Usain Bolt to make run at pro soccer in Australia
Jul 17, 2018
Trading spikes for boots, Usain Bolt ready to make run at pro soccer in Australia
SYDNEY — Usain Bolt is making a run at professional soccer in Australia.
The Olympic sprint great has long expressed his love of the game. Since his retirement from track, he has tested himself with Germany's Borussia Dortmund and the Norwegian club Stromsgodset.
Now, at 31, he will try out for six weeks with the Central Coast Mariners starting next month. If all goes well, he could play for a season in Australia's A-League.
Australian agent Tony Rallis said Monday the Mariners and Bolt have a deal in principle, "subject to a couple of benchmarks."
Rallis said the eight-time Olympic gold medalist would have to go through a tryout, and the Football Federation Australia would have to support his salary.
"Once the FFA comes back and says that they'll be part of the process, we're going to the trial," Rallis said.
The agent said the Mariners would guarantee 70 percent of his salary and the FFA would be expected to pay the rest.
"If he's competitive, he will lift our A-League profile," Rallis said. "He will create dreams for young people and he will give the A-League a profile no amount of money can buy. This bloke's an ambitious athlete. The A-League needed a hero and we got superman."
Mariners chief executive Shaun Mielekamp said there is still a lot of work to do, and the tryout is essential in determining the skill of the 6-foot-5 Jamaican.
"It would only be big if he can play and if he can go really, really well," he said. "Because if he comes and he's not up to the level then it actually has a detrimental effect.
"But if he comes and he's as good as our reports are saying that he can be, then that would be very exciting and I'm sure that this stadium would be pretty full every time he put the boots on."
More News
The real pain from rising interest rates is yet to come
The number of borrowers who are behind on their mortgage payments is rising, and it’s likely to climb further as rate hikes bite.
Coalition threat to sink gas reform triggers rare industry backlash
A broad alliance of business chiefs and unions has mounted a last-minute push for the Coalition to pass Labor’s domestic gas-reservation laws.
A new fast-food giant is coming to Australia. Its unusual ingredients aren’t the only talking point
A new chain will enter Australia’s crowded fast-food chicken market after wowing Anthony Albanese at one of its Manila stores. We put some of its dishes to the test.
Wall Street’s wild Nvidia ride delivers big paydays and even bigger bruises
Investors are doubling down on speculative wagers that have delivered both spectacular gains and crushing losses this year.
Inside Boeing’s mission to rebuild trust in the 737 after years of turbulence
In the airline industry, attention to detail is everything. Boeing’s recovery is tied to reforms on its manufacturing floor in Washington.
Commercial childcare is hitting a brick wall. Who will pick up the pieces?
Australia’s largest childcare provider has signalled its intent to surrender to a lowball private equity bid as other for-profit providers collapse in record numbers.
‘I don’t care’: Inside Jensen Huang’s last hours as Nvidia CEO
At the end, Jensen Huang looked broken and shattered, his legendary energy depleted.
I worked part-time at David Jones. I know exactly why the business failed
Lift operators, bra fitters and lying sales assistants – I mourn you all.
How Elon Musk drove the Cybertruck and Tesla’s ambitions off a cliff
Elon Musk’s passion project crashed and burned. Its demise carries a lot of weight,
M.J. Bale axed its retail boss while she was on maternity leave. Now she’s fighting back
The Australian menswear retailer made its high-flying retail boss redundant days before her scheduled return from parental leave.
‘Either brave or mad’: A bastion of fine dining gets a sorely needed facelift
Rob and Tammy Charter had other ideas about how they wanted to spend post-work life. Like buying a heritage pub.
This Qantas jet was hit by lightning. It’s still grounded two weeks later
Pictures show the damage left by a lightning bolt, with charred areas of the skin and mesh exposed, on a plane that arrived in Melbourne from Los Angeles last month.