Andrew Demetriou has given his campaign to build support for an AFL club in western Sydney a new name – Team GWS.
With plans to introduce a second team to NSW in 2012, the AFL chief addressed a dinner of 500 business people from western Sydney at ANZ Stadium ahead of Sydney’s round-20 clash with Geelong.
Demetriou said the unveiling of the Team GWS website and logo marked the next stage of the AFL’s expansion plans, designed to engage the community and businesses of greater western Sydney in the campaign for a new team.
“The launch of Team GWS is one of the first steps in the journey towards the development of the identity of the football team,” Demetriou said in a statement on Saturday.
“As this campaign takes shape, we are encouraging the 14 diverse communities of greater western Sydney to join Team GWS and be a part of history. Team GWS is a team we can all be proud of, and be part of, based on unity and inclusion.”
Wary of the hurdles he faces with a push into the rugby league heartland in tough economic times, Demetriou said community support was essential.
He wants fans to be involved in designing the team’s name, logo, colours, theme song and team mascot.
“We want people in the area to take ownership of this club,” he said.
The Team GWS campaign identity incorporates the iconic red AFL Sherrin Football, along with the four goal posts meant to signify a bright future on the horizon.
Demetriou says the Team GWS website, www.teamgws.com.au, encourages community participation and registration.
The AFL chief’s 500 dinner guests have been invited to become financial supporters of the new team.
“The AFL has committed to increasing investment in the area of greater western Sydney over the next eight years,” Demetriou said.
He claimed Team GWS would generate permanent economic and social benefits for the region.
“It all starts here. It all starts with young people who get introduced to the game,” Demetriou told reporters after the dinner.
“We’ve found that with our Auskick programs over many, many years. If you can capture them early, they can start to dream about what can be.
“We’re actually delighted that tonight we’ve got some young lads from the Parramatta Goannas and hopefully this will be the future of what we see here in greater western Sydney.
“We’ve got a long journey and it’s a great challenge for us.
“To see 500 people here tonight from local businesses and communities is a really pleasing start.”
James
Guest
If they can average 20k in the first year, the AFL will be very pleased. Then again, they only need to schedule one of Collingwood, Essendon, Carlton, and maybe a Geelong, Hawthorn or even a Richmond (if they get their act together), and you will get 10,000 travelling fans, leaving them will just 10k to make up the numbers.
The 1 and only Master
Guest
MATT S They have been dishing out free tickets from day dot for the A-league and with very limited success. I got offered a pair of free ticket along with a group of others. No one excepted them.
Michael C
Guest
Onside - it's a 'working title' - that's all. The name, logo extra is all yet to be confirmed and is up for public engagement. That's the whole idea. But, the website for the time being needs a URL. Just as Gold Coast footy club isn't going to be known for ever as GC17, and yet the website is GC17.com.au and that's the 'working title'. Ain't meant to 'inspire'. Yet.
Pippinu
Roar Guru
Bing Lee is SFC's major sponsor!!
Redb
Roar Guru
Logo needs some major work. Good to see the AFL taking a communtity approach which is the only way to build a football club. This way they can judge levels of interest before blindly awarding a licence for club 18. I dont mind Greater Western Sydney as a target market it is better than sitting somewhere between Blacktown and Canberra trying to create something that will be all things to all people and in the end mean nothing to no-one. The area is defined and no doubt the AFL will also look to make it the western NSW team in time. The Swans will be the traditional club, coastal NSW, GWS get WS and country NSW. Still very early days at this stage. But geez note to the marketing boys find a font created in the last 50 years will ya. :-) Redb
Matt S
Guest
They dished out mega amounts of free tickets for the Geelong game. I got offered 5 free tixs at Bing Lee's.
Pippinu
Roar Guru
lauboy I don't know if you know, but 40,000 turned up to ANZ the other night to watch the Swans - I don't know where they come from, but a few must come from those environs.
lauboy
Guest
The Swans have every right to be worried. Where are the fans for the new West Sydney team to come from? If the AFL thinks they are going to create 20-25,000 new fans to watch the new team play then I can only assume that the AFL will be trucking them in from Victoria. I have no doubt the AFL is counting on the people of southern NSW (and even Canberra) to push the crowd figures up for the new team.
The 1 and only Master
Guest
The Gold Coast AFL side will easily average 20-25K from year 1, absolutely no doubt. If they play the big 4 Melbourne clubs along with Adelaide, Geelong and of course the Lions, we are talking 7 sell outs. You would have to imagine 5-10K supporters would travel to the G.C. with any of those 6 interstate clubs, not to mention supporters of those teams now living in QLD and Nth NSW. As time moves on both these new ventures look very solid.
onside
Guest
Sunday arvo Dave.BBQ lunch.The GWS irked.Thats all.You're right.Nothing.
Dave
Guest
The NRL are waitng till the next TV contract
Dave
Guest
What’s in your name comparison? Nothing.
onside
Guest
What's in a name GWS=Greater Western Sydney Soweto =South West Township
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
A paper loss. Yet they still exist. Funny that. Not to say that in the future that some Sydney clubs won't dissapear, that's a given as the Western Sydney AFL team, and others will take sponsorship dollars away from clubs, and some won't be able to make ends meet at all. I think this is why the NRL isn't announcing any new clubs, or a strategy, as it knows that some clubs are going to have to move to survive, and with areas looking for teams, some will have to make the hard decision, and it will be for the good of the game in general.
Pippinu
Roar Guru
DOW that's true - Aussie rules teams have a high cost structure - certainly double that of an A-League club.
Dave
Guest
but even with the cheaper costs all NRL clubs in Sydney make a loss
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
Remember that an AFL team costs twice as much to run as a NRL one. Which means you really need to be a success almost immediately, or the team will bleed money. So NRL can afford to run much lower membership given the comparative smaller costs involved.
Pippinu
Roar Guru
megatron It's really difficult to say at this stage. The titans appear to have got the local crowds onside, but GCU (or at least their owner), has very deep pockets. In relation to the AFL - until now, the wisdom has been that the Gold Coast makes more sense than Western Sydney, and I can see the merit in that because of the emigre factor. But - you've got it - it's a numbers game - the AFL are thinking that they only need 5 to 10% of the local population to be half-interested to make a fist of it. Difficult? Maybe. Impossible? I wouldn't have thought so.
megatron
Guest
I'm starting to think west Sydney is a better proposition than Gold Coast based on population. As shown at last nights Gold Coast A-league match, Gold Coast crowds are gonna struggle
The 1 and only Master
Guest
Another good crowd at ANZ stadium to see Sydney Vs Geelong. Seems to lend support to the idea for a team in Western Sydney. If the Swans are achieving crowds of approx 25K at the SCG then we are looking at around 15K extra for games played out of ANZ. I would make the assumption that only 2/3rds of regular SCG / Swans fans would travel to ANZ, so crowds of 40K would in my opinion constitute 20-25K coming from the greater Sydney area, the area the AFL is targeting. Crowds of 20-25K would be a good result in the first few seasons for the new club