Administrators of the AFL need to rethink the relationship between place identity and demographic markets when expanding their competition in coming years.
Unfortunately, on the evidence of the proposed Western Sydney franchise, administrators are conflating the two, creating an entity based largely on a market demographic which no actual identity to which fans can attach their allegiances.
From an economic perspective, a new team in Australia’s most populous city seems like a smart decision. Furthermore, locating the team in western Sydney makes intuitive sense, as this is where a large percentage of Sydney’s population lives.
Unfortunately, Western Sydney is not a place. It does not exist. It is a figment of the imagination of a marketing executive working somewhere in the AFL commerce section, using statistical data to calculate emerging populations in key demographic areas.
It is a manifestation of the economic imperative that dominates decisions-makers and administrators running our leading football codes. Unless these administrators understand the difference between a demographic market and place-based identity, the new Western Sydney football club will not flourish.
Take the fundamental flaw in the naming of this new team: Western Sydney.
Imagine you are an AFL fan living in Blacktown, devoted to the game you love. In Blacktown, you already have a local team to follow, the Sydney Swans, because Blacktown is, believe it or not, part of Sydney.
Calling the new team Western Sydney implies that somehow the Sydney Swans’ identity does not include the western suburbs of Sydney. Are western Sydney’s Swans fans expected to support the new team when it launches in the new competition?
If the Western Sydney team does enter the competition, will the Sydney Swans be rebranded the Eastern Sydney Swans?
Locating head office and training facilities in Blacktown and playing games out of Homebush might make sense to a marketeer who sees western Sydney as a homogenous lump but to others familiar with Sydney’s geography, these places are worlds apart.
From Blacktown’s perspective, Homebush is positively beachfront.
It’s either fraudulent or misguided to suggest that a team based at Homebush would represent AFL fans who live in places like Blacktown.
I can see how it might seem possible on paper but in reality there’s no related identity.
I can also see the marketing logic in using the name Western Sydney. To an administrator trained in economics and business management, they convince themselves that an identity can be created around a demographic market.
Unfortunately, people in western Sydney, in my experience anyway, don’t think of themselves in their day-to-day place-making activities at belonging to an entity called Western Sydney.
The place they call home tends to go by more localised names, such as the suburb name or the nearest centre (such as Blacktown, Parramatta or Penrith; western Sydney is full of mini-cities).
The AFL needs to latch onto an actual identity that relates to the people of western Sydney rather than attempting to impose one from above.
To this end, I dare the AFL to name their team after an actual place in western Sydney such as Blacktown or Parramatta. At least Parramatta is close to Homebush, which is located on the Parramatta River.
Experience from existing teams in both the NRL and AFL shows that although places are important in maintaining an identity, fan-bases are not always wholly located within the location of the team’s base.
Every AFL team has fans located throughout the country. An AFL team called Blacktown or Parramatta would provide a base for the team’s operations and a place-based identity that would appeal to people in the western Sydney demographic, even if they don’t strictly live in those places.
If I can use language the administrators will understand, simply calling a team Western Sydney creates a placeless entity that will result in your key demographic failing to make a connection to the new team. Despite your intuitive feeling to the contrary, this will limit future financial returns for the AFL’s 18th team.
Your Western Sydney franchise will not survive unless you recognise the importance of place in fans’ engagement with your sport. I’m sorry to tell you this, but Western Sydney is not a place.
You just made it up.
Ian Whitchurch
Guest
Quick, someone tell the Wests Tigers their name is meaningless and pointless. Muppets.
STRATTS
Guest
With a man like Kevin Sheedy on board this is going to give the AFL a real chance of success . My mate Hussy & I have been tossing up names for this new franchise for some time & we thought maybe the West Sydney Falcons. I'm having 2nd thoughts though .....maybe Greater Sydney Falcons would be more acceptable. With a logo like a Falcon in full attack mode .......Just a thought ..........
peterh_oz
Guest
Being a born & bred "westie", brought up on Australian Football, I have said all along that the team's biggest hurdle is the fact that executives in their ivory towers in Sydney and Melbourne think that Homebush is West. It is west of the harbour, but it is a bloody long way EAST of Blacktown. The West Sydney Westies is supposed to be a Blacktown club - with backing from Blacktown Council, training in Blacktown and their headquarters in Blacktown. THEY MUST BE NAMED BLACKTOWN AND THEY MUST PLAY IN BLACKTOWN. If they don't, they are doomed to failure. Unfortunately :(
Michael C
Roar Guru
Mushi - thankyou for the support.
