The Asian Cup has been the perfect breath of sporting fresh air to break up the traditional Aussie summer of tennis, cricket and more tennis and cricket.

There are only so many "Sam Stosur confident of strong Open" headlines or Michael Clarke injury updates one can stomach, so having the likes of Iran, Qatar and North Korea playing prime time in a meaningful tournament has been embraced by most sporting fans.

The Asian Cup crowds have been encouraging, even for games not involving the Socceroos, and scheduling two pool games a day, back-to-back from dinner time has been a winner.

Realistically, not many viewers are going to watch back-to-back Palestine v Jordan or Iraq v Japan but taking in some play from each game over the course of a whole evening has been entertaining.

And for football fans it's refreshing to see players who don't play for Liverpool, Manchester United or Barcelona on a television screen.

Asian football has plenty of stars of its own and some of the goals from the Asian Cup have been world class.

If one had to make a few constructive criticisms, it's that too much of the Asian Cup is Socceroos focused or the spotlight has been on the top three sides South Korea, Australia and Japan.

And unless you have access to Pay TV your viewing has been severely restricted.

A half hour highlights package on ABC after 10pm - when the games of the day have finished - isn't much.

And if you want to watch the Socceroos matches on free to air they aren't shown until 10pm - when the matches are well-and-truly over.

Saturday night's Socceroos - South Korea game will be shown to millions of Australians at 10pm on ABC 1, but kick-off is 8pm.

In the age of digital 24/7 media, with minute by minute updates, it's 1970s coverage and a slap in the face to rank-and-file football fans whose only sin is they can't afford a Foxtel package.

The government has, in recent years, protected another of our national sports, cricket, by ensuring all fans have access to Test matches on free to air television.

The Asian Cup is just as worthy and arguably bigger than any cricket series, yet the average fan has a choice of forking out for live coverage, heading to the nearest pub or watching replays late at night.

If football wants to take the next step and really give the likes of AFL and rugby league a shake for television ratings, as well as player participation, its biggest events need to be viewed by everyone.

Already the Western Sydney Wanderers are winning the Battle of the West, with significantly bigger attendances than the Parramatta Eels, Penrith Panthers or Western Sydney Giants.

They are the Asian champions, something league and AFL could only dream about.

The A-League is improving every year and football is making great strides in the public domain, but we must make our biggest events accessible to everyone.

And that means being able to watch the Socceroos live on a Saturday night on free to air TV.

Wouldn't it be great if millions were watching the Socceroos v South Korea on Saturday night with their families and not just those who can afford Pay TV.

Something to consider.

But well done everyone associated with the Asian Cup. It has shown the bosses of world football we can host the biggest tournaments.

One day hopefully we can win the rights to the World Cup.

What a show that would be!