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Australian rules football in Australia is the most popular and watched sport in Australia; it originated in Melbourne and has become an important part of Australian culture. The sport has been played continuously in every state and territory[2] of Australia since 1915 and is particularly popular in Victoria, South Australia, Northern Territory, Western Australia and Tasmania. In the states where it is not as popular as other winter sports, New South Wales and Queensland, it has grown rapidly since the 1990s. The only national competition is the Australian Football League, which grew out of an expanded Victorian domestic club competition from 1982 beginning with the relocation of the South Melbourne Swans in 1982 and changing its name in 1990. The AFL now governs the code nationally. Australia is currently the only nation in the world where Australian rules football is played professionally and while its participation is diverse, the sport is only played professionally by men.
[edit] PopularityThe sport has attracted more overall interest among Australians than any other winter sport for at least several years [3]. It is particularly popular amongst indigenous Australian communities. Approximately 10% of all AFL players are of indigenous origin. [edit] Footy in Australian popular cultureMain article: Australian rules football in popular Australian culture For many years, the game of Australian rules football captured the imagination of Australian film, music and literature. Many songs inspired by the game have become anthems of the game, none more so than the 1979 hit Up There Cazaly, by Mike Brady. [edit] Audience
Football is the most highly attended spectator sport in Australia: government figures show that more than 2.5 million people (16.8% of the population) attended games in 1999.[4] In 2005, a cumulative 6,283,788 people attended Australian Football League (AFL) premiership matches, a record for the competition.[5] A further 307,181 attended NAB Cup pre-season matches and 117,552 attended Regional Challenge pre-season practice matches around the country.[6] As well as the AFL attendances, strong state competitions also drew crowds. Although crowds for local leagues have suffered in recent years, they continue to draw support, particularly for finals matches. The South Australian SANFL drew an attendance of 303,354 in 2005, the Western Australian WAFL drew an official attendance of 202,797 in 2004 the Victorian VFL also drew strong crowds (but with no available attendance figures).Also the revised Tasmanaian State League (formerly TFL and SWL) is starting to bring back corwds. As of 2008 the AFL is one of only six professional sports leagues in the world with an average attendance above thirty thousand (the others are the National Football League and Major League Baseball in the United States, the top division soccer leagues, Bundesliga in Germany, and the FA Premier League in England and the newest addition to this is the Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket series). (See also: Sports attendances.)
According to OzTAM, in recent years, the AFL Grand Final has reached the top five programs across the five biggest cities in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. Australian rules football has achieved a #1 rating in the sports category in both 2004 and 2005. Some of the more popular regional leagues have the "match of the week" televised locally and free-to-air on ABC Television's state networks. In Victoria (ABV) shows the VFL, In Tasmania (ABT) it is the TSL (usually only southern games) , in Western Australia (ABW) it is the WAFL, in South Australia (ABS) it is the SANFL and in the Northern Territory (ABD) it is both the NTFL and the SANFL (in the NTFL off-season). Some regional leagues also attract a national audience through free-to-air broadcasting on television networks such as ABC2, which includes the VFL, SANFL, WAFL, NTFL and Tiwi Islands Football League (Grand Final only). OzTAM began measuring these audiences in 2006. The SANFL measured a total of 1,415,000 television viewers in 2007.[7] [edit] ParticipationA total of 615,549 registered participants are playing Australian football in 2007, placing it ahead of cricket (471,329 total participants) and soccer (389,000 total participants). Participation rose 5.97% between 2006-07 and 7.84% between 2005-06. 6.7 per cent of all participants are from non-English speaking origin. The Australian Sports Commission statistics show a 42% increase in the total number of participants over the 4 year period between 2001-2005.[8] Around 87,000 participants are Indigenous Australians. In 2008, there were 72 indigenous players in the AFL.[9] Victoria has the largest number of participants over 15 years of age (205,000 participants or 5.2% of the Victorian population). The Tiwi Islands is said to have the highest participation rate in Australia (35%).[10] Amongst children aged 5 to 14 years, football is the third most popular organised sport for children to participate in (beyond soccer and swimming). An estimated 284,200 children aged 5 to 14 participated in football in the 12 months prior to interview in 2003 (13.6% of all children).[11] [edit] Australian and Cultural IssuesMain article: Australian rules football culture [edit] ViolenceOn-field assault has historically been socially tolerated in Australia, however in recent years this has been the subject of and players have been charged by the law for their on-field actions, including a recent jailing in Victoria[12] and the much publicized case involving VFL player Leigh Matthews which ended the public perception that on-field football assaults are somehow legal.[13] League penalties for such actions have also generally increased in recent years[14] and overall violence has decreased over time.[15] [edit] Drug AbusePerformance enhancing drug abuse is also rare according to official studies[16] despite some high profile recent cases and criticisms from the media and government[17] of the AFL's own anti-doping code[18] which although strict, does not comply with the World Anti-Doping Agency protocols. [edit] RacismFurther information: Racism in Sport Despite the sport's high multicultural participation, racism has been and continues to be an issue in Australian Football at all levels. The governing body, the AFL introduced racial vilification rules in 1995 at all levels and is now considered a world leader in the field.[19] [edit] Structure and competitions The most powerful organisation and competition within the game is the elite professional Australian Football League (AFL). The AFL is recognised by the Australian Sports Commission as being the National Sporting Organisation for Australian rules football. There are also seven state/territory-based organisations in Australia, most of which are either owned by or affiliated to the AFL. Most of these hold annual semi-professional club competitions while the others oversee more than one league. Local semi-professional or amateur organizations and competitions are affiliated to their state leagues. [edit] Relative Standards of Senior Club CompetitionsThere are distinct tiers of playing standards and levels of professionalism in Australian Rules Football. There are several factors which effect each league's ability to raise revenue through attendance and broadcasting including the ability to recruit or attract players, admission prices and competition with other leagues and sports. At the higher end at least, these are evidenced by professionalism and the respective competition salary caps.
The primary pathway to the AFL competition is for junior players via the AFL National Draft. The AFL Rookie Draft system offers a smaller number of players the chance to play for AFL clubs for $25,750 AUD a year with the opportunity for promotion to a senior list. Most AFL players are recruited at junior level and sourced from the TAC Cup competition or national and state Under 18 representative championships. [edit] National Championships[edit] SeniorFurther information: Interstate matches in Australian rules football [edit] Country Championships[edit] Women'sThe AFL Women's National Championships is the premier National and International competition in Women's Australian rules football. The tournament is organised by the sport's governing body Women's Football Australia (WFA). The championships have been held every year since 1992. In addition there is an U16 team from Papua New Guinea (that joined in 2006).
[edit] Under 18Main article: AFL National Under 18 Championships Formerly known as the Teal Cup, the national championships are an annual national championship played by teams from each state and territory of Australia in two divisions.[26] In 1989, after winning seven of the previous eight championships, Victoria was split into two teams - Metro and Country to ensure that other states could remain competitive. Since then, Victoria Metro has won 13 division 1 titles, Victoria Country 3, South Australia 2 and Western Australia 2. The competition is currently sponsored by National Australia Bank. [edit] Under 18 All-Australian Team[edit] Under 16The competition is currently sponsored by National Australia Bank.
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