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The Australian Football League (AFL) is both the professional Australian national competition in the sport of Australian Rules Football and its highest governing body.
The league comprises sixteen teams which play against each other in 22 home and away rounds between late March and late August or early September. This is followed by a four-week finals series which culminates in two teams playing off for the Premiership in the AFL Grand Final, the best attended domestic club championship event in the world.
The organisation which became the Australian Football League was formed in 1897 when eight teams from the Victorian Football Association (VFA, established 1877) broke away to begin the Victorian Football League (VFL). By 1925 the league had expanded to twelve teams (all based in Victoria), a configuration that remained stable until 1982 when the league commenced its expansion towards a national competition by relocating a team from Melbourne to Sydney, New South Wales.
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Timeline
Encyclopedia
The Australian Football League (AFL) is both the professional Australian national competition in the sport of Australian Rules Football and its highest governing body.
The league comprises sixteen teams which play against each other in 22 home and away rounds between late March and late August or early September. This is followed by a four-week finals series which culminates in two teams playing off for the Premiership in the AFL Grand Final, the best attended domestic club championship event in the world.
The organisation which became the Australian Football League was formed in 1897 when eight teams from the Victorian Football Association (VFA, established 1877) broke away to begin the Victorian Football League (VFL). By 1925 the league had expanded to twelve teams (all based in Victoria), a configuration that remained stable until 1982 when the league commenced its expansion towards a national competition by relocating a team from Melbourne to Sydney, New South Wales. Since then five additional teams from Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia have joined the league.
The league was officially renamed the Australian Football League in 1990 to reflect the sport's official name of "Australian Football" and the league's new national perspective and today has teams based in five of the six Australian states - with matches played in all states and territories of Australia.
The AFL has gained considerable media and financial strength, as well as control over the game at most levels. It is now responsible for the rules of Australian Football through the AFL Rules Committee (consisting of members from the AFL Players Association). The AFL also became the de facto world governing body in 2002. Since 2000, through the commission, the AFL has pushed for all affiliated leagues and bodies to co-brand with the league as well as refer to the sport as "AFL" in preference to its official name of "Australian Football".
The AFL is the most attended professional sporting league in Australia; it is the most popular sport competition in terms of attendances and TV ratings of the nation. The previous three AFL Premiership Seasons have each had a total home and away season attendance of over six million (currently the 10th most attended professional sports league in the world) with an average attendance of over 36,000. The AFL is the dominant league in television, print, and radio news in Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia, Northern Territory and Tasmania.In addition, Australian rules football is the most participated football code in these states and territories. Despite the traditional popularity of rugby league in the states of New South Wales,Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory, the popularity of the AFL and participation in Australian rules football is increasing.
Clubs
Since 1997 the AFL has consisted of nine clubs based in Melbourne, Victoria, one in Geelong, Victoria, two teams based in Adelaide, South Australia, two Western Australian teams and one each in Sydney, New South Wales and Brisbane, Queensland. The league operates on a single group system, with no divisions, conferences nor relegation and promotion from other leagues.
Many of the current AFL teams date back to the beginnings of the sport of Australian rules football, including the very first club, Melbourne Football Club (1858), a foundation VFL/AFL club whose founders also first codified the sport in 1859. The Victorian Football League, commonly known as the VFL, started in 1897 with eight teams from the Victorian Football Association (VFA): Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Fitzroy, Geelong, Melbourne, South Melbourne, and St Kilda. Richmond and University entered in 1908, but University disbanded in 1915. In 1925, Footscray (later known as the Western Bulldogs), Hawthorn and North Melbourne (later known as the Kangaroos) entered the competition. It remained in this 12-team single-state configuration until 1982 when South Melbourne relocated to Sydney, New South Wales to become the Sydney Swans.
The next phase of national expansion occurred in 1987, with the introduction of the West Coast Eagles from Western Australia and the Brisbane Bears from Queensland.
The league was renamed the Australian Football League in 1990 to reflect the expanded nature of the competition.
South Australia was first represented in 1991 when the Adelaide Crows joined the league. The Fremantle Football Club joined as the second WA team in 1995. After the 1996 season the Brisbane Bears merged with Fitzroy, creating the Brisbane Lions in 1996 and the Port Adelaide Football Club joined to maintain the league at 16 teams.
