AFL fans should strike

[legend166]

They already do, particularly at Sydney where the list model of running low on the primary list and having more low paid rookies so the higher profile senior players have higher salaries - many other clubs have now caught up on this but the lowest paid players are already effectively subsidizing the cost of the higher profile players. Not a Sydney specific thing.

Eh? That's not what I'm really talking about though. I mean if the players go on strike they literally don't get paid.

 

[Taylor]

Eh? That's not what I'm really talking about though. I mean if the players go on strike they literally don't get paid.

Do you believe that the preseason competition is something the players are paid for?

 

[Bokonon_]

Our fans could go on strike, I guueeesss.

Can see a couple of issues with that though.

 

[Jbudds]

Yeah nah, AFL has marketed the sport around personalities if their love childs such as "Buddy" "Danger" "Hodgey" etc were to go on strike there will be no doubt they would be burning at the core.

AFL is a business if they don't show year to year profit its deemed as a failure.

The strike will damage the AFL's business which will reduce revenue and value which the players want a share of. Futhermore, your average punter is not going to take the side of Buddy, Danger or Hodgey who all earn terrific salaries. The players will find it very difficult to win the PR war when the average punter just wants to watch the game.

 

[Boxhead_31]

I heard an interesting statistic yesterday - out of every dollar generated by the AFL the players receive 25 or 26 cents. With no players there is no AFL. So the question is, who gets the other 74 - 75 cents. In the USA the footballers receive 50 cents in the dollar.

The other amount goes into football for the rest of the country.
Auskick and the like, stadium upgrades, talent spotting in other countries etc. The AFL in a not for profit organisation so every dollar goes back into the game not just the elite level.

 

[Jables]

AFL players really don't get their fair slice of the pie when you look at every other major professional sport, if people really think the huge amount of excess money all has to go to grass roots footy, hey whatever that's your opinion and it's a fair one, but I think the talent pool is guaranteed to benefit when players are paid their share, and I'd rather see more talent in the game than cheaper ticket prices seeing as people bitch all the damn time about how footy skills aren't as good as they used to be or how the talent pool is diluted.

The AFL couldn't win a PR war if they had the media in their pocket so it'll be funny if they go that route.

 

[The Slitherin' Snake]

AFL players really don't get their fair slice of the pie when you look at every other major professional sport, if people really think the huge amount of excess money all has to go to grass roots footy, hey whatever that's your opinion and it's a fair one, but I think the talent pool is guaranteed to benefit when players are paid their share, and I'd rather see more talent in the game than cheaper ticket prices seeing as people bitch all the damn time about how footy skills aren't as good as they used to be or how the talent pool is diluted.

The AFL couldn't win a PR war if they had the media in their pocket so it'll be funny if they go that route.

Realistically, how many talented juniors are deciding not to pursue an AFL career because the pay isnt good enough. There may be 1 per year, hardly enough to make a difference to the skill level of the comp

 

[Farm Boy]

It seems that the already highly paid AFL players feel that they deserve a larger cut of the $2.5 billion plus league revenue stream.

http://m.afl.com.au/news/2016-12-07/player-strike-not-off-the-table-says-dangerfield

The case being made is that there is so much money going around, why shouldn't the talent see more of the cheese? Fair enough?

My question is, if there is so much money going around that the already highly paid have their hands out wanting more, why are we paying so damn much to watch a game of footy?

Shouldn't there be a reduction in how much the average punter is being milked before the players receive another pay hike?

IMO fans don't care enough to strike. There would be more chance of fans striking if supercoach went down for a month - than there would about fans paying extra to view matches. The AFL know that fans will pay anyway. I could see fans striking or protesting over club related issues, but not broader AFL issues. Fans seem to like that Gil has them bent over.

 

[Quadzilla]

10% up not enuf

Far cough

 

[Fire]

AFL players really don't get their fair slice of the pie when you look at every other major professional sport, if people really think the huge amount of excess money all has to go to grass roots footy, hey whatever that's your opinion and it's a fair one, but I think the talent pool is guaranteed to benefit when players are paid their share, and I'd rather see more talent in the game than cheaper ticket prices seeing as people bitch all the damn time about how footy skills aren't as good as they used to be or how the talent pool is diluted.

