Why doesn't the AFL finally put the NRL back into its place?!

[Papa G]

If you didn't grow up watching or playing footy in the 80s and 90s I'm not even sure why you'd follow it. The AFL has become just so bad. Sport in general is way worse than it was 20 - 30 years ago. Just oversanitised and over engineered. Rugby Union has perhaps gotten better, but I struggle to think of another sport that has.

 

[boncer34]

If you didn't grow up watching or playing footy in the 80s and 90s I'm not even sure why you'd follow it. The AFL has become just so bad. Sport in general is way worse than it was 20 - 30 years ago. Just oversanitised and over engineered. Rugby Union has perhaps gotten better, but I struggle to think of another sport that has.

 

[Papa G]

Am I wrong?

 

[boncer34]

Am I wrong?

Yes

 

[sherb]

Living in Sydney my observation is that V'landys obsesses more about the AFL (publicly at least) than Dillon does about the NRL.

Eg

"If there is one certainty when it comes to Peter V’landys, it’s the fact he will never miss an opportunity to fire a shot across the AFL’s bow."

https://www.news.com.au/sport/nrl/dog-act-peter-vlandys-tears-afl-to-shreds-over-snoop-dogg/news-story/c7f273b615a6dfb9e7f1076e8a905368

 

[ItsAllAboutMe]

QLD is the real opportunity for the AFL to take over, with so many Vic's relocating to Brisbane and Gold Coast since Covid the 'expats' will drive the growth. I have many friends who have made the move, and whilst they still support their Melb based team, its their kids who are wearing Suns and Lions jumpers and playing AFL. AFL is now played in most schools and the junior pathways programs are better than the Vic equivalent. IMO within a generation its a real possibility that AFL would be the dominant sport

The other issue for Rugby, is that at junior level its dominated by the pacific islander migrants whose natural size ensures they have an advantage which is pushing many 'anglo' families to consider AFL when they previously would not.

 

[Aussie in exile]

QLD is the real opportunity for the AFL to take over, with so many Vic's relocating to Brisbane and Gold Coast since Covid the 'expats' will drive the growth. I have many friends who have made the move, and whilst they still support their Melb based team, its their kids who are wearing Suns and Lions jumpers and playing AFL. AFL is now played in most schools and the junior pathways programs are better than the Vic equivalent. IMO within a generation its a real possibility that AFL would be the dominant sport

The other issue for Rugby, is that at junior level its dominated by the pacific islander migrants whose natural size ensures they have an advantage which is pushing many 'anglo' families to consider AFL when they previously would not.

Cricket authorities in the UK many years thought that the young kids of West Indian parents going there would increase junior playing numbers, but instead a vast majority of them kids went and played played soccer.

 

[Chip Scab1]

They have financial struggles in a lot of markets actually such as the UK with clubs going out of business and a consolidation of clubs. And the US competition hasn’t taken off like they were hoping with clubs shutting down. The union international game is strong but their club comps are weakening, which is the opposite for rugby league.

Mate, Rugby Union is only good because of the international aspect.

Cricket authorities in the UK many years thought that the young kids of West Indian parents going there would increase junior playing numbers, but instead a vast majority of them kids went and played played soccer.

It's not a contest.

Who would play cricket when you can earn quadruple playing 90mins, twice a week?

 

[daniel_4tw]

The obsession between the two codes is embarrassing.

A Toronto team are in the World Series for baseball right now, and as a result both NBA and NHL are changing the start times of the Toronto games so it doesn’t clash with the baseball finals.

Why can’t we all get along?

 

[2 eazy]

QLD is the real opportunity for the AFL to take over, with so many Vic's relocating to Brisbane and Gold Coast since Covid the 'expats' will drive the growth. I have many friends who have made the move, and whilst they still support their Melb based team, its their kids who are wearing Suns and Lions jumpers and playing AFL. AFL is now played in most schools and the junior pathways programs are better than the Vic equivalent. IMO within a generation its a real possibility that AFL would be the dominant sport

The other issue for Rugby, is that at junior level its dominated by the pacific islander migrants whose natural size ensures they have an advantage which is pushing many 'anglo' families to consider AFL when they previously would not.

