The Rise of Australasia

Compared to the growing total fiscal revenue, the growth of Australasia’s total fiscal expenditure is not low either.

During the influenza pandemic, the free supply of supplies and free treatment in Australasia significantly increased its attractiveness to immigrants worldwide. Still, at the same time, its total fiscal expenditure was continuously growing.

In 1918, Australasia’s total fiscal expenditure reached 170.4 million Australian dollars, and in 1919 it broke a new high, growing to 179.9 million Australian dollars based on the government’s issuance of the Four-Year Plan.

Fortunately, Australasia’s fiscal situation remains in surplus. If compensations from defeated countries like Germany and the United States are included, Australasia’s annual fiscal surplus remains over 30 million Australian dollars, so they have more than enough money in the short run.

Moreover, Australasia has almost paid off its foreign debt through those compensations, leaving only the £100 million from the royal family 20 years ago, which can be slowly repaid.

The current government plans to repay the royal family 10 million Australian dollars annually, and the £100 million loaned by the royal family to the government is expected to be paid off within 20 years.

With over one million royal special funds plus the two payments mentioned above, the current Australasian royal family already has more money than they can spend.

There are numerous assets behind the royal family, so there isn’t even an accurate number for the yearly income. This is because it includes the appreciation of various properties and stocks, making it impossible to obtain a relatively accurate estimation.

Regardless, the total income of all the royal assets is definitely over 100 million Australian dollars, and the total after-tax income is at least 80 million Australian dollars. Arthur’s assets have reached a point where he no longer needs to worry about spending, and it wouldn’t be a problem to call it the wealthiest royal family in the world.

The employee count within the royal financial groups alone is already over 100,000, while the number of employees among the various financial groups behind the scenes is even as high as millions.

It can be said that the assets behind the royal family are sustaining a considerable portion of the Australasian people. The royal family’s hidden assets have already influenced every aspect of Australasian life.

With so many assets at his disposal, what Arthur most desires is increasing the royal family’s influence and improving its favor with the public.

If Australasia’s international influence can be increased in the process, that would be the best-case scenario.

After some thought, Arthur decided to focus on sports events in this peaceful era. Discover stories at empire

After all, it’s not worth it to start a war now, and to capture the world’s attention, a sporting event with enough fame is essential.

As for the Olympics, there’s no need to think about it. Although it’s time to hold the Olympics this year, the 1920 Olympic Games have already been awarded to Belgium by the International Olympic Committee to compensate for Belgium’s casualties in the war.

Belgium was initially a neutral country, and its involvement in the war was forced, leading to massive casualties and economic losses.

Another crucial reason for Belgium hosting the Olympics is that other victorious countries are too busy healing their wounds, so they do not have much energy and resources to host the Olympics.

As for Australasia, although Arthur has an interest in hosting the Olympic Games, they just held the last Olympic Games (the 1916 Berlin Olympic Games were canceled due to the war), so holding two consecutive Olympic Games is not suitable.

Since the Olympic Games aren’t an option, Arthur believes it is necessary to hold an international sports event that belongs to Australasia and has international influence, like the famous Football World Cup in later generations.

The good news is that no global sports events currently have significant influence in the football world besides the Olympics.

The renowned World Cup in later generations will be held for the first time in Uruguay a decade later.

This means that if Arthur wants to establish a world-famous sports event, it is achievable as there are no competitors now.

The fastest way to make a sports event famous is through massive propaganda and setting up corresponding reward policies to offer a considerable amount of financial rewards to the top three, and so on.

After coming up with the idea of holding Australasia’s international event, Arthur decided to take action immediately; after all, the thing Arthur lacks least is money, and he has plenty of free time at the moment.

The only obstacle to hosting a sports event is the current influenza pandemic. However, if Arthur recalls correctly, the third wave of influenza will disappear after the arrival of spring, just like the second wave.

Even more importantly, the end of the third wave marks the complete end of this round of pandemic and the infamous Spanish flu, which had been deeply hated by people worldwide. The American flu would finally be over.

It is worth mentioning that Belgium is also hurriedly evaluating the risk posed by this wave of influenza. By normal timing, the summer games in Belgium are due to be held this year.

Belgium has prepared for several years and invested an incalculable amount of money in this Olympic Games from the end of the war until now.

