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Australian rules football is our dominant sport, receiving the most media attention and broadcasting of all the major sporting codes. However, since John Aloisi smashed that penalty home against Uruguay in 2005, football has been creeping up.
In fact, in some areas football has clearly overtaken Aussie rules.
So will the World Game one day overtake Australia’s game?
Legendary coach Mick Malthouse and renowned journalist Mike Sheahan are just two of many memebers of the AFL community who have voiced their concerns that the sport is losing touch with rural areas, and struggling at the grassroots level.
For football, the grassroots grow with each passing season. The sport is Australia’s second-most played sport among six to 13-year-olds, just 0.1 per cent behind swimming. Aussie rules comes in fifth.
Furthermore, during the 2014-15 season 650,000 people across Australia took part in some form of organised football, whereas only 224,000 participated in a form of Aussie rules.
Clearly the AFL must invest more time and money into reconnecting with the community, rather than just palming those kinds of tasks off to the state federations.
Furthermore, the inception of the FFA Cup has increased and improved relationships between between the nation’s top football sides and the semi-professional clubs. Would a similar competition being run and funded by the AFL help bridge the gap and bring all levels of the game closer together?
Even after Australia qualified for the 2006 World Cup, many considered the A-League as too small, playing boring football. But a league must be built like a country, from the ground up.
Securing footballing communities’ strengths was a must in the early days of the league, and now that that has been achieved, the A-League and the top areas of football in Australia can be focused on.
By contrast, the AFL established a strong, well-functioning competition, but now is going backwards to sure up its weakest link, which is clearly at grassroots level.
In doing so, the AFL is reluctant to assist the league’s struggling clubs – like the Brisbane Lions – apart from handing out alternative and extra draft-picks, something Malthouse also considers not good enough.
As Australia draws closer to Asia, sport is drawing significant Asian investment. The A-League and FFA recognised the benefits of establishing ties with Asia, and the results are already evident. Since joining the Asian Football Federation the overall quality of football played in the A-League and by the Socceroos has increased drastically.
Furthermore, with each passing season, the A-League attracts more interest from Asian investors.
Some AFL clubs, like Port Adelaide, have also begun to cash in, but what is the AFL doing to further strengthen ties with Asia?
Both sports can coexist, as both play crucial roles in the Australian sporting landscape, but there can only be one top dog. The AFL has enjoyed that spot for decades, but is it under threat?
The passion from local communities truly drives Australia’s sporting endeavours and success, and the chants for football are becoming increasingly louder.
It’s time for the hierarchy of the AFL to leave the boardroom and get down to the local clubs, just like David Gallop does.
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