RL inspires AFL - Multicultural Cup

[The Observer]

The International Aussie Rules organisation has taken a leaf out of the book of RL international development and is staging a Multicultural Cup in Melbourne in March next year.

http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=92761

It is similar to initiatives in RL which led to the formation of Lebanese, Italian and Greek national teams and which has led to the Lebanese RL.

Should RL authorities look to start a Multicultural Cup in Sydney?

 

[ripper]

They've had thosre sort of teams for about 100 years

 

[The Observer]

Who has had what sort of teams for 100 years? AFAICT, neither the IAFC nor the AFL have run a tournament for ethnic based teams before this year.

 

[ripper]

I read in this big AFL book, which had info on every season from 1897-1997. And it had numerous mentions of tournaments which invovled teams like a natives team for both NZ and Aus, some greek and arab teams e.c.t

 

[yakstorm]

I read in this big AFL book, which had info on every season from 1897-1997. And it had numerous mentions of tournaments which invovled teams like a natives team for both NZ and Aus, some greek and arab teams e.c.t

Very different tournament, it was not made up of players based in Australia only playing for their cultural background, rather it was teams from overseas who play AFL who have played matches.

 

[The Observer]

The AFL Multicultural Cup now has a website:

http://www.iafc.com.au/multicup/index.html

 

[AuckMel]

In about 15 years they'll add another name to that list of players with Kiwi links.

 

[The Observer]

It will be good to see 8)

 

[The Observer]

Now the IAFC have developed a proposal for Aussie Rules World Nines

http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showthread.php?s=e8d401d99e73b5a6f3dd51c205a2b42f&threadid=99705

 

[ucantseeme]

what a joke

 

[The Observer]

Actually, Aussie Rules World Nines will be an excellent development tool for their game and could bring new nations into the fold. They're taking another leaf from RL's book.

 

[yankeeboy]

Good for the IAFC!

While the IAFC keep taking leaf's from League's book, we should actually take some from theirs- in my opinion, it is the best-run sporting governing-body (at least the website is.)

Was the IAFC started by the fans or by the AFL?

Maybe the international organization should be run by dedicated fans, not club officials who care more about whether their club league is proffiting enough.

 

[TheFirstRabbitoh]

The IAFC has nothing to do wth the AFL - nor does the AFL want anything to do with the IAFC.

Also, a lot of the leagues playing Australian Rules outside Australia don't want anything to do with the IAFC, preferring to take grants from the AFL.

This may change in the years to come, but in the meantime AFL outside Australia is 100% amateur fan-driven with jack all support from the AFL itself.

Realistically, AFL is a lot better developed than RL in the USA (and has about 10 times the player numbers), but compare the attitude of the AFL towards the USAFL with the way the NRL wants to help out the AmNRL.

 

[The Observer]

The IAFC has nothing to do wth the AFL - nor does the AFL want anything to do with the IAFC.

Also, a lot of the leagues playing Australian Rules outside Australia don't want anything to do with the IAFC, preferring to take grants from the AFL.

Why is this the case (with both points)?

 

[TheFirstRabbitoh]

If you read a few of the threads in the international section of bigfooty.com you'll hear answers to both.

There's a lot of politicking going on. The IAFC is run by a guy called Brian Clarke, who's not particularly well-liked by the AFL these days.

Basically, the AFL are control freaks - and as such are insistant on controlling the sport of Australian rules at all levels. Even though they have no intention of spending time or money on AFL outside Australia, they still want to control whatever does go on.

Also, rather than being a federation of the individual leagues, it's mainly a group of Australians who want to coordinate things. As far as I know there was a time when the international leagues had more to do with the IAFC, but the AFL made recognising the AFL as sole controller of international australian rules a condition of any international league receiving any money from the AFL.

A lot of the leagues simply don't think the IAFC can offer them anything that the AFL can't - and so they take the bigger organisation to be affiliated with. This is why PNG, NZ, USA, Canada, Britain, Ireland, Japan, South Africa, Nauru, Samoa, Denmark and Sweden (who make up about 99% of the 20,000 or so playing AFL outside Australia) aren't affiliated with the IAFC.

That said, the IAFC continues to plug on, particularly with events such as the multicultural cup, which has secured state and federal support and have recently done a bit of development work with organisations trying to start AFL in a couple of Pacific nations and India.

 

[The Observer]

Cheers for the info.