Present teamsstyle="position: relative; ">
| Club | Nickname | Location | Home Ground | 2008 Membership |
|---|
| Adelaide Football Club | Crows | Adelaide, South Australia | AAMI Stadium | 48,720 | | Brisbane Lions Australian Football Club | Lions | Brisbane, Queensland | The Gabba | 22,737 | | Carlton Football Club | Blues | Melbourne, Victoria | Telstra Dome | 39,360 | | Collingwood Football Club | Magpies | Melbourne, Victoria | Melbourne Cricket Ground | 42,498 | | Essendon Football Club | Bombers | Melbourne, Victoria | Telstra Dome | 41,947 | | Fremantle Football Club | Dockers | Fremantle, Western Australia | Subiaco Oval | 43,366 | | Geelong Football Club | Cats | Geelong, Victoria | Skilled Stadium
Telstra Dome | 36,850 | | Hawthorn Football Club | Hawks | Melbourne, Victoria | Melbourne Cricket Ground
Aurora Stadium | 41,436 | | Melbourne Football Club | Demons | Melbourne, Victoria | Melbourne Cricket Ground | 29,619 | | North Melbourne Football Club | Kangaroos | Melbourne, Victoria | Telstra Dome
Gold Coast Stadium | 32,600 | | Port Adelaide Football Club | Power | Adelaide, South Australia | AAMI Stadium | 34,185 | | Richmond Football Club | Tigers | Melbourne, Victoria | Melbourne Cricket Ground | 30,820 | | St Kilda Football Club | Saints | Melbourne, Victoria | Telstra Dome | 30,063 | | Sydney Swans Australian Football Club | Swans | Sydney, New South Wales | Sydney Cricket Ground
ANZ Stadium | 26,721 | | West Coast Eagles Football Club | Eagles | Perth, Western Australia | Subiaco Oval | 44,863 | | Western Bulldogs Football Club | Bulldogs | Melbourne, Victoria | Telstra Dome | 28,306 | Membership figures as at June 30th, 2008. >
Former teams
New TeamsThe AFL is considering issuing the following new licences, most likely to debut as AFL clubs between 2010-2013.
Early in 2008, a meeting held by the AFL discussed the issue of two new teams entering the AFL competition. AFL officials confirmed that a new team on the Gold Coast and possibly a new team in West Sydney would enter the competition around 2010. Also in April, Tasmanian premier Paul Lennon, had a meeting with the AFL to discuss the posibillity of a new team based in the State of Tasmania. Canberra and Darwin are also often suggested as a future location for teams, however all three have been ruled out by the AFL primarily on economic and demographic grounds
Stadiums
The major AFL Stadiums, and their capacity and home teams:
- The MCG (Melbourne) - 100,000 - Melbourne Demons, Essendon Bombers, Carlton Blues, Richmond Tigers, Collingwood Magpies, Hawthorn Hawks, North Melbourne Kangaroos.
- Telstra Dome (Melbourne) - 53,355 - St. Kilda Saints, Carlton Blues, Essendon Bombers, North Melbourne Kangaroos, Western Bulldogs.
- The SCG (Sydney) - 43,649 - Sydney Swans
- ANZ Stadium (Sydney) - 83,500 - Sydney Swans
- AAMI Stadium (Adelaide) - 51,515 - Adelaide Crows, Port Adelaide Power
- Subiaco Oval (Perth) - 42,922 - West Coast Eagles, Fremantle Dockers
- The Gabba (Brisbane) - 42,000 - Brisbane Lions
- Skilled Stadium (Geelong) - 28,500 - Geelong Cats (also play games in Melbourne at Telstra Dome.)
- Aurora Stadium (Launceston) - 23,000 - Hawthorn Hawks (play 4 home games a season here, and the rest at the MCG)
In recent years, teams based in the state of Victoria, Australia have played games in other states to pave the way for new teams entering the competition. Recently, this has included Hawthorn which plays home games in Launceston, Tasmania - St. Kilda which has played home games at Aurora Stadium in Launceston, Tasmania in the recent past - North Melbourne which has played games at Manuka Oval in Canberra, and Carrara Oval on the Gold Coast - the Western Bulldogs which has played games at Manuka and at Marrara Oval in Darwin, Northern Territory and at the Sydney Cricket Ground - and Melbourne which has played games at Carrara Oval and The Gabba in Queensland.
