AFL is on the decline - the younger generation is just not that into you

[ItsAllAboutMe]

Give me a spell.. Saturdays nights crowd considering the weather, Socceroos playing and Rugby on to get close to 30k is remarkable... Not sure if you live in Melbourne but anyone who could avoid going to the game did, atrocious weather conditions even for the most passionate fan..

 

[greatwhiteshark]

I actually think it's the older generation who have lost interest. Most 40 and above people I speak to have lost all interest in the game, they keep an eye on their team but they are frustrated at what has happened to this once great sport. The younger generation don't know any different so they go with the flow.

 

[FFB1]

To be fair we have endless content readily available such as the internet, video games, streaming services etc to diversify interests.

The only other thing you old mother******s had back in the day was probably a ball and a cup so of course you spent all your time focussed on footy lol

I still managed to find time to play Leisuresuit Larry AND watch as much footy as I could in the 80s and I still do.

 

[Pack Specialist]

Like cricket the lack of big backyards in major cities affects the game and junior participation IMO.

Parents are less likely to send their kids out onto the street or down the park than they used to.

Parents are worried about the physical nature of the game.

People don't have as much disposable income as they used to due to cost of living and hyperinflation.

 

[Catters 070911]

Clearly you have never been to Cairns..... although Aussie Rules might be more popular then most of the regional towns and areas of North Queensland, but it’s still a rugby league town...... but even worse it’s a tourist town where people go up there for a short stay then leave.

Plus I don’t think the AFL who have pumped $100 million into the 6th biggest area in Australia is just going to pack up and leave after 8 seasons of football.


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"It's a rugby league town....but even worse, it's a tourist town where you go for a short stay and then leave".

What do you think the Gold Coast is??????

 

[Billy ray]

"It's a rugby league town....but even worse, it's a tourist town where you go for a short stay and then leave".

What do you think the Gold Coast is??????

Nothing like Cairns..

 

[JackoSpades]

pay tv has a big part to play.
growing up prior to pay tv you had a good chance to see your team play every week. your dad watched it the kids then watched it. it was a family event, teams were passed from father to son in a shared experience.
if you dont have pay tv then the game isnt seen in the family home the kids dont pick up on it or get involved with it.

 

[joy division]

pay tv has a big part to play.
growing up prior to pay tv you had a good chance to see your team play every week. your dad watched it the kids then watched it. it was a family event, teams were passed from father to son in a shared experience.
if you dont have pay tv then the game isnt seen in the family home the kids dont pick up on it or get involved with it.

Not so sure. When I was young, we'd go to the footy because there was no Foxtel and if you wanted to watch your team you had to see it in real life most of the time. Even when it was on a TV often but pre HD TV and the likes it was better to go.

 

[Captivating]

pay tv has a big part to play.
growing up prior to pay tv you had a good chance to see your team play every week. your dad watched it the kids then watched it. it was a family event, teams were passed from father to son in a shared experience.
if you dont have pay tv then the game isnt seen in the family home the kids dont pick up on it or get involved with it.

Prior to 2001, Channel 7 did not televise local games live against the gate. You would get replays or delayed telecasts. So the only way you got to watch a game was go to the game. With payTV, games began to be telecast live against the gate. So PayTV allowed you to sit down with your family and watch a whole game live as it happened.

 

[doppleganger]

This kinda doesn't back up the NBA argument, but majority of games no longer on free to air, and on Foxtel would have some impact.

Games are only on free to air during Friday Night, Sat Night and Sunday afternoons these days.

The majority of games have never been on FTA.

Having three games on FTA TV is much better exposure than a highlights package.

 

[iluvparis]

Not so sure. When I was young, we'd go to the footy because there was no Foxtel and if you wanted to watch your team you had to see it in real life most of the time. Even when it was on a TV often but pre HD TV and the likes it was better to go.

This - Dad and I would go out to Princes Park and if we won (which we did most weeks back then) we had to hope mum remembered to record the 30 minute replay show on Channel 7 on VHS and hope our game was considered exciting enough to be featured as the match of the day.

 

[jameses]

Some of my thoughts are bellow.

