Playing a game of AFL

[huntos]

Is anybody else sick of journalists and media hosts denoting Australian football as the "code of AFL" or AFL as a sport in itself?

Fox sports and other national media seem to think that "AFL" encompasses the sports 149 year history, we have every footballer in the AFL being referred to as an AFL star and regardless of what league past footballers have played in we have every media source referring to them as a AFL great or AFL legend.

I understand that the AFL is trying to "grow the brand" but they should not stand by and allow media in Sydney to denote "AFL" as a code or "AFL" as a sport, Sydney have rugby league played in the NRL and yet we don't hear commentators saying he's a great NRL player, we don't hear journalists saying what a great game of NRL. Sports people from Queensland and NSW honestly believe that they played AFL when they grew up, that is defamatory to every footballer who played a game in the AFL, they are being associated with children playing kick to kick in the park. There are sports hosts which think that they have had an AFL career because they played a reserve game at a local footy club.

It is an injustice to Australian football that people are growing up thinking that AFL is a code of football or a sport in itself when it is not, it is defamatory to great leagues like the WAFL, VFL and SANFL when their century old history is replaced with a league which is only 17 years old. We have the Australian football hall of fame referred to as the AFL hall of fame when some people in there have never played in the AFL. Ron Barrassi never played in the AFL, yet I consistently hear him referred to as AFL legend.

The oldest football club in Australia is the Melbourne football club, but it seems the only club in Australia to have football regularly associated with its name it Sydney FC which is 3 years old compared to 149 years. It would be nice to see footy get the respect which it deserves for its proud position in Australian sporting history instead of being flushed down the toilet with its association with the sometimes farcical AFL, the game is bigger than the AFL.

 

[Plogs]

Is anybody else sick of journalists and media hosts denoting Australian football as the "code of AFL" or AFL as a sport in itself?

Fox sports and other national media seem to think that "AFL" encompasses the sports 149 year history, we have every footballer in the AFL being referred to as an AFL star and regardless of what league past footballers have played in we have every media source referring to them as a AFL great or AFL legend.

I understand that the AFL is trying to "grow the brand" but they should not stand by and allow media in Sydney to denote "AFL" as a code or "AFL" as a sport, Sydney have rugby league played in the NRL and yet we don't hear commentators saying he's a great NRL player, we don't hear journalists saying what a great game of NRL. Sports people from Queensland and NSW honestly believe that they played AFL when they grew up, that is defamatory to every footballer who played a game in the AFL, they are being associated with children playing kick to kick in the park. There are sports hosts which think that they have had an AFL career because they played a reserve game at a local footy club.

It is an injustice to Australian football that people are growing up thinking that AFL is a code of football or a sport in itself when it is not, it is defamatory to great leagues like the WAFL, VFL and SANFL when their century old history is replaced with a league which is only 17 years old. We have the Australian football hall of fame referred to as the AFL hall of fame when some people in there have never played in the AFL. Ron Barrassi never played in the AFL, yet I consistently hear him referred to as AFL legend.

The oldest football club in Australia is the Melbourne football club, but it seems the only club in Australia to have football regularly associated with its name it Sydney FC which is 3 years old compared to 149 years. It would be nice to see footy get the respect which it deserves for its proud position in Australian sporting history instead of being flushed down the toilet with its association with the sometimes farcical AFL, the game is bigger than the AFL.

It annoys the crapper out of me.

 

[FootyJunkie]

It's caught on since its easier to say than "Aussie Rules" and the AFL is effectively the governing body of the entire sport with its brand heavily increased in exposure and recognition compared to say 15 years ago.

Football Park is to AAMI Stadium as...
Aussie Rules is to AFL

 

[Father Jack]

Its just the way language works and evolves. People seem to find it easier to say 'AFL' instead of 'Aussie Rules', and in the north 'footy' could mean any number of things. It used to annoy me too but then I got over it and decided that it was just simpler to go with that. People know exactly what you are talking about and that is the whole point after all.

 

[_Christoh_]

yeah i know what your saying i think this annoys non victorians more than anyone else. heres an example,
I played AFL as a kid.

 

[ChrisFooty]

AFL is a sport in the rugby states. Get used to it. Andrew D and co are the ones behind this marketing ploy, as rugby league is often called footy in NSW and QLD

 

[Casey]

Is anybody else sick of journalists and media hosts denoting Australian football as the "code of AFL" or AFL as a sport in itself?

Fox sports and other national media seem to think that "AFL" encompasses the sports 149 year history, we have every footballer in the AFL being referred to as an AFL star and regardless of what league past footballers have played in we have every media source referring to them as a AFL great or AFL legend.

I understand that the AFL is trying to "grow the brand" but they should not stand by and allow media in Sydney to denote "AFL" as a code or "AFL" as a sport, Sydney have rugby league played in the NRL and yet we don't hear commentators saying he's a great NRL player, we don't hear journalists saying what a great game of NRL. Sports people from Queensland and NSW honestly believe that they played AFL when they grew up, that is defamatory to every footballer who played a game in the AFL, they are being associated with children playing kick to kick in the park. There are sports hosts which think that they have had an AFL career because they played a reserve game at a local footy club.

It is an injustice to Australian football that people are growing up thinking that AFL is a code of football or a sport in itself when it is not, it is defamatory to great leagues like the WAFL, VFL and SANFL when their century old history is replaced with a league which is only 17 years old. We have the Australian football hall of fame referred to as the AFL hall of fame when some people in there have never played in the AFL. Ron Barrassi never played in the AFL, yet I consistently hear him referred to as AFL legend.

