Peter V'landys - New NRL/ARLC Chairman

[Perth Red]

Because there is none, Interest is very low in NSW/QLD generally. Both areas have their little pockets of interest but generally very little interest.

For them and the swans, Most of those sponsors would be due to the history and prestige of the relocated clubs

Lions corporate sales $9.8mill, Sharks $4mill. Seems there's a bit of interest! Despite being in RL heartland the Lions FC revenue blows most NRL clubs out of the water, good example of why new big city clubs are needed in NRL!
Perth, Adelaide, Wellington, South Brisbane. There's the NRLs plan for next 20 years!

 

[Get Rid of The Donkeys]

Can't see a single local sponsor https://www.lions.com.au/partners
All national and multinational companies. Most AFL clubs would be the same (GWS and GC might be exceptions, not sure). It really makes little difference where clubs are based. It is another reason why RL needs to go national if they want to make up ground on the AFL. Having local businesses as sponsors went out in the 1980s.

It allows them to put their trademark in more locals so people identify the region with the club. If you come down to Rochedale South/Springwood then you cannot miss the Brisbane Lions signage. This is important as Springwood was identified as Logan's CBD in the Greater Springwood Masterplan well over a decade ago, which is when the Lions made the decision to put a social club in the region. Springfield in Ipswich is also a developing CBD in its own right, hence the Lions deciding to put their training base there.

 

[Jamberoo]

yeah a lot of potentially great athletes wasted in that sport... the fact that the women's comp expanded to 18 teams so quickly to me shows that there isn't much value put on skill and development in AFL. Basically if you can hold a ball for long enough without dropping it and have a decent level of fitness, you're in! The mens game is happy to poach college kids from USA who have never even watched the sport and they are AFL "stars" within a few years. Israel Folau who never kicked a Steeden once in an NRL game in paid top dollar lol

No doubt the AFL made a big mistake with Folau. He was hopeless. K Hunt was OK (just) as he played AFL as a junior. What as waste. Money talks unfortunately.

You are stretching the truth a little bit. Only one USA player has I think has played AFL (Cox) and he is 211cm tall and plays the specialist ruck position. Swans also had a Canadian ruck.

The skill level discussion? My wife hates RL as she thinks it is just fat blokes crashing into each other, over and over (each week I spend five minutes at the start of every game explaining it but just cuts me off - she will never get it). When you don't understand the nuances of a sport that is all you see. It is like saying anyone can play soccer and it requires no great skill. And whilst that is true, it requires immense skill to play at the top level - in any sport.

And comparing fitness levels of codes by one AFL bloke v one RL blokes is ridiculous. AFL is an endurance sport. If runs 50% longer than RL. There are no fat blokes. Mitchell would be the fattest AFL player by a mile, but RL is not about running 15 - 20km to guard space. The offside rule means there is no need to players to have ultra low body fat. Any pro AFL, RL or RU player would have much better general fitness than soccer (power not required) or gridiron ( endurance not required), players as elite athletes in any sport train for what their sport needs. You cannot compare.

There are very few Kiwis and islanders here in Melbourne compared to Sydney. Most of our immigration is Chinese, Indian, middle eastern and African. Only the Africans play any code of footy. They are big and explosive and many would suit RL. But they all play AFL. Are there many Africans in Sydney? Are they playing soccer?

 

[Jamberoo]

Lions corporate sales $9.8mill, Sharks $4mill. Seems there's a bit of interest! Despite being in RL heartland the Lions FC revenue blows most NRL clubs out of the water, good example of why new big city clubs are needed in NRL!
Perth, Adelaide, Wellington, Brisbane. There's the NRLs plan for next 20 years!

Correct. And the reasons that Swans and Lions sponsorships are so high compared to Sharks is that they play in a national competition. So, one sponsorship covers the whole country.
I was not so pro Perth until the AFL media deal exposed just how far behind RL is. The gap between AFL & NRl will only widen until RL goes national. There can be no turning back now. Perth must be next.

 

[westerntiger]

Which NRL team has the most supporters in Perth? I know Souths and Warriors have a lot of fans is there anyone else?

 

[Iamback]

Correct. And the reasons that Swans and Lions sponsorships are so high compared to Sharks is that they play in a national competition. So, one sponsorship covers the whole country.
I was not so pro Perth until the AFL media deal exposed just how far behind RL is. The gap between AFL & NRl will only widen until RL goes national. There can be no turning back now. Perth must be next.

There are only so many national companies though, Nothing wrong smaller ones. Whatever pays the bills

 

[LeagueXIII]

Redcliffe. Gold Coast. Manly. Cronulla. Tiny clubs by the sea that will never grow a substantial fanbase like the Broncos, Storm, Cowboys, Warriors, Knights and Raiders. That's four licences wasted on enclaves when we should be pushing for representation that spans across entire metropolises.

Like Adelaide

 

[Babyface O'reilly]

No doubt the AFL made a big mistake with Folau. He was hopeless. K Hunt was OK (just) as he played AFL as a junior. What as waste. Money talks unfortunately.