I think there are way more competing interests for the younger generation, hence it is harder to hold their attention. The younger gen generally consider the game too long and def will not watch a game that is a blowout.

Personally, though the things that have turned me away from the game are more administrative. Some of those things have been listed below. I would love to see the equality of the completion be of far greater importance.



1) AFL fixture: I would like the AFL to be bold and try something different to make the fixture fairer for all teams in the competition, there are some good ideas out there. The teams you play twice currently has a far to big an impact on the overall ladder position. Also just make the GF a twilight game – way too much talk for too long about it.


2) Umpires are too protected: Coaches and players can hardly mention the word ‘umpire’. There seems to be no such thing as a bad game from an umpire – which clearly isn’t true, it would just be nice to see bad umpiring held accountable at times (not umpire bashing). As everyone knows when the AFL reviews bad umpiring decisions they generally find some ludicrously flimsily evidence to support the decision and give it the all clear (the rules are so subjective that you can pretty much find some kind of weak evidence to support any decision).


3) Lack of personalities: I can see this changing with time, but right now a lot of players are essentially robots that have been programed with a set number of cliques. Time for some reprogramming.


4) MCG home-ground GF: The MCG is a wonderful place to play a footy game and a grand final for that matter, and it is fine if it is a neutral venue – but it often isn’t. A grand final should be an even playing field for the two teams who have earned the right to play in a grand final. It’s a damn long season and both teams deserve an equal playing field. Home ground advantage is absolutely massive! Fairness should be placed ahead of revenue – as almost all major leagues outside Australia do.

And with point 3, once a player steps out of the robotic nature they are programmed to they start to get hate. Think of Dangerfield and Sicily.

 

[Sunset]

3) Lack of personalities: I can see this changing with time, but right now a lot of players are essentially robots that have been programed with a set number of cliques. Time for some reprogramming.

This is true.

When watching the players I don't feel like I'm watching guys around my own age playing footy. I just feel distance as if they are unnaturally robotic. Can't relate or feel immersed in what basically is just a highly paid mercenary.

 

[Frazb]

I actually think it's the older generation who have lost interest. Most 40 and above people I speak to have lost all interest in the game, they keep an eye on their team but they are frustrated at what has happened to this once great sport. The younger generation don't know any different so they go with the flow.

I think this is a recurring theme through the generations and will continue. Talk to the older generations , 70, 80 year olds during the 1980's and 90's and they used to say the same thing. No more stab kicks, torpedos, place kicks, drop kicks, flick passes etc. Personally i just enjoy the games evolution.

 

[Leeda]

Media duplicity..
We want it all now.
Shaking the tree like the tiger only says now that buttering up
again is too easy.
Allowing a double or a threepeat is strangling the league..

 

[Norwood1878]

The majority of games have never been on FTA.

Having three games on FTA TV is much better exposure than a highlights package.

Maybe not all games live, but in the 90s you could waste a weekend watching footy on FTA.

 

[Norwood1878]

Prior to 2001, Channel 7 did not televise local games live against the gate. You would get replays or delayed telecasts. So the only way you got to watch a game was go to the game. With payTV, games began to be telecast live against the gate. So PayTV allowed you to sit down with your family and watch a whole game live as it happened.

As i recall, most Showdowns were telecast live, but only confirmed by the home side after all tickets were sold out, which most were especially in the early days. iirc in 2008 Foxtel wouldn't relinquish it's right after the Showdown was sold out so there was a 30 minute delay for the 7 broadcast.

 

[blaisee]

biggest issue is the reality that kids had options to do other things now, and back in the 70s and 80s we didnt.

There were 5 channels and footy ruled, now there are 500 + gaming + internet + youtube

The AFL cannot win.

The younger generation is less engaged.

In a way they are lucky the tigers and pies are looking good this year because if the GWS and GC were dominating crowds and ratings would be decimated.

The AFL should be careful what is wishes for

 

[Mr_Moogle]

I'd love to see the AFL disintegrate. It's such a corrupt and morally bankrupt organisation.

 

[Collins-Langford-Ayres]

Those who have walked away from the sport- maybe you were never really in "love" with it to begin with.

