The Australian Football code battle AFL/NRL/Soccer

[.::Stevo::.]

Its going to be an interesting battle in the next 10 years. With the success of the Socceroos at the 2006 World Cup, soccer has awoken somewhat and had brought some succes to the A-League. And with the AFLs plans to expand even further into NSW and QLD where does this leave NRL with its overall attendance and membership rates dropping, whilst AFL's rapidly increasing.

Problems i have with the expansions on the sport.

Soccer - the big issue is the ethnic problems, to many idiots go to the games. Also another which i find Australian soccer to be rather crap is that we can't keep the talent, once a player becomes quite good, he gets shipped off overseas. Just go watch a EPL match, then watch an A-league... the quality gap is amazing and makes it hard to go to the A-league and watch it

NRL - Average club memberships down, crowd attendance down. Frankly i dont see the NRL growing at all. In Victoria, SA, WA and Tasmania, NRL is basically non-existent to the general public which i doubt they can create a decent enough market niche.

AFL - Is creating two new teams in NSW and QLD a good move? Well i think they have to do it. AFL is way ahead of NRL for popularity in Australia which they need to keep attacking. In recent years paticipation numbers in NSW and QLD have increased significantly and the two states are producing quite a few AFL players, compared to Victoria, SA and WA producing hardly any decent rugby players.

What is everyones views. The battle is on!!

 

[Skater]

Organised football has been played in the UK for 145 years, and it's been our national sport for 108. Soccer is an institution. The EPL is now in its 16th season as well. We have experience of it. Australia needs time.

 

[Hooper]

Soccer rose to huge heights after the '06 WC and the following A League season was so popular. But since then I haven't been bothered. NRL is popular over east, but mention it to a bunch of West Australians or South Aussies and they will go "Huh"? Its not an Australian league, its a QLD and NSW league featuring Melbourne who noone in Victoria even cares about. Footy (AFL) is the premier Australian Football sport. Played in every state, teams in almost every state and it is the most played junior sport (IIRC). AFL is still on top.

 

[Sman-21]

I cant see soccer ever overtaking AFL maybe NRL but not AFL.

Australians just cannot stand the way players dive,roll around on ground for 5mins faking injuries etc etc.

It goes against everything we are taught as youngsters playing sport.
Cricket if your hit by ball you dont show pain etc
AFL once again try not to show pain only come off the ground on a stretcher as the last resort..

Soccer to succeed you have to do the complete opposite, someone trys a sliding tackle even if they miss you, u should fake getting hit roll around in pain for 5mins Aussies cannot stand it.
WC 06 showed exactly why aussies cant warm to soccer, they will support Aus but wont fall in love with the game.

 

[usy]

first of all you guys need to get use to calling Football, err Football .

 

[pinchinator]

first of all you guys need to get use to calling Football, err Football .

agreed tbh

 

[Gilly Fan]

AFL >>>>>> Association Football >>>>>> NRL >>>>>>>> Super 14

 

[MattW]

Soccer - the big issue is the ethnic problems, to many idiots go to the games. Also another which i find Australian soccer to be rather crap is that we can't keep the talent, once a player becomes quite good, he gets shipped off overseas. Just go watch a EPL match, then watch an A-league... the quality gap is amazing and makes it hard to go to the A-league and watch it

Problem with A-league for me is the lack of it on Free to Air TV, the NBL had this same problem, but in reverse, they were on Ten for many years and drew huge crowds and TV audiences, but then they went for the big money Pay TV were offering and have suffered ever since.

The A-league needs to be in every lounge room to succeed in becoming the top football code. Sure it has much more exposure than the NSL ever had but quite a lot of that is because of the Socceroos.

A thing soccer has going for it is that the kids are playing it now, partially because parents are so scared of their kids hurting their arm in a tackle they have got them into a non-contact sport.

Personally I quite enjoy playing soccer (not for a team or anything) and watch it on TV occasionally, but I've never seen a match of the A-league. I might go to a match one day though.

NRL - Average club memberships down, crowd attendance down. Frankly i dont see the NRL growing at all. In Victoria, SA, WA and Tasmania, NRL is basically non-existent to the general public which i doubt they can create a decent enough market niche.

