Expansion AFL Proposes National Televised Womens Football League by 2020

[Bluelegs]

Apparently we'll be having a curtain raiser featuring two teams of female footballers prior to Melbournes Saturday night round 14 match with the Bulldogs. Interestingly both sides will be donning the colours of the respective football sides, and will be selected in a draft style set up prior to the game. While this is a great initiative by the clubs and the AFL (and Brad Green's campaigning for people of "woman backgrounds") The most interesting parts of the article were these notes

Fast forward to 2020 - the year the AFL has set as the target for a nationally televised female competition - and the idea is that the elite league as we know it today will support both male and female teams.

''The vision is that the Melbourne Football Club will one day have a men's team and a women's team,'' club chief executive Cameron Schwab said. ''The same way that there used to be a men's team and under-19s or reserves team that all represented Melbourne. At the moment, 50 per cent of the community can't have the opportunity to play for their AFL club. Why have we stopped that?''

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/seeing-the-light-20130326-2gsd1.html

It would certainly be an innovative move by the club to pioneer a women's team to play in the proposed league. Good initiative from the AFL, Melbourne, and the Dogs

 

[Quivorir]

Play it in the AFL's off season so we have Aussie Rules all year round.

 

[Bluelegs]

Play it in the AFL's off season so we have Aussie Rules all year round.

It would certainly get better coverage and ratings that way. But I'm not sure how they'd go playing games in 40 degree heat.

 

[iDon]

It would certainly get better coverage and ratings that way. But I'm not sure how they'd go playing games in 40 degree heat.

Or find enough grounds.

 

[Bluelegs]

Or find enough grounds.

All the more reason to rebuild Junction Oval

 

[iDon]

All the more reason to rebuild Junction Oval

for footy? top idea.

 

[Quivorir]

Or find enough grounds.

Lets face it, the league wouldn't get close to filling out Etihad or any other stadium, it would surely have to be played at Suburban grounds so there should be plenty.

 

[iDon]

Lets face it, the league wouldn't get close to filling out Etihad or any other stadium, it would surely have to be played at Suburban grounds so there should be plenty.

Cricket? Turf grounds are out of the question as well as any ground with a pitch on it. Good luck encouraging women to run around in 35 degree heat on bloody hard grounds getting cut up each week.

 

[Bluelegs]

Lets face it, the league wouldn't get close to filling out Etihad or any other stadium, it would surely have to be played at Suburban grounds so there should be plenty.

Unfortunately this is a likely scenario. The WNBA is still the butt of every joke in the states one of the more famous ones being "Would you rather have $5 or see your local WNBA team win the Championship?" It would take a lot for these sides to get anything more than VFL level crowds and interest. The AFL would really have to invest if they wanted this venture to succeed.

 

[Max Power 83]

Who's going to watch it?

As it is we have non-stop AFL from 2pm-10:30pm on Saturday, and 1pm-7:30pm on Sunday, or thereabouts.

Very hard to arrange a fixture that'll attract interest.

 

[SBD Gonzalez]

Who's going to watch it?

As it is we have non-stop AFL from 2pm-10:30pm on Saturday, and 1pm-7:30pm on Sunday, or thereabouts.

Very hard to arrange a fixture that'll attract interest.

Me, for one. I love watching women play football.

 

[chestbrah]

Melbourne already have a womens team schwabby?

 

[Max Power 83]

Me, for one. I love watching women play football.

You'd watch it over an AFL match?

 

[Bluelegs]

You'd watch it over an AFL match?

Depends on the match for mine. I would watch it over something like a top 4 vs Bottom 4 game.

 

[Dont be a lemon]

"This Sunday on ABC4 Online"

 

[blueroy]

Lets face it, the league wouldn't get close to filling out Etihad or any other stadium, it would surely have to be played at Suburban grounds so there should be plenty.

I think the local a grade cricket game down the road would draw a higher crowd tbh

 

[SBD Gonzalez]

You'd watch it over an AFL match?

Possibly.

Not over a Swans match.

Anyone else, would depend who's playing.

 

[le dominateur]

Who's going to watch it?

As it is we have non-stop AFL from 2pm-10:30pm on Saturday, and 1pm-7:30pm on Sunday, or thereabouts.

Very hard to arrange a fixture that'll attract interest.

Women's match of the round from 11.30am - 2.00pm Sunday followed by 2 games of AFL 2-5pm & 5-8pm.

 

[Cmarsh]

Unfortunately this is a likely scenario. The WNBA is still the butt of every joke in the states one of the more famous ones being "Would you rather have $5 or see your local WNBA team win the Championship?" It would take a lot for these sides to get anything more than VFL level crowds and interest. The AFL would really have to invest if they wanted this venture to succeed.

This is what might become of a women's AFL too. However, if you look at the WNBA, the teams arn't the women's equivalent of the Chicago Bulls or the LA Lakers, they are totally different teams with different names and colours to the NBA, and so it would be difficult for existing NBA fans to identify with them.

If this women's AFL had teams called the "Melbourne Demons" with the same colours and song as it's AFL equivalent and if it was also an incorporated team of the MFC (ie part of the same club), would not existing MFC fans have something to identify with the women's team and consequently show some level of interest? Same goes with every other club as well. I personally would follow a women's GWS team with the same colours and song.

 

[Bluelegs]

This is what might become of a women's AFL too. However, if you look at the WNBA, the teams arn't the women's equivalent of the Chicago Bulls or the LA Lakers, they are totally different teams with different names and colours to the NBA, and so it would be difficult for existing NBA fans to identify with them.

If this women's AFL had teams called the "Melbourne Demons" with the same colours and song as it's AFL equivalent and if it was also an incorporated team of the MFC (ie part of the same club), would not existing MFC fans have something to identify with the women's team and consequently show some level of interest? Same goes with every other club as well. I personally would follow a women's GWS team with the same colours and song.

Agree with this. It's why I have no issue with clubs creating their own VFL sides. Having the Collingwood Magpies, Essendon Bombers, Geelong Cats, and Richmond Tigers all playing in the VFL would make a few more people tune in over the likes of Werribee, Bendigo, and so on.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

I imagine it being played Sunday morning and one game being televised midnight Wednesday on pay-TV.

 

[greatwhiteshark]

So let me get this right, the AFL are putting their weight behind growing women's football and eventually televising women's football.
And then great comps and clubs in the VFL/SANFLand WAFL will then play second fiddle to them???

What a joke the world has become. The AFL should be pumping up and promoting second tier football.

 

[le dominateur]

So let me get this right, the AFL are putting their weight behind growing women's football and eventually televising women's football.
And then great comps and clubs in the VFL/SANFLand WAFL will then play second fiddle to them???

What a joke the world has become. The AFL should be pumping up and promoting second tier football.

Yes they should, but surely women who would like to play football deserve a national competition to aspire to. Seems like it is ok for soccer, netball, basketball but not Australian Rules Football.

 

[Stamos]

Problem:

It would certainly get better coverage and ratings that way. But I'm not sure how they'd go playing games in 40 degree heat.

Solution:

Maybe they can Amerianise it and have the Australian Lingerie Football League?

 

[blueroy]

Yes they should, but surely women who would like to play football deserve a national competition to aspire to. Seems like it is ok for soccer, netball, basketball but not Australian Rules Football.

If it is televised, it would almost certainly be on the ABC at the expense of VFL/SANFL/WAFL footy, I don't really think that's right.

That said, I think the state of women's footy compared to other sports is a situation that needs to be improved on.