How would you get into becoming an AFL Scout?

[Jonts]

Title says it all

Is a bloody hard job to do, just curious how someone would go about it

 

[WCE_phil]

Title says it all

Is a bloody hard job to do, just curious how someone would go about it

A lot of it is about who you know not what you know and freelance scout work once you take into account travel expenses and such you'd get almost as much on the dole.

 

[Keystone agony]

A lot of it is about who you know not what you know and freelance scout work once you take into account travel expenses and such you'd get almost as much on the dole.

Well said, was gonna say the exact same thing

All about who you know not what you know, also a name helps but not required.

I think an AFL scout gets about 20k a year. Pretty sure you rarely fly to other states now, because they have scouts covered in every state and the main recruiting officers are the only ones who fly around which is all paid for and they get a shitload more.

Id think you would get taxed pretty hard though, similar to WAFL players.

Doesnt saying its a hobby, mean less tax? i have little idea bout tax haha

 

[josh the gent]

Well said, was gonna say the exact same thing

All about who you know not what you know, also a name helps but not required.

I think an AFL scout gets about 20k a year. Pretty sure you rarely fly to other states now, because they have scouts covered in every state and the main recruiting officers are the only ones who fly around which is all paid for and they get a shitload more.

Id think you would get taxed pretty hard though, similar to WAFL players.

Doesnt saying its a hobby, mean less tax? i have little idea bout tax haha

Scully's dad gets 100k doesn't he

You won't get taxed any harder as a scout, than you would as any other worker. The Australian tax system is a sliding scale based on how much money you earn in a given year, regardless of what your occupation is.

WAFL players wouldn't get taxed any harder than anyone else in Australia.

From memory, if you earn 20k only, you will fall into the bottom bracket of tax %, which is 15% of (20k less the tax-free threshold - 6,500 I think). I.e. **** all!

Trying to classify it as a hobby doesn't do shit, because you are being paid for services. However if your accumulated expenses were to lower your actual salary to under the tax-free threshold amount, then you would pay no tax.

Phew!

 

[BOND 007]

I would suggest for most it would be a part timejob. Of the ones I know - one is a teacher, 2 are firemen and funnily enough one owns a doctors practise.

Of the 4, only 1 played football at a better than average level. The doctor has a brother who is a club president, and one of the firemen has been involved in football since he was a kid as his dad and uncles played senior football. Have no idea how the other 2 got involved.

 

[Keystone agony]

Scully's dad gets 100k doesn't he

You won't get taxed any harder as a scout, than you would as any other worker. The Australian tax system is a sliding scale based on how much money you earn in a given year, regardless of what your occupation is.

WAFL players wouldn't get taxed any harder than anyone else in Australia.

From memory, if you earn 20k only, you will fall into the bottom bracket of tax %, which is 15% of (20k less the tax-free threshold - 6,500 I think). I.e. **** all!

Trying to classify it as a hobby doesn't do shit, because you are being paid for services. However if your accumulated expenses were to lower your actual salary to under the tax-free threshold amount, then you would pay no tax.

Phew!

I know for a fact that WAFL players get about 8-12k back if they earn like 20k, i think they only get 40% of their actualy salary.

Its seen as a second job so you get hit hard. I know plenty of WAFL players been involved and mates with many aswell. They get bugger all.

 

[The Falcon Strike]

I know for a fact that WAFL players get about 8-12k back if they earn like 20k, i think they only get 40% of their actualy salary.

Its seen as a second job so you get hit hard. I know plenty of WAFL players been involved and mates with many aswell. They get bugger all.

The tax is the same for everyone.

It's simply an accumulation of your entire earnings. If you are a sparky and earn $100K plus $20 k in the WAFL - the marginal tax is about $8k on your WAFL earnings.

If you are a student and earn $20k in the WAFL with no other earnings - you'll pay almost no tax.

Second job means squat - it's simply the cumulative income you earn. A person with two low paying jobs will pay less tax than a person with 1 high paying job.

 

[Keystone agony]

The tax is the same for everyone.

It's simply an accumulation of your entire earnings. If you are a sparky and earn $100K plus $20 k in the WAFL - the marginal tax is about $8k on your WAFL earnings.