The oldest football club in Australia is the Melbourne football club, but it seems the only club in Australia to have football regularly associated with its name it Sydney FC which is 3 years old compared to 149 years. It would be nice to see footy get the respect which it deserves for its proud position in Australian sporting history instead of being flushed down the toilet with its association with the sometimes farcical AFL, the game is bigger than the AFL.

I've had a gut full. AFL is a brand name and a Business, Its a League for **** sake!!!! its not the sport itself. The sports Aussie rules and it shits me when you ask kids what sport they play and they say "AFL". I argue with them on a regular basis!!

 

[johnnyhoward]

AFL is a sport in the rugby states. Get used to it. Andrew D and co are the ones behind this marketing ploy, as rugby league is often called footy in NSW and QLD

Why wouldn't they call rugby rugby? It's easy enough to say.

 

[Andrew Mc]

Why wouldn't they call rugby rugby? It's easy enough to say.

Because Rugby is rugby - rugby being rugby union.

 

[ChrisFooty]

Why wouldn't they call rugby rugby? It's easy enough to say.

Rugby is footy. Just like AFL is footy in the southern states. That is just the way people in non AFL states speak.

 

[FootyJunkie]

I've had a gut full.

Hi Mick

 

[johnnyhoward]

Because Rugby is rugby - rugby being rugby union.

You see I don't get that. Both sports have "rugby" in them, but you can't call rugby league "rugby"...does rugby union have ownership on that term because it 's the bigger/earlier established form of rugby?

 

[Roddy]

I only say AFL when referring to the League itself. When I talk about the sport, I say simply 'Football'. The game originated in Australia. It's Australian Rules football. It's the oldest football league in Australia. It's the biggest Football code in Australia, by far. We live in Australia. Australian Football is 'Football' in Australia. Pretty simple. Anything else is sheer folly and nonsense.......

 

[Winterstick]

i once told a scottish kid i played football, and he asked "do you mean footy" yes i said but we do play football, Aussie rules football

 

[Inside Goss]

The sport needs a governing body similar to FIFA.

At the moment the AFL uses every other competition as puppets, rule changes here, rule changes there tinker with it because they think they own it!
I too am very p***ed off.

The game is Australian Football, Aussie Rules, how is Aussie Rules any harder to say then A F L. People who say that A F L is easier to say and thats why it's said have been brainwashed too.

I'm pretty sure the VFA, SANFL and WAFL (possibly a Tasmanian league too) were around a long time before the VFL/AFL.

 

[Kingpin]

The sport needs a governing body similar to FIFA.

At the moment the AFL uses every other competition as puppets, rule changes here, rule changes there tinker with it because they think they own it!
I too am very p***ed off.

The game is Australian Football, Aussie Rules, how is Aussie Rules any harder to say then A F L. People who say that A F L is easier to say and thats why it's said have been brainwashed too.

I'm pretty sure the VFA, SANFL and WAFL (possibly a Tasmanian league too) were around a long time before the VFL/AFL.

Absolutely. I'm right with you in this.
The AFL itself treats the rest of the code as its personal plaything, where they can stuff around with the whole thing with complete ignorance.
Basically, they see Australian football as 16 teams playing on TV each week and couldn't give two shits for the rest of the hundreds (if not thousands) of clubs and their leagues & associations and their players, fans and workers involved in the sport each season.

Football is more than just 16 teams playing on the telly each week.
I witnessed their handywork involving the constant tinkering and eventual demise of the TFL which had been around since 1879.
Jesus, what a masterstroke that was!
Have virtually destroyed the sport in a city that was once an extremely strong footballing area.
The rest of the state isn't much better.
Happened to be listening to ABC Radio the other day, and they started speaking about 'football', so I listened and all they did was speak about Association Football (aka soccer) both local and national and International for about 40 odd minutes.
Australian football didn't get a mention in the whole program, it would've dominated that locally based program ten years ago.
Not that I begrudge Association Football its airtime in any way, shape or form, I just found it interesting on how things have changed.
The climate is shifting.

 

[Father Jack]

Yes, pretty clever of soccer to call itself 'football', and pretty dopey of the media to buy it.

Just to reiterate, it is different up north, if you say footy/football they assume you are talking about one of the rugby codes. They know what you mean when you say AFL.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

You see I don't get that. Both sports have "rugby" in them, but you can't call rugby league "rugby"...does rugby union have ownership on that term because it 's the bigger/earlier established form of rugby?

That, and outside Australian and PNG league is a long, long way behind union in every other country. Plus in ACT, NSW, Qld "rugby league" is referred to as "football" as often as not. Though that is getting less as the Sydney media start to call "Association Football" (ie soccer) by the term "football".


But back to the original question, yet, it annoys me endlessly. As does the state bodies calling themselves AFL Queensland or whatever state.
The one part of Australian Football the state bodies have little say in is the AFL. I mean, "AFL Tasmania" or "AFL Canberra", really. That is meaningless in itself, but symptomatic of the lost focus of some state bodies.
I think it shows the AFL's obsession with itself ahead of the overall game; and that some of the state bodies likewise put the big league ahead of their own responsibilities - that is, having viable local competitions and trying to improve the standard of their top league (or leagues).