If the pandemic causes delays or cancellations, the Belgians would be unable to accept such a loss.

Perhaps the Belgians are also praying that the third wave of influenza will be as severe as the second wave in winter, but quickly disappears in spring, allowing the Olympic Games they have meticulously prepared to start smoothly.

Arthur’s actions were swift, and within a few days, the current FIFA President Hessman came to Arthur’s office to discuss the proposal of holding an international football competition.

Over a decade ago, FIFA was established in Australasia under Arthur’s insistence.

However, due to various factors, FIFA has never been able to host an international event.

Firstly, transportation was a major concern, as European and American football clubs were unwilling to travel thousands of miles to Australasia — the fastest steamship at that time took over a month and nearly three months for a round trip.

Moreover, various wars and other influences prevented FIFA from organizing a proper event.

It’s worth mentioning that during the Sydney Olympic Games, the football event was organized by FIFA, which somewhat prepared them for hosting future events.

So far, with the advancements in aviation and airships, international exchanges have become faster. It takes just about half a month for a global trip, significantly reducing the distance between Europe, America, and Australasia.

Under such circumstances, hosting international football events has become more realistic, and promoting the internationalization of sports is easier to achieve.

"Mr. Hessman, long time no see!" The moment Hessman pushed the door open, Arthur greeted him with a smile and gestured for him to sit down.

"It’s been a long time, Your Majesty," Hessman nodded respectfully and carefully sat down where Arthur had indicated.

"You’ve probably been informed about my request. Now is an excellent opportunity to promote the internationalization of sports events, and I have full confidence in hosting an international event in Australasia." Arthur said with a smile.

"Yes, Your Majesty. The current environment is indeed much more conducive to hosting international sports events than before. FIFA is willing to devote everything to promote the internationalization of football," said Hessman, standing up excitedly.

As the former Secretary of the Dutch Football Association and now the chairman of FIFA, Hessman was eager to see football truly internationalized, and FIFA establish a solid position in the world’s football associations, rather than just being an empty shell as it is now.

"How is the football environment in Europe progressing? If we were to host an international football event, how many countries could we attract to participate?" Arthur asked.

Arthur had a clear purpose in hosting such an event, and would naturally consider all possible conditions. At the very least, he needed to achieve his goals.

Arthur’s main objective was to enhance Australasia’s international influence and the reputation of the Australasian royal family both domestically and abroad.

"Your Majesty, football has become quite popular in Europe and the United States after more than a decade of development. The football clubs in European countries have gradually matured, and each has its football association.

If we can offer attractive prizes for the event, it won’t be difficult to attract these European football associations to sign up enthusiastically.

Through such events, I will be able to unite these European football associations under FIFA. This would greatly benefit FIFA and grant it the power to truly govern the global football associations," Hessman stood up, speaking passionately and excitedly.

Compared to over a decade ago, the environment has improved significantly, and the football clubs and associations of various countries have been mostly established.

However, FIFA clearly does not yet have a strong enough position to unite the football associations of these countries and does not have the power to control these football associations or the footballers.

If FIFA could host an internationally recognized football event, it would naturally acquire jurisdiction over national football associations and footballers.

In this way, the international aspect of FIFA could be genuinely realized, rather than being just a superficial presence as it is now.

"That’s great. I hope you can soon develop a plan to organize an international football event. The National Stadium can be made available for your use, and if necessary, you can build specialized football stadiums to accommodate the needs of hosting the event," said Arthur, nodding in satisfaction and giving orders.

This international football event is essential for Australasia, and I hope the first edition can attract large numbers of participating countries, becoming a well-recognized international event watched by the world.

The royal family will certainly spare no expense, with an initial budget of about 5 to 10 million Australian dollars for this football event. If more countries can join, the budget can be exceeded," said Arthur with a smile.

This budget is already quite substantial, especially considering the costs of the Sydney Olympic Games at the time were about the same.

Using the expenses of hosting an Olympic Games solely for a football event would inevitably create substantial international influence.

After all, if a lot is invested, the costs of building stadiums and promoting events will not be low, and the impact created would inevitably be substantial.

In addition, with sufficient budget, FIFA can set prize money for the champions, runners-up, and third place.

The higher the prize money, the more European and American football clubs and associations will be attracted.

Since the event does not yet have influence, luring these football associations in participating countries would rely on the fundamental financial incentives.

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