Embattled outfit Western United has been hit with fresh turmoil after members of its A-League Men's and A-League Women's squads lodged breach of contract notices with the club on Tuesday, seeking restitution for unpaid wages and superannuation.
Lodged by players' union Professional Footballers Australia (PFA), the notices give United two weeks -- until June 3 -- to provide players with any outstanding payments. Should the club fail to do so, it faces possible sanctions, while players would have the right to break their contracts and sign elsewhere.
Down 3-0 heading into the second leg of their A-League Men semifinal against Melbourne City this Saturday, this timeline wouldn't prevent United players from competing in next week's Grand Final should they qualify, while the season for their A-League Women's squad has concluded.
"The ongoing failure of Western United to meet its contractual obligations to players, including unpaid wages and superannuation, is unacceptable," PFA chief executive Beau Busch said. "The professionalism and commitment of the players and staff in extremely difficult circumstances has been remarkable.
"We are actively engaging with both the club and the APL to ensure the matter is resolved swiftly and the players will continue to be supported with the full resources of the PFA."
A United spokesperson said the notices were being "urgently" addressed but it fell to 17-year-old defender Dylan Leonard to speak publicly, quizzed on off-field distractions at a joint press conference with City ahead of this weekend's fixture.
"The boys know that we're going to get paid at the end," said the youngster. "It doesn't matter. But regardless of that, it's not very often you get to play in a semifinal.
"And a lot of these boys have been around the A-League for a long time, and they tell us 'boys, you don't get to play in this very often'.
"So for us, we're so focused on the game that anything outside of it doesn't really affect us."
The claims are the latest in a string of blows to United.
In March, the ATO filed a winding-up order in federal court against United parent company Western Melbourne Group's (WMG) property and footballing companies, while United's men were hit with a transfer ban by FIFA after a dispute with former player Aleksandar Prijović -- which FIFA still lists as being in effect at time of publication.
Sources have told ESPN this at least the second time in 2024-25 that United has fallen behind on player payments.
A takeover by the Kaminsky Family announced earlier this month was supposed to come to the club's rescue, with Mikhail Kaminsky telling ESPN that the deal -- which covered both WMG's football and property assets -- was worth "about $100 million, give or take, Aussie dollars."
However, the takeover, which is integral to United's viability, was pending regulatory approval and has yet to be completed.
ESPN has approached both United and the Australian Professional Leagues for comment on the status of the takeover.