Soccer is most played sport in Australia but isn't close to most popular. Broncos and Maroons will always be dominant sports teams up there .

 

[lalorGOAT]

The obsession between the two codes is embarrassing.

A Toronto team are in the World Series for baseball right now, and as a result both NBA and NHL are changing the start times of the Toronto games so it doesn’t clash with the baseball finals.

Why can’t we all get along?

because the nfl still schedules whenever they want

 

[Norwegian Blue]

The obsession between the two codes is embarrassing.

A Toronto team are in the World Series for baseball right now, and as a result both NBA and NHL are changing the start times of the Toronto games so it doesn’t clash with the baseball finals.

Why can’t we all get along?

The AFL is paranoid about other codes getting exposure. Remember the Women's Soccer World Cup in 2023 and the AFL refused to allow the Matildas to play at the MCG?

 

[ItsAllAboutMe]

Soccer is most played sport in Australia but isn't close to most popular. Broncos and Maroons will always be dominant sports teams up there .

There is no doubt that the Maroons will always be the most popular team in QLD, but this table shows the numbers of kids playing each sport and just as important the level of growth, its not hard to see how AFL will become the dominant sport in the sunshine state before too long.

Comparison Table: Top 10 Sports for QLD Kids Aged 0-14 (Estimated Annual Participants)​

Rank	Sport	Estimated Participants	Notes
1	Swimming	250,000–290,000	Top nationally (38% share); QLD boost from water safety and beaches; ~25% of FairPlay redemptions.
2	Soccer	140,000–170,000	Most popular team sport (15% national); ~48% participation for ages 6-13; high in urban areas.
3	Basketball	100,000–130,000	Fastest-growing; 2nd team sport in QLD (210,000 total participants all ages); school programs key.
4	Dancing	80,000–110,000	Popular for girls (27% national); includes organized classes; recreational overlap.
5	Australian Football (AFL)	60,000–90,000	Growing in QLD (17.9% national kids); ~748,000 national juniors; strong southern influence.
6	Rugby League	50,000–80,000	Cultural staple (esp. north QLD); NRL formats for kids; steady at 8-12% share.
7	Tennis	40,000–70,000	Accessible via clubs/schools; national growth; QLD's warm weather aids year-round play.
8	Cricket	40,000–60,000	Seasonal peak; Cricket Australia formats; ~1.6% regular national but higher in QLD summers.
9	Netball	35,000–55,000	Girls' favorite (1.5% national regular); urban Brisbane focus; FairPlay top redemption.
10	Athletics	30,000–50,000	Track/field via Little Athletics; modified for ages; includes running/jumping; school-based.

 

[Hoops]

The AFL is paranoid about other codes getting exposure. Remember the Women's Soccer World Cup in 2023 and the AFL refused to allow the Matildas to play at the MCG?

‘Not a realistic option’: Why the Matildas aren’t playing at the MCG

It would have been a great spectacle and drawn a huge crowd, but a Matildas World Cup match at the MCG was never a realistic proposition.

www.smh.com.au

The MCG and Marvel Stadium were off limits because of a longstanding regulation by world soccer’s governing body FIFA that a World Cup venue must be exclusively available for soccer for a period beginning two weeks before the tournament and ending a week afterwards, making seven weeks in all.

 

[daniel_4tw]

The AFL is paranoid about other codes getting exposure. Remember the Women's Soccer World Cup in 2023 and the AFL refused to allow the Matildas to play at the MCG?

I remember the AFL releasing the next years fixture in the middle of a Socceroos World Cup final 16 game. Incredible.

 

[2 eazy]

There is no doubt that the Maroons will always be the most popular team in QLD, but this table shows the numbers of kids playing each sport and just as important the level of growth, its not hard to see how AFL will become the dominant sport in the sunshine state before too long.