You are stretching the truth a little bit. Only one USA player has I think has played AFL (Cox) and he is 211cm tall and plays the specialist ruck position. Swans also had a Canadian ruck.

The skill level discussion? My wife hates RL as she thinks it is just fat blokes crashing into each other, over and over (each week I spend five minutes at the start of every game explaining it but just cuts me off - she will never get it). When you don't understand the nuances of a sport that is all you see. It is like saying anyone can play soccer and it requires no great skill. And whilst that is true, it requires immense skill to play at the top level - in any sport.

And comparing fitness levels of codes by one AFL bloke v one RL blokes is ridiculous. AFL is an endurance sport. If runs 50% longer than RL. There are no fat blokes. Mitchell would be the fattest AFL player by a mile, but RL is not about running 15 - 20km to guard space. The offside rule means there is no need to players to have ultra low body fat. Any pro AFL, RL or RU player would have much better general fitness than soccer (power not required) or gridiron ( endurance not required), players as elite athletes in any sport train for what their sport needs. You cannot compare.

There are very few Kiwis and islanders here in Melbourne compared to Sydney. Most of our immigration is Chinese, Indian, middle eastern and African. Only the Africans play any code of footy. They are big and explosive and many would suit RL. But they all play AFL. Are there many Africans in Sydney? Are they playing soccer?

That’s the best bit! LOL

I’m not sure you can rule out rugby league as not being an endurance game, it’s just of a different nature. They run longer distances in the AFL of course but in league, you’re constantly moving ten metres forward and ten metres back while constantly tackling or being tackled and it’s particularly taxing on the dummy half runners who follow every play.

In AFL, you’re not chasing the ball constantly across the length of the field are you? It’s a big pitch so if the ball is at the other end, the defenders are catching their breath aren’t they? I’ve only been to a few games live and was surprised to see blokes standing and arm grabbing instead of chasing. Until then, my experience was on TV with the camera naturally following the ball, I thought the game was faster than it really is. Not pretending to be an expert btw. My experience is limited to watching three games live.

 

[mongoose]

No doubt the AFL made a big mistake with Folau. He was hopeless. K Hunt was OK (just) as he played AFL as a junior. What as waste. Money talks unfortunately.

You are stretching the truth a little bit. Only one USA player has I think has played AFL (Cox) and he is 211cm tall and plays the specialist ruck position. Swans also had a Canadian ruck.

The skill level discussion? My wife hates RL as she thinks it is just fat blokes crashing into each other, over and over (each week I spend five minutes at the start of every game explaining it but just cuts me off - she will never get it). When you don't understand the nuances of a sport that is all you see. It is like saying anyone can play soccer and it requires no great skill. And whilst that is true, it requires immense skill to play at the top level - in any sport.

And comparing fitness levels of codes by one AFL bloke v one RL blokes is ridiculous. AFL is an endurance sport. If runs 50% longer than RL. There are no fat blokes. Mitchell would be the fattest AFL player by a mile, but RL is not about running 15 - 20km to guard space. The offside rule means there is no need to players to have ultra low body fat. Any pro AFL, RL or RU player would have much better general fitness than soccer (power not required) or gridiron ( endurance not required), players as elite athletes in any sport train for what their sport needs. You cannot compare.

Not saying AFL doesn't require skill just that it seems that game can be overly inclusive towards athletes who have never even played the sport. I don't think an NRL team would ever consider giving a contract to one the top AFL players, even with massive incentives from NRL HQ. I obviously don't follow AFL but you can't hide on the Rugby League field... I suspect you can hide a bit easier on an AFL field and avoid the play.

There are very few Kiwis and islanders here in Melbourne compared to Sydney. Most of our immigration is Chinese, Indian, middle eastern and African. Only the Africans play any code of footy. They are big and explosive and many would suit RL. But they all play AFL. Are there many Africans in Sydney? Are they playing soccer?

that's really interesting, wonder why the Kiwi's and islanders avoid Melbourne? I'm in Brisbane and obviously Logan and surrounds has a large Kiwi/Polynesian population, as does parts of Moreton Bay....

 

[Perth Red]

Which NRL team has the most supporters in Perth? I know Souths and Warriors have a lot of fans is there anyone else?

Souths, then warriors then i'd say Storm, Dragons, Dogs ,Broncos and Cowboys would be the most popular ones. It always interests me that when we get games here 60-70% ish of the crowd will be in the merch of the two teams whichever teams are playing. There's a lot more than just the 15-20k fans who turn up for that particular game is my point.

 

[mongoose]

flicked over to see how the dockers were going the other night. Apart from the amazing crowd the game was horrible. The refs whistle just blows constantly, had to switch it off after 25 blows in a few minutes! One thing I did think would be that their game would be much better if the ball was round so they weren't scrambling around trying to pick up a bouncing egg!
But you cant knock their administration, those people know how to run a sport! and their fans, those people know how to get off their arses and support their team!

yeah I figure AFL is something you have to grow up with to "get" and maybe League is the same... I have tried many times to get into AFL as I have plenty of friends who love it and my eyes just glaze over every time I try and watch it

doesn't Gaelic Football use a round ball?