Playing lists
The AFL has tight controls over the player lists of each club. Each club can have a senior list of 38 players plus up to six rookie or veteran players. From 2006, up to two international rookies are also permitted. Clubs can only trade players during a "trade week" at the end of each season and can only recruit new players through the AFL Draft. The rules for the draft have changed every few years since it was introduced in 1986, but the basic philosophy remains in that players are selected by clubs in the reverse of the order of their positions on the ladder at the end of the preceding season. That is, the club that finished last has first draft selection, then the club that finished second last. However, this philosophy has been compromised by giving priority picks to clubs which win fewer than four matches during the season and by allowing clubs to select sons of former players under a "father - son rule" which itself has been varied over the years.
A salary cap (known as the Total Player Payments or TPP) is also in place as part of the league's equalisation policy.
In 2007, this is AUD$7 million per club. Salaries of draft selections are fixed for two years. Salaries for senior players are not normally released to the public, although the average is estimated at A$200,000 and the top few players can expect to earn up to AUD$1,000,000 a year.
Infringements by clubs in relation to exceeding the TPP, not informing the AFL of payments or draft tampering are severe and can include large fines, loss of premiership points and exclusion from the AFL draft. However, the AFL has not yet penalised clubs premiership points for a breach of the salary cap.
AFL players by state/territory/nation
The following is the origin of 2007 AFL listed player based on player's nominated junior clubs.
Note that players from Ireland were all converts from other sports.
Indigenous players in the AFLIn 2008, there is a total of 73 players of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent on AFL club playing lists, comprising approximately 11% of the overall playing list.
This compares with the 2.3% of the Australian population who identified themselves as Indigenous in the 2006 census.
Recruitment from IrelandRecruitment from the ranks of Gaelic Football in Ireland has increased substantially recently. This has caused much concern in the still-amateur GAA and throughout the sport in Ireland. The prospect of two new AFL clubs in the coming years has excerbated this tension.
This concern was aggrevigated recently when player agent and former AFL player Ricky Nikon announced a trial is to be held in Ireland in August 2008 for young Irish Gaelic footballers.
This issue is seen as a factor influencing the GAA's move to recommence the International Rules series between the two countries as stronger formal links between the associations would make managing the flow of players easier.
Season structure
AFL Premiership season
The Toyota AFL Premiership Season, contested between the 16 teams from around Australia, lasts for 22 rounds and begins in late March.
At the end of the 22 rounds, the top eight teams compete in the four-week AFL Finals Series. In the first week the top four teams play in Qualifying Finals (1st vs 4th & 2nd vs 3rd), with the other four teams playing in Elimination Finals (5th vs 8th & 6th vs 7th). In the second week the two losing teams from the Qualifying Finals play the two winning teams from the Elimination Finals in the Semi Finals. The two winning Qualifying Final teams progress directly into a Preliminary Final in the third week, playing the winners of the Semi Finals. The two winning Preliminary Final teams play in the Grand Final in the fourth week of the finals.
The McClelland Trophy is awarded to the team that finishes the league in first position (sometimes called the minor premiership) but this is not afforded anywhere near the prestige as the Premiership. The Premiership is awarded to the winning team in the Grand Final.
The Grand Final is traditionally played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, even if two non-Victorian teams are playing, on the last Saturday in September. Recent exceptions to this practice were in 1991 when the MCG was being redeveloped and the Grand Final was played at Waverley Park, and in 2000 when the Grand Final was played in early September as the Sydney Olympics started on 15 September. A silver cup, known as the Premiership Cup, and a pennant are awarded to the winner of the AFL Grand Final. (With the exception of 1996 - when a gold cup was awarded instead of the usual silver one in the AFL/VFL's 100th season).
The Premiership Cup is manufactured by at their metalworks in Frankston, Victoria.
Themed rounds and special matchesThemed rounds have become immensely popular. There are themes such as Rivalry Round (in which traditional rivals are matched up against each other), Women's Round and Heritage Round (where teams play in old style guernseys). Some matches are also themed for special events. For example, each year Collingwood play Essendon in the annual ANZAC Day match at the MCG and the game will typically sell-out regardless of the positions of the two teams on the ladder. Another annual match is the Queen's Birthday game between Melbourne and Collingwood. As of 2006, Richmond and Essendon play in the Dreamtime at the 'G match. There are separate trophies for the matches between several clubs and former rivalries such as the Lake Trophy between St Kilda and Sydney Swans.
