AFL nears rugby league's popularity in Queensland
Date
May 31, 2013
Aerial ping pong?

Not anymore. Now it's the sport Queenslanders want to belong to.

Participation in the state grew by 9 per cent between 2011 and 2012 and the AFL expects to have 155,000 participants in Queensland by the end of the year.

The only state with a higher participation rate is Victoria.

Of that 155,000, 93,000 students played the game [for six weeks or more], giving the game its highest school participation rate anywhere in the country.

More than 40,000 of the 135,000 female players nationwide are from Queensland, and 50 Queensland players are listed as AFL professionals.

Meanwhile in Burpengary, a $13 million AFL precinct is being built that, when finished, will have two fields, with room for one more, and could host pre-season games.

The Brisbane Lions are also considering basing their new training and administration centre in Nathan or Springwood.

AFL boss Andrew Demetriou said he was “really excited about what is happening in Queensland for our code”.

“By the end of the year, that [Queensland's] will be the second highest participation rate in Australia, higher than WA or South Australia,” he said.

“To see a facility like Burpengary is really pleasing.

“The Gold Coast Suns are on the up, and I think Brisbane have now shown the potential that they are a team on the rise.

"There is a lot to like about Queensland.”

However, it appears the code traditionally associated with the Sunshine State remains just ahead on the scoreboard.

Queensland Rugby League reported 170,027 active participants in 2012, including 60,099 men and 1752 women.

Just over 48,000 players were involved in regular school competitions, 26,356 participated in formal gala days and 35,477 played in the full five-week Back Yard League Program.

Football Federation Queensland did not provide figures for the round ball game.

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UPDATE: Football Federation Queensland have reported a total of 106,797 participants - 47,000 of those from school, 47,799 both boys and girls juniors and 3014 adult aged women.

Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/afl/afl-news/afl-nears-rugby-leagues-popularity-in-queensland-20130530-2nej9.html#ixzz2UoegSAaI

Edited by Joffa: 1/6/2013 12:29:07 PM

AFL is a long way off. :lol:

I don't really think participation rate = popularity.

No. Not even slightly. No. Just no

Especially when it is school based. if you offer a 6 Week programme in school and assist them with set up fees and equipment of course the schools are going to engage in the programme. I'd lie to know whether this is voluntary participation or if the AFL has promoted a cost effecting sporting programme within the schools to get these number jumps.
If it really is that popular hair muff but i doubt it is as honest article as they're making out.

Don't get me wrong my brother and avid football fan has been brain washed by the people of WA to play and follow AFL, he can't even give me a justifiable reason for why he does it other than, because everyone does.

lol no.

-PB

By that logic "Soccer" is the most popular sport in Victoria :lol:

Makes me sick everytime I see 3 colour pages of this shit in the Courier Mail.


To be fair though, the Courier Mail in its entirety makes me sick.

[youtube]CpmDIP3Fn2Y[/youtube]

AFL will say any kind of bullshit to make us think the code is winning

Where's Burpengary?

Worst name for a town/suburb....ever.

Heh, that's some mighty fine burpin' Gary.

On a wet Brisbane night, with the Lions now suffering 4 years of playing rubbish, they managed over 26k at the Gabba tonight.

Would you like a medal?

And what does it have to do with the AFL's propaganda about participation equalling popularity, especially the claim that they are somehow more popular than League?

Even without their bullshit argument about participation rates somehow = popularity, the Lions crowds have absolutely nothing on the Broncos.

Absolutely.

In america the participation rate of 'soccer' is on the rise largely because parents are worried about their children being concussed playing Gridiron. NFL is still the most popular sporting code in the United States - by a country mile - but 'soccer' participation is up because parents don't want to see their little darlings getting hurt.

No, I'm not after a medal, none of this affects me personally and I don't have any sort of connection with Qld.

If I have understood the article, the biggest point is the extent to which Australian Football is now played in schools, which is a very, very big change from 30 years ago.

That process is now underway in Western Sydney, and I think it's something we should celebrate - it's great that kids have a wide range of sporting choices and if Australian Football helps increase that choice, that is fantastic news.

I note on the survey that Australian Football is doing very well.

Soccer is running neck to neck with lawn bowls - not that there is anything wrong with that.

afl is played in schools in western Sydney because the teachers who introduce it gets benefits.
also at the afl trials at school......oh that's right there was none.
at the trials for the bill turner squad boys team we had over 50 students trial, and these students had to be below 15 years old.
this is in the heart of western Sydney.
tell me again that afl is going good in western Sydney.

afl is nothing at our school, at all. I am still yet to see one student bring an afl ball from home. its okay though, we all know that your miserable sport is trying so hard to get the recognition that football gets

I hope you realize that "soccer" has the highest participation rates of any sport in Australia :lol:

I just checked the site again, and lawn bowls has moved ahead of soccer.

Troll fail.

Of course lawn bowls' participation rates are rising. Australia, and Queensland have aging populations. As well as this many younger people play lawn bowls at their respective local bowling clubs, which is a relatively new phenomenon.

Got a website for ya:

http://www.bigfooty.com/

;)

Why is that a big deal?

This thread serves no purpose except for MF to attempt to put down soccer.

Not at all.

In fact, I'm pleased to announce that soccer has just pulled ahead of lawn bowls by 1%.

Don't shoot the messenger.

I'd like to point out that more people play soccer than AFL in Australia.

Therefore Soccer > AFL.


If you pull out your asinine arguments to support your agenda, so will I :)

Mate, I'm not arguing with anyone.

Someone else started the thread, and had a link to the article, and I'm simply reporting the survey results on the same page.

I'm not actually reaching a conclusion on anything, or arguing a specific point, just passing on the raw numbers.

They're not "raw numbers" they're biased statistics.

It's not a big deal.

I'm simply reporting it because on this particular survey, on the same page which is linked, the two great sports of soccer and lawn bowls are neck to neck - and we all love a tight contest.

1) We don't care about the results on the same page. If we did, we'd click on the link.
2) As afro said, they aren't raw numbers about anything substantial. Some people have just taken the piss and voted lawn bowls.

I would agree with you that its not exactly the most scientific survey you are ever going to come across, nevertheless, it's there on the same page of the article which was linked, and I've simply made a reference to it in passing.

Anyway, as I said, soccer has come from behind to overtake lawn bowls, so I would have thought that is a good result and positive news.

One can see from my posts that my reporting of the survey results was completely unbiased.