fish and Chip . . ""If you started with a blank piece of paper you wouldn't have 10 teams in Melbourne. They met for dinner, got talking and soon the Demetrious had taken a one-third interest in the fledgling business. Date of Birth: 14 April 1961. . Now in his sixth year at the helm, the 48-year-old youngest son of Greek Cypriot migrants who was raised in a Coburg fish-and-chip shop, appears to be at the top of his game. If you'd said I was going to be working in football 20 years later, I'd have thought you were mad.". "About time! Jennifer bodymeasurement and social media presence. Demetriou remains a shareholder and board member. I just never envisaged that I could meet anybody else. This is true for the AFL Commission as a whole, and for Demetriou personally. "The answer is, 'I don't know', because the things I've done are all very, very different - garbage, false teeth, football, so I think anything's possible. "I took a decision very early on that I wanted to see them grow and help my wife," he says. It hurts people. "Informality quickly makes way for more formal discussion on those evenings when the four business partners order in. "The Demetrious pay a personal trainer to help keep them in shape - "boxing and all that sort of stuff two or three times a week" - but an Achilles injury has hindered Demetriou's recent progress. I'll read junk, too. "It wasn't whim. Demetriou was 38. Not even the global economic crisis could cool Demetriou's hot gospel on why expansion should not be stalled. Meanwhile, in February, the code announced its highest-ever revenue, for last year's season: $335.8 million; its biggest operating surplus, $23 million; and record club membership of more than 614,000. Andrew Demetriou (born 14 April 1961) is an Australian businessman, sports administrator, and former Australian rules football player who was chief executive officer (CEO) of the Australian Football League (AFL) up to June 2014. '," Demetriou reflects now. Demetriou gives little away. Suitably enough, Demetriou met Symone Richards, then a corporate accounts manager, in 2001 at a grand-final-day function. ', and she said, 'Well, he's very good. "Was it four years?" Symone will have brought home Who or New Weekly and the next thing I'm reading about who Lindsay Lohan's slept with and whatever. Everyone has to because that's just the expectation. Tania Hird, the wife of the suspended Essendon coach, has repeated the controversial claim that AFL boss Andrew Demetriou tipped off the club. He was educated at La Trobe University, where he completed a Bachelor of Arts in 1983 and a Diploma of Education in 1984. "He was amazing during her illness," says Unglik. "Don't quote me on this, I could get it wrong. But we are where we are based on this unbelievable industry, and the fact is we've got 10 teams in Melbourne that 10 years ago had 200,000 members and now have 400,000. ""Our game takes 17-year-olds from completely different backgrounds. But there's something about his knees, as if he were once pigeon-toed, or injured in some way, that makes him kick out his feet as he walks. (m). What's next for AFL's most powerful man Andrew Demetriou. "Along with my wife, we used to go away as a foursome on holidays," recalls Unglik. What we've said all along is that we're just offering another option for young children to take up the game. She died in 1999, aged 47. A fourth daughter would be fantastic. Even as an 18-year-old, he had larger horizons. Demetriou became emotional when he talked about those loved ones and colleagues he had lost during his time in the games administration - his first wife Jan Bassett, mother Chrysi, former AFL chairman Ron Evans, ground operations boss Jill Lindsay and Jim Stynes. He's revolutionised the code's response to illicit drug use; initiated a policy to improve the treatment of women; allowed free movement of uncontracted, end-of-term players between clubs; and supported some of the strongest anti-discrimination policies in international sport. At a time when, north of the border, the aftermath of the 1995-97 Super League war was still fracturing relationships in rugby league, "Andrew understood that the key to any successful deal is to create value for all parties," says Brendon Gale. In 2008, Demetriou earned an annual salary of $1.4 million, making him the highest paid administrator or player then employed by the AFL. Says Demetriou now: "It was an incredibly powerful statement. He had a brief move to Hawthorn in 1988, but played only three games and kicked one goal. A month after the ex-AFL chief and former Crown Melbourne chairman gave a televised public lesson in October in how . What followed next was his second marriage in 2002 with Symone, who is currently his wife. But that's part of the game. But, you know, that's Andrew defending his patch. "In year 12 he had major issues with a couple of teachers who took exception to his brashness and his confidence and the way he excelled. ", "He's exceptionally adept with figures," adds James Demetriou. "It's impossible for me to answer that, other than the fact that when you're dealing with terminal illness, and you've got a very limited time, you change your perspective on many things. It was.Post football, Demetriou set out teaching at first, legal studies and politics, then got into business running Ruthinium, a company that imported dental products. "Nine years on, having moved from football operations to the top job, football's consensus is that Demetriou has done anything but stuff the league. Jill Lindsay, in charge of league grounds and one of the AFL's longest-serving executives, looked Demetriou square in the eye on day one and said: "So, you're the guy who stuffed the league." During the 2013 Finals Series he also co-hosted Talking Footy for the Seven Network. ("Bizarre, I know," he told one reporter. Right now, Demetriou doesn't look to be going anywhere, though he insists he'll know when it's time to move on long before others know it of him. He still has this quality of que sera sera effortlessness, say those close to him. ', he would say things like, 'You know, I don't know what the right way to feel is, but at the moment I don't feel comfortable doing that.' The Kim Williams appointment to the commission would seem good for McLachlan who does not yet boast its unanimous support. He'd had one great relationship in his life; that was all anyone could expect. Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. He is presiding over an enterprise whose growth in recent years has been little short of exponential, with rising memberships, ballooning revenues and top ratings underscoring the might of the indigenous code in an era of unprecedented competition, in particular from the round ball behemoth that is The World Game. "I remember the phone ringing and my father going to a corner and being told, 'I'm just ringing to let you know your mother died,' and, 'She died four days ago and we didn't know how to tell you.' He seems relaxed but self-possessed, friendly but not confiding. We manufacture and distribute false teeth. "Every dollar that goes to the GWS, that's a dollar less to the existing clubs or players.". Demetriou has a regular spot with Red Symons on Melbourne radio station ABC 774. He was awarded the University's Distinguished Alumni Award in 2009 and a Doctor of Letters (honoris causa) in 2015 in recognition of his outstanding contributions to sport management and to Australian society through his leadership and support of important social issues, and currently serves as an Adjunct Professor. "Two bunk beds and four boys in one room," recalls his eldest brother, lawyer James Demetriou. But then, you know, by just a miracle in many ways, I met my current wife, and it really was like the darkness lifted.". The expansion has been planned and supported by Demetriou's AFL at its streamlined, spin-savvy best, with a massive fighting fund, an aggressive recruiting policy and a much-denied-but-hard-to-escape determination to become the dominant football code in Australia. "Symone and my children are my . "He'll get massive kudos, or massive condemnation out of it," says Richard Hinds. "When I played football," recalls James, "it was brutal, really brutal. Then there's a long silence, during which he appears to be considering weighty matters of national significance. "To be frank, if the clubs had had their way, there'd be no national expansion," says Gale. He keeps his cards so close to his chest, I guess I should have known that the briefest glimpse of him showing an interest in a woman meant that he would marry her and have children with her.". At AFL House, there's also a sense of higher purpose: a desire for expansion to carry the torch of Aussie rules enlightenment into the darkness of heathen league, union and soccer lands. Her son was knocked out by Leigh Matthews and carried off. Andrew . [2], Recruited from Pascoe Vale, Demetriou played for the North Melbourne Football Club as a winger between 1981 and 1987, playing 103 games and kicking 47 goals. "Our numbers are very impressive in western Sydney," he says, when he says anything at all. [11] This proved to be the turning point in the Swans' season, as they lost only two further home-and-away games for the season, both by single-figure margins,[12] and eventually won the premiership. In 2002 he married his current wife Symone, and they have three daughters and a son. Happily ensconced in their $7-million Toorak mansion, replete with the trappings of an executive lifestyle, the Demetrious revel in life with their twins, Francesca and Alexandra, now five, and two-year-old daughter, Mattea. Demetriou is the youngest son of Greek Cypriot immigrants. Of course, the less you appear to care, the more you are likely to care. "Demetriou can absorb a punch or two, clearly. Suddenly, he was switching teams.The irony was hardly lost on his new colleagues. Recruited from Pascoe Vale, Demetriou played for the North Melbourne Football Club as a winger between 1981 and 1987, playing 103 games and kicking 47 goals. I want equality of opportunity. [citation needed], Demetriou in 2014 became the Chairman of the Advisory Board at Acquire Learning. . "He was absolutely a source of help and advice.". In fact, it was not the first, but the first involving Mr Demetriou. "I can't see another 10 years here," he says, looking around his office. This board of directors includes Demetriou, wife Symone and couple Mirabai Winford and Sanjay Gill, who founded Purebaby, a brand for babies and toddlers that sources garments made of organic cotton in Indian factories that eschew sweatshop conditions.When the Demetrious' twin girls arrived in 2003 - two days after the businessman and former player took over the AFL's top job from departing chief executive Wayne Jackson - Symone went scouting for baby clothes and was drawn to the natural fabric and styles of the Purebaby range being sold in a Surrey Hills shop.She hit it off immediately with Winford and eventually introduced the entrepreneurial couple to her husband. To do what? We have estimated Western Bulldogs great Luke Darcy tells Sarah Olle the one piece of wellbeing advice he'd give to his younger self, Sarah Olle and Josh Gabelich with the latest footy news, Join us as 'The Journey' begins for the 2023 Toyota AFL Premiership Season, Nat Edwards with all the latest footy news, The Fremantle coach admits he could have done things differently to try to keep some of his big-name players, Jeppa and Fry have been providing rookie content for years and pick the best of the 2023 crop, Take a look back at the highs and lows from the glory days of the old pre-season cup, Brad Scott tells Callum Twomey how his time at North Melbourne has him primed for a second crack at senior coaching, The priority signing period has officially kicked off! That. told friends, was over its unanimous support McLachlan who does not yet its... Of finding common ground unanimous support in seven years in the short term, '' Gale... 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