Otherwise, it would take more than a few boring games to make you walk away.

It should be a very hard decision to stop following something you loved, and only after giving it every chance to get better.

No wonder the divorce rates are up. People don't stick to anything these days, and as soon as it becomes too hard, people sook up and walk away, rather than sticking it out.

If footy suffers because of today's generation, it is because today's generation are a bunch of fickle, me-first spoilt brats who want comfort over substance, and get bored easily. The fault lies with the generation, not the game itself.

And yet the AFL admits the product has got worse... i bet youve stuck with the same Bank for 50 years !


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[Football Tragic]

I don't think people have lost interest in the game. I just think some of the teams that traditionally were powerhouses of the competition over the last couple of decades are not doing so well. All the numbers still suggest that the AFL is the number one sport in the land. Yes, the ratings have dropped this year but see above. I think by the end of the year the ratings will be up and the crowds better than ever. Many of the big games are still to come.

All in all, I feel isn't very much a perspective thing. When you're team is under performing then the game needs radical changing and EVERYONE isn't interested. When your team is doing well the opposite is true. Like always, the truth is probably somewhere is the middle.

 

[Catters 070911]

And yet the AFL admits the product has got worse... i bet youve stuck with the same Bank for 50 years !


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...and you would be the type of person who would plow through marriages like they are going out of fashion, since you never stick to anything long-term.

You obviously have issues with commitment.

 

[sataris]

According to the Ausplay survey there are still almost as many boys under 15 playing organised football as play soccer and basketball combined...

https://www.clearinghouseforsport.gov.au/research/smi/ausplay/results/state

australian football = 157.5
Basketball = 87.5
Soccer = 72.7

Per team australian rules football requires almost double the amount of players as Soccer, and just over 4 times for Basketball.

The important metric is how many teams are there playing?

Australian football = 8 teams (assuming 18 players per team)
Basketball = 17.5 teams (assuming 5 players per team)
Soccer = 6.6 teams (assuming 11 players per team)

 

[Ant85]

I know people will laugh at this, but I think the fact that women's AFL is being forced down our throats now is a sign of the times - the sport is being engulfed by the same leftist agenda that is engulfing the rest of the society. The fact is, nobody gives a s**t or will ever give a s**t about women's AFL. They're telling us we should give a s**t because equality. Men's AFL will suffer because of it.

There seems to be a correlation between those stoking paranoia and fear about the AFL dying and far-right xenophobes and misogynists making the same fear-mongering arguments about non-Anglo immigrants and women.

If footy is losing the racist, wife-beating rednecks, all the better!

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[Silent Alarm]

I'd love to see the AFL disintegrate. It's such a corrupt and morally bankrupt organisation.

I'd be happy to see all traditional clubs continue to exist, with a new organisation propping up a reborn Fitzroy. Maybe keep the Swans in Sydney. Having the SANFL and WAFL even with 7,000-10,000 every week would be a lot more interesting, dynamic, and passionate than now.

The AFL had a great run. The 90s to 2010s were great, but the Hawks were the last great team and that doesn't look like changing. You saw them as clear champions – five or six great players, other guys who did enough, and a bit of cheek and personality. Plus they beat good teams like the Cats, Swans. Who could really say the current Richmond or previous Bulldogs would have won flags even ten years ago? Upsets happen but the fact the Tigers are still the best team says a lot. The competition is too big, the corporate feel has made it sanitised, the obsession with image has ironically made the game's look and feel worse than ever, and the bottom 40% of players are *in mediocre.

It feels more franchisey than ever, less real than ever.

The modern fan is some namby pamby pussy who thinks criticising your team or saying one of your players is s**t, is s**t. You can't call Ross Lyon a deadshit without being called a decoy Eagles fan. You can't say Taberner is a big pussy. It's ****ed.

A competition where each team has its values, which were made over a century, in tact and each competition has a distinct feel would be awesome. Young kids and families would grow up in a distinct zone and you would know who you'd realistically play for. That binds support. You'd flick on the tele to get the SANFL game of the round of the VFL match of the week and then ducking down to watch Souths would be enough footy for me. You could have a short little champions league, a state of origin...