FIFA intervention of Australian soccer is a step closer after a clutch meeting to resolve the voting structure finished in a scoreless draw.

A seven-hour meeting in Melbourne failed to resolve the structure on Australian soccer’s Congress, as the clock ticks towards the November 30 deadline imposed on Football Federation Australia by world soccer’s governing body.

FIFA would step in and permanently remove Steven Lowy and his board and install a new committee, known as a “normalisation committee” if consensus is not reached by then.

FFA chairman Steven Lowy and his board will be removed by FIFA if agreement on a new voting structure is not reached by November 30. Source: AAP

Lowy, who was not present at the meeting, had set a deadline of today (Friday) for the stakeholders to agree in a letter sent last Monday.

It leaves a dark political cloud hanging over Australian soccer on the eve of the 2017-18 A-League season and the Socceroos’ World Cup playoffs.

Two months after the powerbrokers reached consensus before the all-powerful state federations backflipped, the parties remain far apart.

The state federations were represented by Mark O’Neill (ACT), Kimon Taliadoros (Victoria), Anter Isaac, Bill Walker (Northern NSW), while South Australia’s Sam Ciccarello joined via phone hook-up.

Melbourne City vice chairman Simon Pearce and former Melbourne Victory chief executive Richard Wilson, who remains actively involved with the Australian Professional Football Clubs Association (APFCA), represented the A-League clubs while PFA chief executive John Didulica chaired the meeting.

Professional Footballers Association CEO John Didulica (right) chaired the seven-hour meeting in Melbourne. Source: AAP

Sources indicated that the parties respectful but did not come close to resolving the impasse.

The main conjecture is over one vote, albeit a powerful one, with the state federations pushing for the current 9:1 structure to morph into 9:4:1:1 (state federations/A-League clubs/PFA/women’s soccer).

The A-League clubs, the players’ union and at least one of the state federation chiefs are pushing for a 9:5:1:1 which was the structure agreed to in August before the states recanted.

While the state federations would keep the balance of power, handing A-League clubs just four Congress votes enables the state bloc the power (60 per cent or a prescribed majority) to elect or remove directors under the FFA constitution.

The breakdown of the women’s vote is the other sticking point, with the states pushing for greater control.

FIFA Secretary General Fatma Samoura wrote to FFA last week (September 22) urging it to “focus on reaching agreement on a consensual new membership model in line with the parameters set out on July 4” when FIFA set the November 30 deadline or else a “normalisation committee” would be installed.

The FFA Annual General Meeting is set down for November 15.

@davutovic

david.davutovic@news.com.au