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Long regarded as the prominent organisation in the Australian sports pecking chain, the AFL faces a crucial period of expansion and potential growth in the coming years.
Its medium term success might just prove its worthiness as the leading sports organisation in Australia.
Below are a series of things which yours truly (a passionate AFL supporter) believes is required for the game:
1. TV revenue.
The coming deal with the networks following the 2011 season looms as a defining moment. If the windfall exceeds $1 billion, it is a sure fire indicator that AFL will rule sports broadcasting for years to come. Here’s what needs to improve:
– Live Friday night football (as well as no more than one hour delay in WA and live telecast of Friday games in NSW/QLD featuring any the NSW/QLD teams).
– Monday night footy. Without this drawcard, there will not be as much potential for bigger bucks in the AFL pocket. Saturday twilight football should be the other major inclusion.
2. Season structure.
The AFL is on a winner with this one. With 18 teams in the comp, a plethora of opportunities is available for the season’s operation. I prefer a simple 24 round home and away season, with emphasis on more blockbusters and the development of Friday night football games in New South Wales.
3. State of Origin.
I like it too much to ignore it. Once every three years; a State of Origin Series should be played. Five teams (Victoria, South Australia, West Australia, Queensland, Indigenous All Stars) playing off against each other throughout the season; before a preliminary final between teams two and three, followed by the final in October, a few weeks after the Grand Final.
Players from other states would go to the state of their choosing, with perhaps a maximum of four “extra” players from none of the above states playing for Vic, SA, WA, IAS or QLD. Can you imagine a Cyril Rioli-lead All Stars hosting a star studded Victoria at ANZ Stadium in Sydney on a Friday night?
Showing off the game’s superstars in this way can only be a good thing. One condition; no person can coach any state team if involved with any club team. Clubs believed to be influencing a player’s State of Origin commitments should be fined serious money; at least $100,000.
4. Connect with the community.
There are some parts of the nation still yet to recognize AFL as a sport worth watching or playing. Polynesian Queensland and New South Wales is embedded in these select areas; and if the AFL shows off its game and players to these regions, then the final jigsaw in the national puzzle could come together.
5. Clubs of the future.
Assume West Sydney and Gold Coast prove to be a success. It is 2030 and the AFL’s final expansion phase arrives. With 10 wealthy Victorian clubs thanks to the AFL’s ownership of Docklands, relocation is no longer an option for any club.
The 19th team should be Tasmania, with the statewide population at this stage about well over half a million. Provided no other codes have established a team in the Apple Isle; the AFL team will attract instant support if games are shared evenly between Launceston and Hobart.
The 20th team is anyone. If the AFL have been marketing the game in Northern Queensland from 2012 onwards then Cairns is an ideal location. Western Australia does seem just as likely though for a third team. With the 2022 football World Cup in Australia having past, the perfect 65,000 Perth Stadium is in use and Perth’s future population projections mean a third city team should work.
Picture an expanded AFL season in 2020 with 18 teams playing from the start of March to end of August. The quality of football on display can only get better as has been the case in the last three to five years. The AFL has the potential to be one of the biggest organizations in the nation on the way to fulfilling its completely national status beginning in the 1980s.
Considering the sport itself is perhaps the most unique and fastest in the world, its potential will only get bigger. If the AFL can harness the demand for the game in the southern states, grow the game in the northern states and ensure that every club has over 30,000 members by 2020 then there can be simply no competition from any other code.
Nobody at AFL HQ will admit it to you, but the secret desire of making AFL in Australia the equivalent of the NFL in America is burning ever stronger.
As of now, the AFL is number one on the nation’s sports popularity table but if they play their cards right, this time in 30 years it could be king.
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.