Yeah, I’d say so. MBA freaks in the (spread)sheets wouldn’t turn down the free wagering partner cash.
As long as the AFL (and other governing bodies) receive a percentage on every Same Game Multi that Joe Bloggs slaps on (in addition to an annual lump sum payment for the pleasure of offering markets on their glorious code), they’ve got a vested interest to reach as many eyeballs as possible with the mindless gambling chatter.
Also, the government is taxing the wagering industry into oblivion, and keep kicking a full-blown advertising ban further down the proverbial road, so they can keep raking up those sweet, sweet dollarydoos.
I was told years ago that US baseball had moved away from boutique stadiums to larger ones.
Seating capacity at the largest stadium is less than 50k.
But I suppose it’s not comparable, with MLB teams having privately owned clubs and stadiums and there is no equivalent to the MCG for games
And MLB is possibly not the gold standard in terms of a sport negotiating its position in the 21st century. It seems to be a sport in general decline over the last 50 years.
It doesn’t have any reach anywhere.
9k crowds in melbourne (watching a losing side) doesn’t stack up too badly to 8k in Canberra or 12k in Sydney (top of the ladder).
The NBL has a concerted effort to be a quality product which has certainly helped. Outside of those with an NBA club most Australian players are now playing NBL and players are getting drafted from the NBL. The BBL also has the best Aussie cricketers so I’m not sure it’s a fair comparison to Rugby or Soccer.
NRL is a perfect competition for tv. The sport is such that the tv shows you basically everything you need to see. It’s very different to Aussie Rules when the side on angle gives you no concept of leading patterns etc. I think that’s another reason why NRL clubs get smaller crowds. Public transport is a massive hassle as well to get to the Sydney grounds. I watched a NSWRL final at Leichhardt Oval (home of the West Tigers) last year and it was completely inaccessible by PT.
They only play 5 games and only one International trip every 2 years. RA will potentially foot the bill for now but their season is a fair way off starting again so plenty of time to sort something out
In reality, for elite talent, NBL’s a stepping stone just like A league is. Yes the NBL get most of the best Aussies not good enough for NBA, but a league is only 3rd tier on the world stage. Will be interesting if NBA prospects continue to stop over in AU now that NCAA slavery amateurism has ended.
Rugby in Australia nearly is very close to the best level in the world… and still stuffed.
the aus sports commission now holds the view that the olympics has never had a material impact on sport participation, and are about to change their funding criteria
so sports that have always been getting funding through sheer status as an olympic sport, but have fk all going on in grassroots participation, may be getting a reduction in favour of sports that do
be interesting to see this shift over the coming years. sports like weightlifting and archery may drop off the olympic team radar altogether.
here’s the current asc funding allocation
the part that civilians often overlook is that the asc is far more concerned with adult participation than kids, in case you’re wondering why the likes of rowing, cycling and sailing get what they get
Really interesting, thanks for posting. Some really weird alignments there.
You note rowing and sailing adult participation, but surely adult rowing is about 30 people??? And less than that outside of the “elite pathways”?
I see at least sport climbing, and maybe other Olympic sports, doesn’t even make the list (unless I missed it).
Overall it’s really not that much money from a government spending perspective. Maybe get those billionaires to pay their taxes and split the funding up in a will thought it manner, rather than letting them make some nominal donation to find already will funded sports because they want the golden reflection…