Comparison Table: Top 10 Sports for QLD Kids Aged 0-14 (Estimated Annual Participants)​

Rank	Sport	Estimated Participants	Notes
1	Swimming	250,000–290,000	Top nationally (38% share); QLD boost from water safety and beaches; ~25% of FairPlay redemptions.
2	Soccer	140,000–170,000	Most popular team sport (15% national); ~48% participation for ages 6-13; high in urban areas.
3	Basketball	100,000–130,000	Fastest-growing; 2nd team sport in QLD (210,000 total participants all ages); school programs key.
4	Dancing	80,000–110,000	Popular for girls (27% national); includes organized classes; recreational overlap.
5	Australian Football (AFL)	60,000–90,000	Growing in QLD (17.9% national kids); ~748,000 national juniors; strong southern influence.
6	Rugby League	50,000–80,000	Cultural staple (esp. north QLD); NRL formats for kids; steady at 8-12% share.
7	Tennis	40,000–70,000	Accessible via clubs/schools; national growth; QLD's warm weather aids year-round play.
8	Cricket	40,000–60,000	Seasonal peak; Cricket Australia formats; ~1.6% regular national but higher in QLD summers.
9	Netball	35,000–55,000	Girls' favorite (1.5% national regular); urban Brisbane focus; FairPlay top redemption.
10	Athletics	30,000–50,000	Track/field via Little Athletics; modified for ages; includes running/jumping; school-based.

Participation does not have huge factor in sport popularity

 

[ItsAllAboutMe]

Participation does not have huge factor in sport popularity

It depends how you define popularity and if eyeballs on the professional level is your only measuring stick.

 

[Atomboy]

When will Coca cola just blow Pepsi away?

What about Tay-Tay vs Katy Perry ?!.

This is the real battle we should all be focussed on.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

The AFL tried pretty hard to make it work from the 70s onwards. It died because the binary red-vs-blue rivalry just isn't there in the same way that it is for NSW/QLD.

The rules around what defined a players "origin" didn't help, and when they finally fixed that they created the Allies monster. That the AFL has managed a serious backward step in eligibility for next year's game is a testament to the fact they do not plan on expanding to ever include other states again.

But, yes, that almost all the market is captured in NSW and Qld - and that they are often close series, the "underdgog" state most often wins, it almost being best v best due to almost solely being two places players come from (there are exceptions), and it being 100% competitive every tackle rather than in the average home and away match where the first two tackles are often played at half-rat-power, does seem to be the major factor. With everything that got built up players actually buy in, rather than have clubs pull them out.

Australian Football never really got that same thing going. Partly due to more states and trying to develop a national footprint, but also becuase they were usually - apart from a couple of carnivals - one-off context free games with no structure or competition to them.

 

[Jibroni]

Soccer is most played sport in Australia but isn't close to most popular. Broncos and Maroons will always be dominant sports teams up there .

I would disagree. A lot of people follow EPL, Serie A, etc but sadly it does not translate to following the local game for various reasons.

The Socceroo's/Matida's would comfortably be our most popular national teams ATM.

 

[Coolangatta]

I would disagree. A lot of people follow EPL, Serie A, etc but sadly it does not translate to following the local game for various reasons.

People don’t want to follow shit leagues I guess lol

 

[KiwiRoo]

I would disagree. A lot of people follow EPL, Serie A, etc but sadly it does not translate to following the local game for various reasons.

The Socceroo's/Matida's would comfortably be our most popular national teams ATM.

Local Football isnt watched because its several rungs below the EPL and other leagues in terms of quality whereas the League and the AFL are the best of their sport in the world

As far as comp comparisons: NRL also has big support in NZ, so that's another 5m people market. Plus their rule changes have been excellent. Not sure you can say the same about AFL

 

[iameviljez]

Plus their rule changes have been excellent. Not sure you can say the same about AFL

Honestly, rule changes have had a much smaller negative effect on the game than tactical evolutions.

 

[iameviljez]

Australian Football never really got that same thing going. Partly due to more states and trying to develop a national footprint, but also becuase they were usually - apart from a couple of carnivals - one-off context free games with no structure or competition to them.

Pretty much - but I also think that the fact that Queensland and NSW (1) share a very well-populated border, and (2) have diametrically opposed identities as states (redneck, laidback QLD vs money-hungry blue-chip NSW) really helps to drive this.

 

[Johnny Bananas]

Has the AFL cemented its place as the nation’s No.1 sport?

A report from Deloitte surveyed a nationally representative sample of 2000 people aged 16 to 92.

www.zerohanger.com

42% of the nation say they're an AFL fan, 30% say they're an NRL fan. The game is doing just fine, they don't need to destroy the NRL or anything.