Pre-season Cup The Pre-season Cup competition is a tournament played and completed prior to the commencement of the Premiership season.
The series is played before the premiership season and on all bar one occasion (1997), the final was played at Waverley Park until the ground was sold by the league in 1999 (although a number of the lead-up matches of the 2000 series were played at the ground). The 2000 competition decider was held at the MCG. Since 2001, all bar three finals have been played at Telstra Dome, with the 2001, 2006 and 2008 deciders held at AAMI Stadium.
The player adjudged best on the ground in the final is awarded the Michael Tuck Medal, in honour of the footballer who has played more league matches than any other (426).
The Pre-season Cup competition is currently a four round format with a round of 16, quarter finals, semi finals and final. Teams that win move through to the next round, losing teams are eliminated.
History
Competition timeline
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Before the VFLAustralian rules football dates back to 1858, when Tom Wills began to devise the rules of the code. Melbourne Football Club was formed May 14, 1859. On May 17, 1859, at the Parade Hotel in East Melbourne, Wills, W.J. Hammersley and J.B. Thompson wrote the first set of written rules for Australian rules football. By 1866, several other clubs had also adopted an updated version of Melbourne's rules. In 1877, the amateur Victorian Football Association was established.
VFL begins
The Victorian Football League was established in 1896 when several clubs broke away from the Victorian Football Association which was the first Australian rules competition in Victoria, second in the country after the South Australian Football Association. The first games were played in 1897 between the foundation clubs – Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Fitzroy, Geelong, Melbourne, St Kilda and South Melbourne. Essendon won the first VFL premiership.
Although the Victorian Football League and the Victorian Football Association continued to compete for spectator interest for many years, the VFL quickly established itself as the premier competition in Victoria. In the early years Fitzroy and Collingwood were the dominant teams, but by the mid-1900s Carlton began a dominating period of three successive flags from 1906 to 1908. Essendon under Jack Worrall - the first great coach - won a most convincing victory in 1911 with ten straight wins and surprisingly defended their flag in 1912 after being erratic during the home-and-away rounds.
In 1908, Richmond and University joined the VFL. Richmond eventually succeeded after a slow start, but University, after three promising seasons, won only one of its last seventy matches and its already thin ranks were so depleted it disbanded at the end of 1914.
More information on how war affected the VFL see: The VFL during the World Wars.
Between the World WarsRichmond won its first premierships in 1920 and 1921 but Essendon - battlers since their 1912 flag - took over as the dominant team between 1922 and 1926. In 1924 the VFL inaugurated the Brownlow Medal for the player who received the most votes from the umpires for the Best and Fairest player.
In 1925, Footscray (now the Western Bulldogs), Hawthorn and North Melbourne joined the VFL. Footscray adapted to the VFL relatively quickly and by 1928 were well off the bottom of the ladder. However, North Melbourne and Hawthorn remained "chopping blocks" for a very long period. North Melbourne were not to win more than eight games in a season until 1944 and Hawthorn only once won more than seven until 1954. Between them, Hawthorn and North Melbourne finished in last place fifteen of the twenty-nine years from their admittance until 1953 - by which time however North had become a powerful side and finished in the first two on the ladder in 1949 and 1950. In all but two of the fifteen seasons between 1941 and 1955 either Hawthorn or St. Kilda finished last.
Between the years of 1927 and 1930, Collingwood FC became the first and so far, the only, team to win four successive premierships and finish a season without losing (or drawing) a game. This team became known as "the machine" because of the organised and consistent way it played. During this period of success Collingwood became the greatest club in the nation, possessing the largest and fiercest supporter base drawn originally from working class districts in inner Melbourne. With premiership victories in 1935 and 1936 the Collingwood Football Club had already won 11 premierships, and remained the most successful premiership club until Carlton began to lead the premiership tally in 1982.
In the 1930s, Richmond and South Melbourne rivaled Collingwood as the best team, with Richmond's brilliant defence destroying South's powerful attack in the 1934 Grand Final. Melbourne, which had won the premiership in 1926 but fallen off sharply, developed a powerful attacking side that swept all before it between 1939 and 1941 to win three successive flags; however Essendon, after years in the wilderness from 1927 to 1939, enjoyed a dominant period with nine grand final appearances between 1941 and 1951.