What talent would you attract with a 15 million salary cap that you can't with a 10 million one?

Do you think theres a swathe of elite players turning down a 75k starting contract with the possibility of millions a few years later, to instead pursue a plumbing apprenticeship?

Players are paid above their market value. they are free to find another league if they disagree.

 

[De Iulio2Wiggins]

Not sure where you're getting that figure, but the AFL doesn't make $2 billion a year.

From what I can work out, revenue in the 'AFL industry' (based on 2015 figures, and thanks to The_Wookie for his annual report threads), is around $1.1 billion.

Fair cop, should've looked it up instead of going in half-cocked.

I still believe there is more than enough room to increase minimum player payments significantly. $55k base for a rookie is a joke, AFL is more than a full-time job. The AFL always crows about increases in player salaries over time, but they never mention that player responsibilities have more than matched that.

 

[Tigersman]

The AFL also funds lower leagues, facilities upgrades, money goes into footy depts and coaches, a couple of hundred mil for Docklands - it's not really comparable to the NFL.

The afl actually siphon money out of local footy. That's why league fees are more expensive in states run by the afl compared to SA and WA.

15 mil would pretty much cover league fees and umpires for every club in vic. A small figure when you consider what is being made at the top end.

Radio the other day said the figure being asked for by players would come to about 27mill.

 

[The_Reaper]

Fair cop, should've looked it up instead of going in half-cocked.

I still believe there is more than enough room to increase minimum player payments significantly. $55k base for a rookie is a joke, AFL is more than a full-time job. The AFL always crows about increases in player salaries over time, but they never mention that player responsibilities have more than matched that.

They're certainly should be a pretty decent relocation bonus for draftees drafted interstate

 

[Belnakor]

Realistically, how many talented juniors are deciding not to pursue an AFL career because the pay isnt good enough. There may be 1 per year, hardly enough to make a difference to the skill level of the comp

rookie players it is a legitimate consideration considering how shitty that pay is. But in terms of other sports there is almost no comparison at mid range. No sport in the country pays the mid range players 300-400k like the AFL does. At the top end the only sports that come close are Rugby (you need to go over seas) and cricket (you need to be in the top 20 players in the country)

 

[deltablues]

I heard an interesting statistic yesterday - out of every dollar generated by the AFL the players receive 25 or 26 cents. With no players there is no AFL. So the question is, who gets the other 74 - 75 cents. In the USA the footballers receive 50 cents in the dollar.

No surprises on the % net. Check out the AFL bureaucracy's wages, overheads and on-costs. And multi-million $ annual subsidies for its perennial loser clubs/franchises for TV contractual reasons (reminiscent of Formula One).

The AFL is a trickle-down Statist corporation with a socialist ethos, cynically leveraging social causes du jour for TV revenue/MSM imprimatur/PC-cred.

And the flip-side is that with no fans there is no AFL (as the NFL is finding out). Why? Admission fees, catering costs and the distraction of non-stop commercial advertisements, unwanted heavy-handed PC admonitions and political theatrics being forced on fans game-day.

But it is what it is. I mean, my club now wastes bandwidth with a Collingwood netball team and women's team. What next? Soccer? Ribbon dancing? Lovely sports for the stronger sex, but I follow the AFL. Is women's footy etc gonna help us win our next Flag? No. But, hey, it ticks all the boxes, right?

Anyway, let the players get what $ they can, and the AFL can offset the increase by firing a bunch of 6-figure AFL Social Inclusion/Cultural Awareness/Equal Outcomes/Adversity Officers and associated chin strokers sucking on the AFL teat.

#Grassroots

 

[Furn2]

So once player payments are done the AFL makes just under two billion dollars a year and people are saying that they can't afford to fully fund grassroots footy if the players take any more money.

Two billion dollars.

Please.

