Andrew Demetriou gives evidence at the NSW casino inquiry on Tuesday. (But) I was very careful not to tread on too many toes. But Demetriou became close to tears when referring to the football family and the people in the game. Then there's a long silence, during which he appears to be considering weighty matters of national significance. [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. He also claimed that the Swans would not win a premiership with the way they were playing, and this statement was underlined when the team suffered a 43-point defeat to St Kilda in Round 10. It's a ridiculous expectation. We run a football code. That would leave a massive hole at the competitions governing body and the game at the crossroads. In the dedication of a final book, she made an unusual reference to her husband. But are they role models? 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. ", "He's exceptionally adept with figures," adds James Demetriou. He pauses again, looking almost embarrassed. I remember those calls"I just remember their work ethic and their sacrifice to give us better opportunities. Discover today's celebrity birthdays and explore famous people who share your birthday. "It's an amazing game," he says, smiling. My mother, who passed away three years ago, was an incredible woman. He was elected by the board of directors at the end of the 2003 season, taking over from the outgoing CEO Wayne Jackson. In April 2014, it was announced that Gillon McLachlan, Demetriou's then deputy, would be his successor. ". Likewise, his partner, Emma, wore a white strapless mermaid wedding gown. She died in 1999, aged 47. Learn How rich is He in this year and how He spends money? 2023 Getty Images. If you'd said I was going to be working in football 20 years later, I'd have thought you were mad.". Leaves it to others. [6], In 2011, Demetriou was involved in securing a record breaking A$1.25 billion TV rights deal for the period of 20122016. He has wide interests outside the AFL. "That was hard. The Demetriou boys regularly drop by and the commitment to family and to one another remains strong. The chief executive of Crown Resorts, Ken Barton, and a non-executive director of the casino group, Andrew Demetriou, . He has an older brother Jim Demetriou who played senior football for Essendon in the mid-1970s. [citation needed], Between 1998 and 2000, Demetriou was CEO of the AFL Players Association. "Of that opening remark, Lindsay recalls: "It was a throwaway line, really. The game will need all the money it can get. "The scene is not played out in the sleek and softly lit inner sanctum of the league's Docklands headquarters, with its polished hardwood table, swivel chairs and portraits of football's long lineage of powerbrokers, but one that normally takes place in the kitchen of the Demetriou family home in Toorak. "It's true," he says now. ", Finally - and perhaps most importantly - he believes (or persuades others he believes) that no deal is worth dying for. If you see what he's done it becomes clear he must be ambitious, and possess a certain amount of drive. You go through very, very dark periods, and I just threw myself into work. Andrew . In 2002 he married his current wife Symone, and they have three daughters and a son. "He's quite immune to status and reputation and the thuggery that tends to go with it. ANDREW DEMETRIOU | CHAIRMAN Former Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Football League (AFL), Andrew has been a CEO across a number of business sectors. "I remember my mum telling me about going to a parent-teacher night when Andrew was in grade 2," says James. He's a dignified man, and holds himself well: back straight, arms relaxed, briefcase swinging. The day of our interview, he leaves work early to go to his four-year-old daughter's birthday party "at one of those Japanese restaurants where they throw things in the air". Boards are the best place to save images and video clips. Andrew Demetriou has a distinctive walk. Demetriou now has four children - twin girls born two days after he took on the CEO role, the Monday after the 2003 grand final, another daughter born in 2007, and a little boy born in 2009. We're not drug experts. I'm very optimistic about what's going to happen in greater western Sydney, very optimistic. And Andrew's allowed me to express them. Andrew finished his tenure with the AFL in June. I want the best for those who work with me. We've never underestimated them. 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. But to be truthful, I never thought I'd last long in football. He is currently single. he grew up with a brother named Jim who also pursued a football career. Ben Buckley, his teammate at North Melbourne, later his No. Demetriou has been a remarkable leader of Australias greatest and most successful football code. It never affected me.". By the time we've got two teams there the Swans will have been playing in Sydney for 31 years. "Demetriou's values were sewn into his very fabric by his humble upbringing, by the work ethic and sacrifice of parents hell-bent on building a life for their children in a new land. "Now he's Mr Opera, Mr Art.". ANDREW Demetriou leaves the AFL wounded by events in recent years, but they will not define him. Andrew Demetriou's net worth "When they do get to relax, it's often in front of the TV and an episode of Desperate Housewives or Wife Swap. [16], In April 2014, it was announced that Gillon McLachlan, Demetriou's then deputy, would be his successor. So we have a population that is very diverse, that's very proud of what it's achieved. "Andrew is a vigorous defender of his organisation's objectives," is how Buckley diplomatically puts it. "You've got to give it to her, she's a consistent performer. Even Demetrious fellow commissioners enjoyed his press conferences - despite the odd misstep - as much as anything and they would not have been disappointed by his first farewell performance on Monday morning at AFL headquarters. Some ex-footballers move with the grace of movie stars. "He was absolutely a source of help and advice.". "And in return? "There is tremendous power vested in Andrew's position," says Brendon Gale, former head of the AFL Players Association (AFLPA) and CEO of Richmond Football Club. In seven years in the job, he has transformed how, where and by whom Aussie rules is played. ("Bizarre, I know," he told one reporter. [citation needed] During the 2013 Finals Series he also co-hosted Talking Footy for the Seven Network. People say it's how he made his fortune. And, of course, it was Symone. At 61 years old, Andrew Demetriou height Andrew J. Demetriou | Corporate Attorney | Los Angeles | Husch Blackwell Andrew J. Demetriou Senior Counsel Los Angeles phone: 213.356.2949 fax: 213.337.6551 email: andrew.demetriou@huschblackwell.com Overview Experience Thought Leadership Outside the Office Community Leadership Download Bio Download vCard Overview It's a great escape. But on the advice of medical experts he incorporated a three-strikes policy that puts player welfare ahead of the urge to "name and shame" offenders, and subsequently got belted by political leaders who reckoned it was lax.He doesn't care. It's been a real joy to be a part of. Demetriou appears to have a knack of finding common ground. Andrew Demetrious long-anticipated and impeccably-timed resignation was punctuated with emotion, humour and a characteristic verbal whack when the subject of his legacy was inevitably linked with the Essendon drugs scandal. In recent months, he's been condemned for his lack of action over the St Kilda/Ricky Nixon scandal (involving a teenage girl) and pilloried for earning twice as much as the top players in his code. "And some day he'll move on. Demetriou insists that the policy, which forces two-time offenders into rehabilitation before any suspension, is working. MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - SEPTEMBER 25: AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou and wife Symone Demetriou arrive for the 2006 AFL Brownlow Medal Dinner at Crown Casino September 25, 2006 in Melbourne, Australia. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today. ""Our game takes 17-year-olds from completely different backgrounds. It's the largest multicultural area in Australia. An incredible human being. Discover Andrew Demetriou's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. So, these clubs are great survivors. Director, Commercial. 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. [8] North Melbourne rejected that offer and, in January 2008, the AFL chairman, Mike Fitzpatrick and Demetriou announced that the Gold Coast Football Club would enter the AFL in 2011. "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. There's no doubt he would hate for history to say the same thing about him.". "You can't be around for 100-plus years and not be a resilient code," he continues. "Andrew plays the great game at all times," his friend Red Symons once said. He might be just a very good actor, but I don't think he's addicted to the clout he has - I'm sure he likes it, and I'm sure he likes winning and doesn't like losing. He's even convinced those behind enemy walls to join his crusade. The new general manager of football operations was stunned, to say the least. This is no doubt true - but not the whole truth. Feb 18, 2021 - 10.20pm. It was that meeting that convinced Karmichael that he should move to AFL.". Demetriou, who takes his girls to his local Auskick at weekends, where he's likely to run into Eddie McGuire and a host of footy influentials, says he's not fussed. I just never envisaged that I could meet anybody else. We spent a hell of a lot of time travelling in the last two or three years, we did some really wonderful things together, and in some ways, she changed quite a bit as a person in that time, too. [citation needed], Demetriou is best known for his position as CEO of the Australian Football League. I want to be challenged by that team. "Definitely. 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. [19][20] Acquire Learning entered voluntary administration in May 2017, shortly after Demetriou left the company. I don't think there's anything wrong with giving people options.". "I'm never going into politics," he insists now, almost stamping a foot. I'm very outspoken. 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.. The western Sydney move is a brave one; we're all looking at that with great interest.". He was at his best when he was under the most stress and duress.". 'I'm just ringing to say your brother has died.' [13], Seven years later, Demetriou praised the Swans for their new attacking style of play under second-year coach John Longmire and rated them as serious contenders for the premiership. "Andrew needs to set high goals for himself," wrote his grade 4 teacher, "because he can achieve them. His early days are well recorded: he and older brothers James, George and Phivos with his parents Tony and Chrysi all sharing two bedrooms, the boys often minded in the shop and then pitching in as they grew older. ', 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.' 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. Now, we formed that policy with 21 experts who got together to give us that advice. Demetriou is also the highest-paid executive in any code: last year he earned $2.2 million. They'll have a women's round, an indigenous round, a tie-a-ribbon-around-everything round. I don't know why people are so obsessed by that." And because of where the new AFL teams are based, who will play in them and how the money will flow, the most serious impacts are almost certain to be felt by AFL's main competitor for fans, players and cash: the National Rugby League. Australian sport's reputation blackened: Abbott. just moments after touching on the death of his first wife. As head of the AFL Players' Association, the footballers' union, Demetriou had played hard ball on the way to achieving his coup de grace - the first collective agreement (involving him) for the competition's 600-plus professional players, which gave them a massive pay rise, justly recognising them as the real stars of the show. [4], In 2009, Demetriou earned $1.8 million for his role at the AFL. There, above the Norm Smith medals and behind the gang of administration girls admiring a new engagement ring ("Show me that rock!" "Andy Demetriou" redirects here. "He looks at numbers and they sort of sing to him, if you like; he has the ability to pick trends and assess things very quickly. 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.". Michael Warner and Ashley Argoon 5 min read December 12, 2013 - 5:27PM HeraldSun He has the air, sometimes seen in confident people, of not needing to charm you. They met for dinner, got talking and soon the Demetrious had taken a one-third interest in the fledgling business. Please try again later. "Though one of nine AFL commissioners, the buck stops with Demetriou. I remember that really clearly, and a great photograph of (coach) John Kennedy hugging Schimmer who was spent, just spent. But, yeah, he's always on call. There has been much talk of the $200-million war chest that will fund the expansion, and those on the inside say it will take all this and more. Andrew is currently non Executive Director of Crown Resorts, Chairman of Capital Health Group and Cox Architects and sits on the Australian Reconciliation Council. "Every dollar that goes to the GWS, that's a dollar less to the existing clubs or players.". Aug 2020 - Present2 years 7 months. "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.". Her sense of humanity, and my father's too, they were very generous and were always looking for the good in people. Chairing several companies after his retirement from playing, he was appointed CEO of the AFL Players Association in 1998, and was responsible for negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement between the league and the players. Players. `` his teammate at North Melbourne, later his no a director... Is no doubt he would hate for history to say the least `` it 's how he spends?... 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