AFLs love affair with Gambling. Is the game compromised?

[longdonkey]

To be fair I'm not sure people are looking in the right place. I doubt there is corruption between the AFL and betting agencies to corrupt results because betting agencies make their profit on the split and there is an algorithm in place to maintain the split. In theory the agency will win no matter the result.

However the AFL have been quite transparent in the past about the commercial advantages of Melbourne teams being the more successful clubs and I have no doubt that results have been compromised in the past. And I have no doubt last night watching the game that the Bulldogs were given an unfair advantage. As a Port supporter we always talk about Port Tax at the tribunal as we are nearly always penalised harshly.

I used to say that there is no way that cricket is corrupt. Well they showed me!

 

[basashi]

To be fair I'm not sure people are looking in the right place. I doubt there is corruption between the AFL and betting agencies to corrupt results because betting agencies make their profit on the split and there is an algorithm in place to maintain the split. In theory the agency will win no matter the result.

However the AFL have been quite transparent in the past about the commercial advantages of Melbourne teams being the more successful clubs and I have no doubt that results have been compromised in the past. And I have no doubt last night watching the game that the Bulldogs were given an unfair advantage. As a Port supporter we always talk about Port Tax at the tribunal as we are nearly always penalised harshly.

I used to say that there is no way that cricket is corrupt. Well they showed me!

Yes, if games are tainted by a gambling scam then it is very unlikely to be related to the major betting agencies looking after a book on a particular market. they have good controls in place to try to make sure their margin is the same regardless of the outcome.

Certainly there have been games where umpiring has been one sided... and to an extent that must be easily noticeable to the umpires. We all have our theories but what is needed is evidence.

 

[melbun]

what is needed is evidence

Indeed. Note the gambling agencies will/do go to great effort to see that things are straight and appear to straight. Gamblers won't bet on rigged game (unless they know the winner).
Their problem is my problem, namely; the GCS game appeared to be bent.

 

[Dizzy Stuff]

Shame old mate who left his flags sticking out of the post didn’t get the memo.

 

[Grin]

Port will get shafted this afternoon to keep the locals happy today, watch the count it'll be obvious again.

The umpires got Port over the line so it's definitely not Vic Bias.

 

[Grin]

However the AFL have been quite transparent in the past about the commercial advantages of Melbourne teams being the more successful clubs and I have no doubt that results have been compromised in the past.

That must be why non-Melbourne based teams are so much more likely to make the finals. Although I do concede that your club doesn't get all the advantages over Melbourne based clubs that you feel entitled to.

 

[Dockeroo]

Nathan Brown

22

Nathan Brown

Age

35

Ht

196cm

Wt

99kg

Pos.

Def

Career

Season

Last 5

D

8.8

2star

K

3.9

2star

HB

4.9

4star

M

2.7

3star

T

1.8

4star

No current season stats available

D

6.4

2star

K

3.2

2star

HB

3.2

3star

M

1.8

2star

T

2.8

5star

reminds me of Voldemort in Harry Potter. Just like Tom Riddle split his soul into seven Horcruxes in an effort to become immortal, Nathan Brown

22

Nathan Brown

Age

35

Ht

196cm

Wt

99kg

Pos.

Def

Career

Season

Last 5

D

8.8

2star

K

3.9

2star

HB

4.9

4star

M

2.7

3star

T

1.8

4star

No current season stats available

D

6.4

2star

K

3.2

2star

HB

3.2

3star

M

1.8

2star

T

2.8

5star

also sacrificed his soul to sportsbet. It’s been split into a number of different Multis that keep rolling over week to week, year to year. Nathan will now never die and his legacy will live for ever, in the form of same game Multis.

 

[Ati Tude]

Anyone who thinks there wasnt an effort to get the Dogs up last night is kidding themselves regardless of the motive.

The Dogs burst out of the blocks and kick 3.2, Gold Coast respond and cut the margin to a few points all the while on the wrong end of a 0-9 free count.
GC hit the front and with 90 seconds to go till half time...HALF TIME, still havent received 1 free kick.
But thats not the most obvious part, the blatently obvious part is the lack of frees paid either way in the 2nd half of the 2nd qtr, couldnt continue blowing out the 0-9 count to the Dogs, couldnt give any to GC as they'd pulled a 3 goal lead, so nothing gets paid, even the obvious ones to the Dogs and then finally, facing an unheard of 0 free kick count to one team at half time, they clearly get the message to fix that anomoly, pay 2 to GC in the final 90 seconds, GC kick a goal and the lead is stretched to 22pts at the half, a necessary evil im sure.

