Let’s cover the basics of the iconic game that infiltrates many hearts and homes every football season where the humbling might of the football fan is loud and proud.
Are you a football fan? Know of others who are football fans but don’t understand the culture? Read on.
What is Aussie Rules Football? (simplified)
AFL stands for Australian Football League, or Aussies Rules, AKA Footy. Invented in the 1850s as a way of not fat-shaming their cricket players but by keeping them fit for summer. They created a game to kick an egg-shaped ball from one end of an oval to score points by making goals. The one with the highest number of points wins. The more games your team wins, the higher up the Premiership Ladder you go, ending at the Grand Final for the Premiership Cup. Then you start with clean slates the next year for the new season.
Aussie Rules football is played in winter on summer’s cricket grounds—because they had to mow the grass for a reason. So, the dual purpose of these ovals became the home for playing AFL. Such as the mighty MCG, an acronym for the Melbourne Cricket Ground that is home for the AFL Grand Final.
It is considered that cricket is the world’s second most popular sport. However, in Australia, more people attend AFL matches in one game (90,000+ fans) compared to their attendance average for an entire season of international Cricket!
What would those aficionados of Cricket think of the Footy game they invented today?
So, Let’s Brag About The Game
It’s unique, got speed, and has skill. It’s men running around in short-shorts without helmets or body armour while being tackled from all directions. Believe me, some are worth the watch!
You need to be mega-fit—sprinting over 15 kilometres for 2 hours in a game! Yup. They do all of this while shouting at teammates, kicking a ball, dodging the opposition, and aiming for goals.
And that’s just the players.
The Legend Of The Aussie Football Fan
But what about those who sit on the sidelines…
If you get a group of Australians together, at least thirty, one or more will be a fan of the game. In the state of Victoria, it’s the opposite, everyone is a fan. Those few who are not a fan of the game in the Garden State are considered tourists!
Colonists created the game for the people that brought moments of joy for those suffering during the Great Depression. The Anzacs bonded over the game during the World Wars. There were many who wandered the country working out west in the goldfields, to mustering cattle in the North, taking their love of the game with them.
Football clubhouses became the background to many weddings and soon became an integral part of many country towns that are still part of today’s Aussie culture.
Types Of Football And Their Fans
This blog post may be about the Aussie Footy Fan of the AFL, SANFL, VFL, WAFL, NTFL but it can also include the many fans of rugby’s NFL.
(Do I sound like I know what I’m saying?)
This can also include the fans of the USA NFL, NBL, or those passionate about all forms of international FIFA FC’s (AKA Soccer club’s).
The FIFA has many FC’s (where does KFC fit?) boasting the largest fan bases in the world.
The USA’s NFL boasts the richest players and teams in the world.
But I’m sure you’ll find universal similarities for the humble football fan found in all codes of sport.
Basically, a fan is a supporter of a sport. The differing levels of support can be a simple liking or it’s a personal religion, but they generally enjoy the game and follow a club.
Today, the humble footy fan numbers are in the millions in this billion-dollar industry!
Today, the humble footy fan numbers are in the millions in this billion-dollar industry!
They say there’s a fan born every minute, inducted at the start of a new season to become a part of the football fan base.
So, are you a fan of the sport?
If not, before you start on this path, there are a few things you should know first before becoming a fan…
What A Football Fan May Spend
It’s a known fact that a football fan will spend money on their sport. Even if they don’t, haven’t, or won’t ever, or have never played the game (confused yet?) —they’ll pay.
But it’s all about the football fan’s gear! It may start with a simple purchase of the Club coffee mug for the kitchen cupboard, the scarf, Guernsey, or the new season jumper. Then it’s a team beach towel for summer, the apron for the barbie, the sticker for the car.
It makes life easier Christmas shopping when there is unlimited paraphernalia to accessorise the football fan perfectly.
You can also pay an annual membership fee as official fans to the Club of choice. They have tailored plans from country members through to the gold-class kiss-my-boots membership.
But it doesn’t stop there…
The Hidden Costs To Being A Football Fan
First, there’s the effort involved in being a fan, again this is dependent upon the level of commitment. It’s time-consuming being a fan, all those hours spent watching and talking about the games.
There is the cost of the mobile phone (Cell). Then there is the many football fan apps that allow the ability to check scores while stuck in the most inconvenient of places. Typically spotted by many males in the audience at primary school recitals.
Also, there are the cable television fees for that 24/7 football channel to never miss a game, player and coach interview, and all those precious insiders and outsider tips.
The Extra Costs To Being A Football Fan
There’s the tipping/betting/gambling side to this fan sport. It can start from the dollar tipping for the office. The betting of a carton a game with mates, to those big spenders and online betting sites.
The big-ticket items are the fuel or ticket costs to travel to the game. Tickets range from simple sidelines seats that are relatively cheap at the beginning of the season. However, in the finals expect to pay big!
For those in the country, it’s the long trek into town.
Interstate fans have to organise plane tickets, accommodation, transport to and from the airport and the games itself—just to watch one game of football!
Some schedule an entire annual holiday around one game of football.
The Loyal Country Football Fans
The Northern Territory (NT) may be one of the larger states in Australia, that has more registered players and fans per capita than anywhere else in the country. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have a national team. However, we get one visiting AFL elite game per year—which is like the circus coming to town.
Our local players and fans attend local games braving the warm summer rain in 30+ degrees. They reschedule games from flooded roads or cyclones. But, the only time a game of football stops is for lightning.
In any rural NT pub, they will play a football game on the TV screen above the bar where customers banter with each other over beers. Game-day commentators echo from radios where fishermen listen on their small boats while keeping an eye on crocodiles. Trucker’s share game updates over the airwaves while steering their road trains along the desolate outback highways. And there are many who have dragged their TV’s with them to never miss a game while camping.
Without the eclectic mix of support from their fans where would the game be today?
Without the eclectic mix of support from their fans where would the game be today?
Regardless of the footy fan type, the club and team they may follow, or their level of faith and commitment as a fan—it’s mateship that brings all these people together. It’s a part of the Australian culture. No matter the heritage, this humble game of AFL football is about the sport that many of us enjoy.
No wonder I have a novel involving this iconic game: The Football Whisperer, where an injured Aussie Rules Football Player finds new fans within a quirky family in the country.
So what kind of football fan you might be? Check out his post about the 15 types of Football Fans—which one suits you…
**All still images relating to this post’s topic are via CANVA.com
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