Players are putting their bodies and minds on the line for your entertainment, anyone who knows older footballers at any level knows blokes who are either physically knackered, or who get dementia years or decades early from the dozens of concussions. Only an elite few set themselves up for life from AFL footy, most are spat out of the system in five years.

AFL can do it all: pay the players their fair share, grow the grassroots game and set up a proper compensation fund for players who damage themselves for life playing the game. Unfortunately they're too busy finding ways to spend the money on vanity projects.

Afl revenue was $506 million last year.

 

[simmo97]

RoweyandBicks ‏@RoweyandBicks 52m52 minutes ago
WAYNE JACKSON: "I frankly can't believe the players want a share of revenue. I think that's a nonsense."

WAYNE JACKSON: "The players of today have had very little to do with a number of the revenue raising efforts."

The players are terrifically rewarded. When society gets 1 or 2% the players not thinking what's happening in real world

"If they (players) want to go on strike - let them go on strike."

WAYNE JACKSON: "I don't think they (players) are being lead well by people who have best interest of football in the long term at heart.

 

[DERO]

THEY SHOULD TURN THEIR BACKS TO THE PLAYERS

 

[Keys]

Comparisons to US sports are pointless because the AFL is structured completely differently to those sports and operates in a far smaller market

In terms of revenue, in particular ticket prices, it's reasonable that the league maximises its revenue which means arguments around reducing costs for fans aren't going to get much traction unfortunately.

Players are the top end get paid handsomely so complaints from them that they aren't paid enough don't wash - they do have an argument around what % of money is earned from the use of their image though

Any pay increase should be tied to a rise in the minimum salary so that players at the low end who put the same number of hours in see some of the increase rather than it all going to the top end

More money needs to go to grass roots football and not just the development programs that focus on the talented juniors. Help out the junior clubs and the meat and potato amateur leagues whether they be city or country based

The football industry generates a large pot of money and players deserve their fair share but it shouldn't come at the expense of those leagues that rely almost exclusively on volunteers

 

[Power Raid]

I'm all for players earning as much as they can but I'm also pro grass roots and pro not taking our great game away from the poorer segments of our community.

Hopefully the right balance is reached.

 

[smeltitdeltit]

A strike will hurt the players more than the AFL.

This. Apart from maybe 3 or 4, none of them are really THAT impressive an athlete. ....seeing as we're using NBA/NFL as a yardstick ( Jarryd Hayne anybody????) And again, apart from a select few, none are going to to set the world on fire in the "real world" without the usual AFL assisted contacts etc. etc .

That being said, Gil can GAGF and I would rather the players payed more and him less.

 

[Dr Whoooooooo]

Give them the pay rise but take away their request for trades after 1-3 seasons.

hahahaha

AFLPA starting to "wreck: the league

Supporters will never go on strike - they will never all agree.

 

[legend166]

Do you believe that the preseason competition is something the players are paid for?

I certainly don't think they work for free.

Why do you think they're not paid? They'd get a fortnightly salary like everyone else (and match payments in addition). If they choose not to show up for work, they don't get paid. In fact, if they don't sign a new CBA, they can't go back to work (unless they agree to continue under the old one).

 

[Taylor]

I certainly don't think they work for free.

Why do you think they're not paid? They'd get a fortnightly salary like everyone else (and match payments in addition). If they choose not to show up for work, they don't get paid. In fact, if they don't sign a new CBA, they can't go back to work (unless they agree to continue under the old one).

I don't believe any player has preseason match payments in their contract.

They arw glorified training runs the AFL has sold rights to broadcast to make more money, which I believe is part of the big issue.

 

[legend166]

I don't believe any player has preseason match payments in their contract.

They arw glorified training runs the AFL has sold rights to broadcast to make more money, which I believe is part of the big issue.

It's part of the CBA:

http://www.aflplayers.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/CBA-2012-2016-FINAL.pdf

Page 63:
The minimum base payment prescribed above includes payment in respect of the Pre-Season Competition Matches played in the relevant year.

But beyond match payments, a strike means they don't show up to work. It's not just skipping pre-season matches. They stop going to the club altogether. They will not be paid for the time they don't show up to work.

It's basically unpaid leave with a purpose.