If you are a student and earn $20k in the WAFL with no other earnings - you'll pay almost no tax.

Second job means squat - it's simply the cumulative income you earn. A person with two low paying jobs will pay less tax than a person with 1 high paying job.

Has there been a change in tax law, because im talking about past years. Talking to several league players saying they get taxed alot. I can only go from the horses mouth.

 

[dlanod]

Has there been a change in tax law, because im talking about past years. Talking to several league players saying they get taxed alot. I can only go from the horses mouth.

And TFS is explaining why they can say that, be right, but still fit within the tax system. Tax is calculated off total income.

I think another problem would be that your main job would be PAYG. I don't know if the WAFL is, but even if it is you would easily get a tax bill at the end of the financial year when the ATO put the two together.

 

[footyman]

I think an AFL scout gets about 20k a year. Pretty sure you rarely fly to other states now, because they have scouts covered in every state and the main recruiting officers are the only ones who fly around which is all paid for and they get a shitload more.

20k? A part time (ie. weekends), state based scout gets closer to $5k. Some of the better, more experienced guys will be $8k-$10k.

 

[josh the gent]

I know for a fact that WAFL players get about 8-12k back if they earn like 20k, i think they only get 40% of their actualy salary.

Its seen as a second job so you get hit hard. I know plenty of WAFL players been involved and mates with many aswell. They get bugger all.

What you are talking about is the PAYG contributions they pay on their second job.

To simplify it, PAYG is the mandatory contribution any salary earner in Australia has taken out of their weekly/fortnightly/monthly pay, to the tax office. This is done so that at the year end the ATO aren't chasing a huge bunch of people who spent all the money they should have saved for tax.

if you have a second job, you are required to pay a higher rate of PAYG on that job.

However, when you do your tax return at the year end, it is your total earnings that are assessed, and that is what you pay your ultimate tax on. Any overpayments are paid back via your tax return.

Therefore, when you hear those players in the WAFL complaining that they pay a lot of tax on their earnings, ask them what their tax returns are like!

They will either shut up, or brag about how much they get!

 

[WCEforeverman]

Surely you could scout as a hobby and then test the waters after a while. Go see local games, write up reports for yourself and compare them to other information you are able to find to see if you are a good judge of talent.

If you go to enough colts/tac games you would be able to network with existing scouts and recruiters. Get your name out there as someone who watches a lot of football and knows his stuff.

After a while you could submit some reports to local clubs and see if you get any interest. That is what I would do anyway.

 

[Humble Minion]

What WCEforeverman said.

Start at the bottom, put in the work, post it online or pass it on to clubs so that someone reads it, hope to get noticed.

But don't expect too much. Talking to one paid recruiter I know, he estimated that he gets approximately $5 an hour for all the work he puts in. Watching tapes (sometimes multiple times focusing on different kids or different aspects of kids games), watching local or school footy or the u16s, writing reports. It's a load of work and not something you do for the $.

I write a fair bit about the TAC, but I've got no pretentions or expectations of ever getting paid for this - I know full well I haven't got the technical or tactical football knowledge to scout professionally, and I've got too many competing claims on my time to put in the work to change that. I do it because I enjoy it.

Suggest you take the same attitude (at least the 'no expectations' bit - obviously unlike me you'll HAVE to improve your footy knowledge if you have ambitions of doing this seriously) and see how things pan out.

 

[ant555]

A good few years building profiles and contacts.

Having some role in the game that gives you contact with the under 18 level , TAC or Colts in SA or WA.

Plenty of voluntary work.

Be in a position where you can afford to work part time or at least 30 hours a week so you have time to watch enough games and write detailed profiles on as many players as you can.

Meet as many people as you can in and around the system without being too pushy and pestering. Build a relationship with these guys slowly.

Be confident in your ability but always have open ears.

Watch as much footy as you can without watching the obvious, go to AFL games and look at the off the ball stuff like running patterns, players working off the ball etc.

Be prepared to spend a good 5 to 10 years doing all of this unless you have an inside contact already.

Volunteering for some of the support roles in TAC or Colts is a good starting point to meet people.