I like NRL, but only the State of Origin and Grand Final is on at a decent time for me to watch and unlike AFL in the northern states, getting Pay TV wouldn't help. This is one of the biggest problems with its Victorian growth, lack of exposure in an AFL dominated market. Despite winning the Grand Final last year the Storm still have next to no attention paid to them, the NRL should perhaps consider cutting their losses. The growth is in Queensland and regional NSW for the NRL, they need to be aggressive in stopping the AFL taking over their home markets. The NRL needs to stay second, and if the A-league gets to the top or second (which I think is inevitable) they need to be very close to them and not drop back to where Rugby Union is.

AFL - Is creating two new teams in NSW and QLD a good move? Well i think they have to do it. AFL is way ahead of NRL for popularity in Australia which they need to keep attacking. In recent years paticipation numbers in NSW and QLD have increased significantly and the two states are producing quite a few AFL players, compared to Victoria, SA and WA producing hardly any decent rugby players.

Queensland, Yes, it is a growth area for AFL. The NSW team on the other hand should be going to Hobart or Canberra, they struggled enough getting the Swans to where they are now, they will just split the existing AFL supporter base with very little growth.

As for participation and popularity, it is all fine. I have no interest in it, but the AFL are still growing in those areas.

(For the record, despite AFL being on TV right now I'm watching the Bowls on ABC1)

 

[CortezTheKiller]

As an outsider looking in I think one of the biggest problems the AFL & the NRL face is to decide whether to concentrate on their heartlands or to try to expand into "enemy" territory. It's good to have a league prescence in Vic, but despite the Storm being clearly the best team for the last two years their profile hasn't really increased & the lack of Victorian league players is obvious. AFL seems to have done slightly better, possibly because existing teams were relocated (well technically Fitzroy & the Bears merged, but it looks more like a relocation really) rather than starting from scratch.

League, for me, should use its main advantage: the fact that it's an international sport. It's the national sport in PNG, so maybe a franchise could go to Port Moresby & a second NZ team might be a possibility. This might not raise the profile of the sport in Oz as such, but it would open up new revenue streams & audiences for league.

Association football (soccer) seems to be tied into the fortunes of the Socceroos. Australia went a little football-crazy after 2006 and for the profile to continue to grow it's vital Oz qualify for 2010. Joining the Asian fed looked to be a good idea, but Australia got a horrible qualifying group and with the winners of the Oceanian group getting a play-off against the fifth-placed Asian team it might've been a bit rash. I appreciate Australia now also get to play in the Asian champioships, but that didn't really seem to get very much attention at all.

 

[.::Stevo::.]

first of all you guys need to get use to calling Football, err Football .

um, no. That will probaly never happen...

 

[Sman-21]

yep can never call it football

 

[punterpupnroy]

Aussie Rules always wins. My favorite sport in the world besides cricket. I play it, live it, watch it, breathe it, and eat it

 

[mattfb]

NRL - Average club memberships down, crowd attendance down. Frankly i dont see the NRL growing at all. In Victoria, SA, WA and Tasmania, NRL is basically non-existent to the general public which i doubt they can create a decent enough market niche.

**** off. You dont know what your on about. Attendances are rising, more fans are involved with the odd game being played in Perth, 3 Queensland teams, 1 NZ team and there was talk of another but they went with Titans and League is very popular down in Victoria since Melbourne have made 2 GF's the last 2 years. Stuff Queensland, they already had 2 teams they should have given Victoria another team instead of going with the Gold Coast Titans.

 

[.::Stevo::.]

**** off. You dont know what your on about. Attendances are rising, more fans are involved with the odd game being played in Perth, 3 Queensland teams, 1 NZ team and there was talk of another but they went with Titans and League is very popular down in Victoria since Melbourne have made 2 GF's the last 2 years. Stuff Queensland, they already had 2 teams they should have given Victoria another team instead of going with the Gold Coast Titans.

Calm down, geez. I dont know where you got your statistics from but Fox Sports reported NRL memberships and crowd attendances were down.

And did you just say Rugby League was popular in Victoria!?!?!?!?!? ahahahahahaha

Would any other Victorian like to inform him on how "popular" League is in Victoria!

 

[Hooper]

Matt, face it, no one in Victoria, WA or Adelaide give a rats ass about League. Its all QLD and NSW.