Then it gets real interesting, they come out after half time and resume a normally umpired game which see's the Dogs still awarded some frees but GC a few more to make it look less obvious.
Then the last qtr comes around, Dogs again get the rub, extend their free kick count and with minutes to go get some very dubious adjudication to bring them within a goal whilst blatently obvious frees to GC go unpaid over and over again.

So its not just the last few decisions in the last few minutes, its the biased umpiring in the first half that led to the 9-0 count, the lack of obvious calls when they'd gone too hard early for the Dogs, the 2 free kicks paid to avoid the optics of the alternative late in the 2nd, the sudden evenly umpired 3rd qtr followed by another first half performance to the Dogs in the 4th to try and get them up.

Is it match fixing? No doubt an attempt, is it for money? I dont think so, I think its a case of needing a win for the Vic fans who until that point we're winless for the weekend.
Essendon would provide some relief but dont kid yourselves, Port will get shafted this afternoon to keep the locals happy today, watch the count it'll be obvious again.

Cue the lols, conspiracy tin foil, vicbias hashtags, whatever you like, the fact remains, in a cold wet shithole of a town the only thing you have left is the footy and you cant handle losing at it.

That was some fascinating analysis and theory, until I checked and happened to notice that Port ended up winning and had 23 frees to 14. Oh, well.

 

[jim boy]

We all have our theories

I have one - it is that umpires are human and can have bad nights for any number of reasons, not all of them involving sinister underworld figures, could be as simple as a lack of sleep due to a young child that leads to judgement impairment.

 

[basashi]

I have one - it is that umpires are human and can have bad nights for any number of reasons, not all of them involving sinister underworld figures, could be as simple as a lack of sleep due to a young child that leads to judgement impairment.

all possible but I guess we are talking more about games in which one team gets a better run than the other throughout the game. given the league's track record with governance issues it is fair to at least ask the question as to why this happens. but evidence is key, as i said before.

when it is important not to jump to conclusions about sinister interference it is also important not to jump to vague and unsupportable conclusions that everything is rosy when it isn't

 

[PenfoldsFan]

The umpires got Port over the line so it's definitely not Vic Bias.

I agree, to be honest I wasn't really sure how it would go, they'd either ignore public criticism and go in dry on us or buckle and give us the rub to bring about comments like yours and appear to be non biased.
They obviously went with the second option and here we are.

None of that excuses the fact that the games that stand out in recent history for their blatently one sided umpiring displays are always Vic V non Vic games that favour the Vic side.

 

[StillAtLarge]

That gc game stunk to high heaven. We all saw it

 

[PenfoldsFan]

I have one - it is that umpires are human and can have bad nights for any number of reasons, not all of them involving sinister underworld figures, could be as simple as a lack of sleep due to a young child that leads to judgement impairment.

Totally agreed, only question is, why do these off nights to the extent we saw Saturday night always come about in Vic V non Vic games and always go in favor of the Vic club?
The thing is, regardless of the motive for an umpiring display like that, be it intentional or 'having a bad night' no one can explain away how 1 team can get 9 frees in a half to 0, the whistle then getting put away followed by 2 free's against the grain with 90 seconds to go and not come to the conclusion that the field umpires are receiving instruction from someone in the stands.
If thats the case, and it obviously was, the integrity and motive come into question.

 

[melbun]

unsupportable conclusions that everything is rosy when it isn't

I make no assertions as to why the umpiring is influencing outcomes. But the GCS game leaves me asking for evidence that things are on the level.

 

[basashi]

I make no assertions as to why the umpiring is influencing outcomes. But the GCS game leaves me asking for evidence that things are on the level.

fair comment

 

[Grin]

None of that excuses the fact that the games that stand out in recent history for their blatently one sided umpiring displays are always Vic V non Vic games that favour the Vic side.

Well the games that stand out to you in recent history are. But that's only because it suits the vic-bias conspiracy theory which is demonstrably delusional.
Got a Free kick differential ladder for the past 5 years or so?

 

[PhilX]

When the level of incompetence is unbelievable, it probably is.

Last nights game was unbelievable.