 

[Babyface O'reilly]

Correct. And the reasons that Swans and Lions sponsorships are so high compared to Sharks is that they play in a national competition. So, one sponsorship covers the whole country.
I was not so pro Perth until the AFL media deal exposed just how far behind RL is. The gap between AFL & NRl will only widen until RL goes national. There can be no turning back now. Perth must be next.

RL does have NZ and I’m sure there are a lot corporates that would have business interests in both countries. Not a big market but they have a bigger population than Perth/Adelaide combined. My guess is RL has less corporate sponsors than AFL because a chunk of our sponsorship opportunities gets sucked up by union and that’s probably because a lot of corporate-types were educated in private schools.

 

[Get Rid of The Donkeys]

flicked over to see how the dockers were going the other night. Apart from the amazing crowd the game was horrible. The refs whistle just blows constantly, had to switch it off after 25 blows in a few minutes! One thing I did think would be that their game would be much better if the ball was round so they weren't scrambling around trying to pick up a bouncing egg!
But you cant knock their administration, those people know how to run a sport! and their fans, those people know how to get off their arses and support their team!

Gaelic football is a much more entertaining game than fumbleball.

 

[Colk]

RL does have NZ and I’m sure there are a lot corporates that would have business interests in both countries. Not a big market but they have a bigger population than Perth/Adelaide combined. My guess is RL has less corporate sponsors than AFL because a chunk of our sponsorship opportunities gets sucked up by union and that’s probably because a lot of corporate-types were educated in private schools.

The problem is that NZ doesn’t have any major centres besides Auckland. Also, I would severely doubt that Auckland has as much corporate money as Perth.

Also, we need to remember the difference in Australian broadcasters. It essentially comes down to whether Australian broadcasters want another Kiwi side? The Warriors don’t rate over here

 

[Perth Red]

Here's another one in the Vlandys f**k up stakes/value of the two comps,
Toyota/NAB are paying AFL $21mill plus for naming rights. Vlandys just signed a deal with Telstra for $16mill naming rights which also includes all the other stuff like streaming replays etc which is part of the $50mill Telstra pay AFL. Sheesh!
Vlandys gave Nine radio rights in the $130mill deal, AFL sells theirs separate for $10mil a year and still got $185mill from Ch7.
How much more money can this bloke lose the game??

 

[2012....Sharks Year]

Here's another one in the Vlandys f**k up stakes/value of the two comps,
Toyota/NAB are paying AFL $21mill plus for naming rights. Vlandys just signed a deal with Telstra for $16mill naming rights which also includes all the other stuff like streaming replays etc which is part of the $50mill Telstra pay AFL. Sheesh!
Vlandys gave Nine radio rights in the $130mill deal, AFL sells theirs separate for $10mil a year and still got $185mill from Ch7.
How much more money can this bloke lose the game??

Hopefully enough so that a Perth team is never a reality.

 

[Iamback]

RL does have NZ and I’m sure there are a lot corporates that would have business interests in both countries. Not a big market but they have a bigger population than Perth/Adelaide combined. My guess is RL has less corporate sponsors than AFL because a chunk of our sponsorship opportunities gets sucked up by union and that’s probably because a lot of corporate-types were educated in private schools.

Rugby is the one that eats into RL's corporate base

 

[Jamberoo]

Not saying AFL doesn't require skill just that it seems that game can be overly inclusive towards athletes who have never even played the sport. I don't think an NRL team would ever consider giving a contract to one the top AFL players, even with massive incentives from NRL HQ. I obviously don't follow AFL but you can't hide on the Rugby League field... I suspect you can hide a bit easier on an AFL field and avoid the play.



that's really interesting, wonder why the Kiwi's and islanders avoid Melbourne? I'm in Brisbane and obviously Logan and surrounds has a large Kiwi/Polynesian population, as does parts of Moreton Bay....

A quick google search...
Based on the statistics of Pacific people living in capital cities along the east coast of Australia, 72,223 live in Sydney, 62,540 live in Greater Brisbane, and 34,568 live in Melbourne.

Perhaps Kiwis and islanders go where Rugby is? Or they are just more familiar with Sydney and Brisbane due to Rugby and RL? In Melbourne there are around 20 RU clubs, mainly in the expensive suburbs, plus it is played by some private schools. There are 17 RL clubs, all but one in the outer suburbs. So limited opportunities to get involved compared to Sydney & Brisbane, parents would need to drive some distance for their kids to play RU or RL.

This is where the AFL's extra cash makes a difference - you don't have to travel far in NSW or Qld to find somewhere to play AFL. There are Auskick centres everywhere.

 

[Iamback]

This is where the AFL's extra cash makes a difference - you don't have to travel far in NSW or Qld to find somewhere to play AFL. There are Auskick centres everywhere.

This has been the case for years, Yet no movement on ratings or crowd

 

[Jamberoo]

This has been the case for years, Yet no movement on ratings or crowd

No, but decent movement on revenue via increased media rights and sponsorship from the wider national coverage. It all helps.