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Todays Media Wrap for Wednesday, August 19th, 2023 – Sports Industry News from the AFL, NBL and Netball

AFL

 
Todays Media Wrap for Wednesday, August 19th, 2023 – Sports Industry News from the AFL, NBL and Netball

AFL


"Wednesday, August 19th, 2023"

Wow, I really slept last night. ;)
 

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I think everyone has known the WAFL is not healthy for a while. The WAFC are coming out and looking to change that.



Taken from The West Australian Sport

WAFL 2023: West Australian Football Commission, clubs to try to save competition from steady decline

The WA Football Commission has laid bare the reality of the financially unstable WAFL competition as the organisation prepares to take drastic action to keep the league viable.
The commission held a meeting with all nine clubs — as well as heavyweights from both West Coast and Fremantle — in an attempt to save a league they say is relying too heavily on WAFC, amid dwindling crowd numbers and public interest at an all-time low.
WAFC chief executive Michael Roberts presented damning facts at the meeting on Wednesday night, where he said no ideas were “off the table” to fix the competition

The commission turned to Marvin Consulting Group, run by former Perth Wildcats chief executive Nick Marvin, to look into the WAFL and how they can keep it sustainable in terms of relevance, competitiveness and finances.
As part of the investigation, it found that WAFL club’s finances were in decline and reliance on the commission was increasing, with 28 per cent of revenue coming from the commission.
Other shocking statistics presented were the decline in crowds from about 2200 per game in 2011 to just above 1500 so far this season, with 80 per cent of their audience being unsustainable males aged 40 or over and 58 per cent being males over the age of 50

Club finances were also in the spotlight with an average of three clubs posting a deficit in each of the last 10 years with four clubs doing so last year.
Roberts said the league was at a point where simply “tinkering around the edges” was not going to make enough of a change to keep it financially viable, as well as increase relevance, competitiveness and evenness of the competition.
“We’ve been doing bits and pieces here and there, but it’s now really evident that we need to make change,” he said.
“We need to hopefully get the clubs to be collaborative, and buy into it and as a collective hopefully make some decisions that will make the WAFL competitions better.
I think the most important thing is that the research that we’ve shown and the work that we’ve consultation we’ve done with clubs is showing that everyone agrees that we need to make a change. This is about acknowledging now and drawing the line in the sand and saying we need to improve, we need to be working more closely together.
“Some clubs probably might be worse off in some changes, but collectively as a competition, these changes are going to make us better.”
It comes as the commission prepares for a decline in royalties from West Coast and Fremantle as well as the Subiaco Oval deal with the State Government which is worth $11m a year and up for review in 2027.
The commission and clubs will now spend the next few months working on a strategic plan they will release and begin to implement in the final months of this year to ensure the sustainability of the WAFL.
This also includes competitiveness, with a goal for fans to have a reasonable expectation that their club can play finals within four years and compete for a flag within eight if they are not doing so already.
 
I think everyone has known the WAFL is not healthy for a while. The WAFC are coming out and looking to change that.



Taken from The West Australian Sport

WAFL 2023: West Australian Football Commission, clubs to try to save competition from steady decline

The WA Football Commission has laid bare the reality of the financially unstable WAFL competition as the organisation prepares to take drastic action to keep the league viable.
The commission held a meeting with all nine clubs — as well as heavyweights from both West Coast and Fremantle — in an attempt to save a league they say is relying too heavily on WAFC, amid dwindling crowd numbers and public interest at an all-time low.
WAFC chief executive Michael Roberts presented damning facts at the meeting on Wednesday night, where he said no ideas were “off the table” to fix the competition

The commission turned to Marvin Consulting Group, run by former Perth Wildcats chief executive Nick Marvin, to look into the WAFL and how they can keep it sustainable in terms of relevance, competitiveness and finances.
As part of the investigation, it found that WAFL club’s finances were in decline and reliance on the commission was increasing, with 28 per cent of revenue coming from the commission.
Other shocking statistics presented were the decline in crowds from about 2200 per game in 2011 to just above 1500 so far this season, with 80 per cent of their audience being unsustainable males aged 40 or over and 58 per cent being males over the age of 50

Club finances were also in the spotlight with an average of three clubs posting a deficit in each of the last 10 years with four clubs doing so last year.
Roberts said the league was at a point where simply “tinkering around the edges” was not going to make enough of a change to keep it financially viable, as well as increase relevance, competitiveness and evenness of the competition.
“We’ve been doing bits and pieces here and there, but it’s now really evident that we need to make change,” he said.
“We need to hopefully get the clubs to be collaborative, and buy into it and as a collective hopefully make some decisions that will make the WAFL competitions better.
I think the most important thing is that the research that we’ve shown and the work that we’ve consultation we’ve done with clubs is showing that everyone agrees that we need to make a change. This is about acknowledging now and drawing the line in the sand and saying we need to improve, we need to be working more closely together.
“Some clubs probably might be worse off in some changes, but collectively as a competition, these changes are going to make us better.”
It comes as the commission prepares for a decline in royalties from West Coast and Fremantle as well as the Subiaco Oval deal with the State Government which is worth $11m a year and up for review in 2027.
The commission and clubs will now spend the next few months working on a strategic plan they will release and begin to implement in the final months of this year to ensure the sustainability of the WAFL.
This also includes competitiveness, with a goal for fans to have a reasonable expectation that their club can play finals within four years and compete for a flag within eight if they are not doing so already.

Inevitable, sadly. As AFL crowds increase, state league crowds decrease. VFL crowds have been declining slowly but steadily since it was restructured in 1998. Then you would get 5k to Werribee v Williamstown. It would now be 500 (tops). Box Hill crowds are half what they were. Some BH games get only 150 - 200 and they are the most successful VFL club since the restructure. Local suburban footy seems to have held up OK in Melbourne, but the State League clubs run on the smell of an oily rag. Most would have just two employees - a GM and the coach. I can’t think of anything that the WAFL (or SANFL) could possibly do to turn it around.
 
Inevitable, sadly. As AFL crowds increase, state league crowds decrease. VFL crowds have been declining slowly but steadily since it was restructured in 1998. Then you would get 5k to Werribee v Williamstown. It would now be 500 (tops). Box Hill crowds are half what they were. Some BH games get only 150 - 200 and they are the most successful VFL club since the restructure. Local suburban footy seems to have held up OK in Melbourne, but the State League clubs run on the smell of an oily rag. Most would have just two employees - a GM and the coach. I can’t think of anything that the WAFL (or SANFL) could possibly do to turn it around.
Best thing for the WAFL is for there to be an AFL reserves comp.
It might marginally drop the standard but it would bring more tribalism back.
 

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