Never attribute to malice that which can be explained by incompetence.

 

[melbun]

Never attribute to malice that which can be explained by incompetence.

Always consider both malice and incompetence as a possibility.
e.g. The malicious can also be stupid.

 

[WillHayward]

General consensus amongst fans and media is Gill did a great job but nobody has properly scrutinised the fact that he spent a good portion of energy during his tenure slowly increasing the links between sport and gambling so as now the game is wholly dependent on it. Its a disgrace.

The mindset that Gil and his executive think they are all deserving of pay rises and a greater share of game revenue ahead of footy departments shows their mindset.

They believe that the corporatism of the game and gambling is paramount.

Sadly hes such a good salesman that people have generally all bought the idea he did a good job and "got the game through COVID"..

 

[Funk]

Anyone who watched the GC v Dogs game last night witness an umpiring performance so biased towards the Dogs, that questions need to be asked.

The disturbing thing is that commentators dont comment on bad decisions anymore…

There seems to be preferred results in alot of games where one side seems to get the better of the umpiring.

And you can’t comment about it or you’ll get fined!!!

Last month the AFL admitted getting a cut from the profits from gambling!!!!
So the more the sportsbet companies win the more the AFL WIN!!!

The game has been compromised and there are preferred results the AFL wants, to boost profits…..

AFL receives cut of gambling turnover outside sponsorship, inquiry hears | Gambling | The Guardian

Gillon McLachlan says product fee arrangements with wagering companies generate ‘a percentage of their operations on the AFL’

amp.theguardian.com

“AFL admitted getting a cut from the profits from gambling!!!!”

Really?

You mean the self professed moral guardians of our “community” (refer gay marriage, LGBTQ, Pride rounds, VOICE referendum, violence against women etc etc etc) would actually take $ from gambling companies and encourage it?

”I’m shocked to be sitting here”……………………………..

 

[WillHayward]

“AFL admitted getting a cut from the profits from gambling!!!!”

Really?

You mean the self professed moral guardians of our “community” (refer gay marriage, LGBTQ, Pride rounds, VOICE referendum, violence against women etc etc etc) would actually take $ from gambling companies and encourage it?

”I’m shocked to be sitting here”……………………………..

It also means the fundamental economics of the game are now underpinned by gambling. The game's financial structures depend on that revenue.

So absolutely the game is now compromised and the AFL have been doing this slowly but surely.

 

[longdonkey]

That must be why non-Melbourne based teams are so much more likely to make the finals. Although I do concede that your club doesn't get all the advantages over Melbourne based clubs that you feel entitled to.

To be fair clubs like North Melbourne, St Kilda, Western Bulldogs and Hawthorn suffer more from a large club Victorian centric AFL than most of the "interstate clubs". Non-Victorian clubs have won 2/15 last premierships I think you'll find we have NO advantages.

 

[longdonkey]

Well the games that stand out to you in recent history are. But that's only because it suits the vic-bias conspiracy theory which is demonstrably delusional.
Got a Free kick differential ladder for the past 5 years or so?

Do you have stats for goals from free kicks because I believe that they will not release those numbers. And free kick differential means nothing.
What matters is decisions that change the outcome of games.

2 cases this year
Non call North Melbourne v Fremantle for deliberate out of bounds (Fremantle would be in the 8 now if they got a draw)
50 metre penalty to Carlton v GWS for arguing with the umpire. (Carlton would be 14th and GWS 13th if the result was reversed)

 

[longdonkey]

The umpires got Port over the line so it's definitely not Vic Bias.

It's a conspiracy to lumber us with a dud coach for the next 3 years. Sorry you were in the wrong place at the wrong time. I'm sure a week after Hinkley is re-appointed normal coverage will be resumed.

 

[Grin]

Do you have stats for goals from free kicks because I believe that they will not release those numbers. And free kick differential means nothing.
What matters is decisions that change the outcome of games.

2 cases this year
Non call North Melbourne v Fremantle for deliberate out of bounds (Fremantle would be in the 8 now if they got a draw)
50 metre penalty to Carlton v GWS for arguing with the umpire. (Carlton would be 14th and GWS 13th if the result was reversed)

So you don't have stats to back up your conspiracy theory. Thought not. Anyway this isn't another thread about some mythical Vic bias. It's asking if the AFL relationship with gambling is compromising the game.