1950s In 1952, the VFL hosted ‘National Day’, when all 6 matches were played outside of Melbourne. Matches were played at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Brisbane Exhibition Ground, North Hobart Oval, Albury Sports Ground and Victorian country towns Yallourn and Euroa.
In 1959, the VFL planned the first purpose built mega-stadium, Waverley Park, to give it some independence from the Melbourne Cricket Club which managed the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australian rules' spiritual home. Waverley Park was planned to hold 167,000 spectators (thus making it one of the largest stadiums in the world). Land for the stadium was purchased at Mulgrave, in those days just farmland, but one day predicted to be near demographic centre of Melbourne's population.
Geelong was the stand out team at the beginning of the 1950s, winning the premiership in 1951 then setting a record of 23 consecutive wins starting in Round 12, 1952 and ending in Round 13, 1953. This streak included the 1952 premiership.
After Footscray won its first premiership in 1954 by defeating Melbourne, Melbourne became a powerhouse, winning five premierships between 1955 and 1960, including three in a row between 1955 and 1957. In 1958 Collingwood famously defeated Melbourne in the Grand Final, thereby preventing Melbourne from equalling Collingwood's record of four successive premierships.
Television coverage began in 1957, with direct telecasts of the final quarter permitted. At first, several channels competed through broadcasting different games. However, when the VFL found that television was reducing crowds, it decided that no coverage was to be allowed for 1960. In 1961, the modern system of replays was introduced and only very rarely have direct telecasts been permitted since.
1960s In the 1960s, television began to have a huge impact, which continues unabated to this day. Spectators hurried home from games to watch replays and many former players took up positions as commentators on pre-game preview programs and post-game review programs. There were also several attempts at variety programs featuring VFL players, who generally succeeded in demonstrating that their skills were limited to the football ground.
The VFL played the first of a series of exhibition matches in 1962 in an effort to lift the international profile of the league.
Hawthorn won its first ever Grand Final in 1961, beating Footscray. Melbourne's period of success ended with its premiership win in 1964 over Collingwood, after which Carlton famously recruited Melbourne's champion player Ron Barassi as its captain-coach. St Kilda won its first Grand Final by one point over Collingwood in 1966, and after many years in the doldrums, Richmond won the Grand Final in 1967, starting a revival which lasted until the early 1980s. Under Barassi's leadership, Carlton won the premiership in 1968, its first since 1947. On the whole, though, Essendon and Geelong were the best teams during the 1960s, even though they only won three of the ten premierships.
With the number of players recruited from country leagues increasing, the wealthier clubs were gaining an advantage that metropolitan zoning and the Coulter law restricting player payments had prevented in the past. Country zoning was introduced in the late 1960s, and whilst it pushed Essendon and Geelong from the top of the ladder, it created severe inequality during the 1970s and 1980s. Only six teams made the grand final between 1972 and 1987, as against nine between 1961 and 1967.
1970s1970 saw the opening of Waverley Park, with the inaugural match being played between Geelong and Fitzroy, on 18 April 1970. Construction work was carried out at the stadium as the 1970s progressed, culminating in the building of the now heritage listed Sir Kenneth Luke stand. The Queen of England, Elizabeth the second was a guest at the game and officially opened the stadium to the public.
The 1970 Grand Final between Carlton and Collingwood attracted a record crowd for a football game in Australia of 121,696. This game also saw the greatest comeback in Grand Final history when after trailing by 44 points at half time, Carlton managed to win by 10 points. Alex Jesaulenko took one of the most memorable marks in the sport's history during this game.
Hawthorn defeated St. Kilda in the Grand Final in 1971, beginning a long period of success that lasted into the early 1990s. The match was notable for Peter Hudson's famed attempt at breaking Bob Pratt's long held record of 150 goals in a season. Hudson kicked three goals in the match, equalling Pratt's season tally.
North Melbourne won its first ever premiership in 1975, then won again in 1977 in the Grand Final replay, following the second ever drawn Grand Final, against Collingwood. 1977 also saw the commencement of State of Origin representative matches, where players were only able to represent the state of their birth, as opposed to representing the state in which they were currently playing.
The 1979 VFL Grand Final is remembered for a controversial goal that sealed the Premiership for Carlton. After leading by 28 points during the second quarter, Collingwood had fallen behind by 21 points before mounting a late comeback. They were trailing by four points in the dying stages of the match when Carlton's Wayne Harmes miskicked, chased the ball towards the boundary line and knocked it to his team mate | |