MyGeneration
Roar Guru
And "Football is Football" is a strong argument?
mushi
Roar Guru
Drivel? He’s actually arguing that as a colloquial term and as such the culture is important in terms of its interpretation. Maybe you just cant grasp such small concepts
Pippinu
Roar Guru
Mitch in 20 years time, the NRL might do that. If we believe Oikee - the NRL might even do it within a few years!!
M1tch
Roar Guru
except for the 2nd aleague team (which will fail) all codes are 'allowed' to have 1 team in expansion areas.. afl was in their rights to goto sydhey, league same with storm but seriously their is not much to justify a west sydney afl team..same if NRL went to melb again
Elbusto
Guest
Michael you write a lot of drivel. Its always a sign of a really weak argument. Football is Football. AFL is a small sport played in a small country. Real Football dwarfs it. AFL has no future at all except in the small minds of blinkered people like you.
James
Guest
Lots of news on Western Sydney today (Mayer, concessions etc)...a new article perhaps someone...
Michael C
Guest
"you conveniently forget the Billions who refer to Football in reference to only one game." Ah, but in hundreds of languages, and as per the general usage of the word, that the local 'qualifier' is not required if disambiguation is not an issue. i.e. a single dominant code allows most people to assume what is referred to. Rather like asking for a 'cola' at Maccas - you ain't going to be offered Pepsi. That's easy enough to understand. That usage doesn't mean anything about the real meaning of 'football'. Although, the Rugby folk in the Olympics should grow some balls and ensure that the game is called "Rugby Football"!!! perhaps the greater truth is that the mono-culture footballing nations need to remove their blinkers and learn that football is a bigger world than just soccer. At any rate - I still love that the British pulication "World Soccer" magazine claims to be the leading authority on international football. A bit of a contradiction in terms there ain't it?? I've not seen many AFL, NFL or Rugby stories in there!!!! Fair enough, Soccer360 comes out of Canada, but, ironically claims to be for fans of "The greatest game"......funny, I thought that was Rugby League (I keep hearing). At any rate, 'Football' is a broader word than a single brand. Just as 'purple' is a broader colour than just that used by Cadbury. FIFA can do all it likes to try to convince everyone it's the one true 'football', but, in the English speaking world, they've started from behind the 8 ball and the marketing exercise element of it is there for all to see.
The Link
Guest
Grant Mayer is a good operator and a smart acquisition by the AFL team in WS. Given he hasn't had a job since June or so its hard to see how he's been poached by anyone.
MrE
Guest
'Food bowl' would be more appropriate in some of these countries.
Redb
Roar Guru
yeah, this ones a ring in. :-)
Redb
Roar Guru
no its futbol on the Roar to many of us, sort of a half way house between soccer and football :-) Depending on what part of the country you come from, football is played with a Sherrin.
SideShowBob
Guest
Perhaps so, but that too is changing and we can only move up from here. Furthermore, last time I checked the sport you call "AFL" was officially called "Australian Football", "Aussie Rules" or even "Footy". "AFL" is the correct name for the leading professional league operating out of Australia, and is also but one (albeit the premier) of a growing number of "Australian Football" playing national leagues (amateur) worldwide. Glad to clear that up for you. -- Semantics police
Jeff Baxter
Guest
I'm English and i've called it football, soccer, footy - pretty interchangeable in my experience.
Chris
Guest
These "billions" don't actually speak English. It is so easy to get under the skin of a soccer person - just call it soccer. They can't stand the fact that sporting monoculture is an illusion of theirs rather than reality.
Elbusto
Guest
How very Anglo of you Chris - of course you conveniently forget the Billions who refer to Football in reference to only one game. By the way in Ireland they do not call Gaelic Football 'Football. And in New Zealand and Australia the media is increasingly referring to Football as Football. You and your anglo mates are a diminisihing minority. lol
Chris
Guest
ROFL LOL WTF ROFLCOPTER!!!! Save the LOL's and LMFAO's for the Luke Perry fan club boards where they belong.