Clive Palmer just became the high priest of soccer bashers.
The owner of Australian soccer club Gold Coast United launched a scathing attack on the game, and called the country's top league "a joke", according to the Sunday Mail.
"I don't even like the game," Palmer said. "I think it's a hopeless game. Rugby league's a much better game."
Palmer, one of Australia's richest men, has owned Gold Coast United since its inception in 2008. Despite strong on-field performances, the club has struggled to attract large crowds to its home games at Skilled Park. Attendances rarely top 5,000 at the 27,400-seat venue.
Soccer has struggled to gain a foothold in the minds of the Australian sporting public. It is popular within the country's immigrant communities, but many native Australians prefer rugby, cricket and Australian rules football over soccer.
The A-League was formed to help raise the game's profile in Australia, and provide a platform for the country's top players. Its inaugural season was in 2005-06, and its clubs have performed well in international competitions like the Asian Football Confederation's Champions League. But Palmer still does not think much of the country's top flight or its leadership.
"… the A-League's a joke", Palmer said.
The mining magnate has some other things going on, and made it clear that he won't lose sleep over the fate of Gold Coast United. Its operating license expires in 2014, and it is unknown whether Palmer will continue to bankroll the club.
"The club is a very small, insignificant portion of what I do," he said. "We've got over $20 billion of projects."
However, the Football Federation of Australia (FFA) didn't take kindly to Palmer's attack.
"Football fans across Australia will today rightfully condemn the lack of respect inherent in comments made by Clive Palmer," FFA CEO Ben Buckley said. "The comments are offensive to the players, coaches, administrators and volunteers who are the life and soul of Australian football."
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