Marketing Australian Football to the World - Call it "New Football"

[McCrann]

I've always worried about how our footy is perceived overseas given it has such a parochial name - Australian Football.

I know when I look at American Football, part of the reason I don't want to have anything to do with it - except for having a piss-up for the SuperBowl because let's face it - its impossible to actually watch the thing - is because its called American Football (and the fact it is unbearably slow and boring)

Anyway, in taking our game to the world this is one hurdle we must overcome, and in truth - we should be able to overcome.

I propose calling the sport - when away from Australia - and particularly in developing markets like South Africa, even New Zealand in particular - that we from hence forth call the sport NEW Football.

Why?

Calling it new is a good way to market the sport as something recent - which to many people means exciting and relevant. Just witness how obsessed everyone is with the "next big thing"

Well, if we start calling it New Football on foreign shores, it will stop sounding like its some quaint past-time that can only be played by the Aussies - and people overseas might start to look at the sport as pretty cool and worth a shot.

If you call it NEW Football it also tends to suggest it is a step ahead of other football codes, an evolution if you will - the next progression. It makes it sound as though it is the game of the future for those who've never played it (overseas, not here even in NSW and QLD)

I think its a great way to really step up marketing overseas and push the brand.

NEW Football - a step ahead of the rest.

NEW Football - Football from the future.

NEW Football - The next step in our sporting evolution.

Just think of the possibilities, and come up with your own slogans the AFL could use to really market the game well overseas.

 

[BigWardy12]

may as well call it soccer
that names available nowdays

 

[EagleMan87]

Yeah, that could work. Just like New Coke.













Oh, wait...

 

[AFKAJR]

Could also call it new and improved like almost every other product on any market......but how can something be new and improved?
Doesn't the fact that it's new mean that there is nothing like it before, however improved means it is the same as before just altered a little.

 

[roger explosion]

sorry, nobody is going to call it new football. Tom Wills should have thought of a better name before he killed himself. we're stuck with Aussie Rules, or, even worse, AFL.

 

[McCrann]

Actually, it used to be called Victorian Football when Tom Wills was around - one of the reasons it never took off in NSW as well as it almost did. It was so close, but the silly folk North of the border decided that they couldn't support a sport called Victorian Rules Football!

What gets me is, why didn't some bright spark suggest a few minor rule changes, call his idea Sydney Football, or NSW Football - and play that instead?

Eventually the codes could have been re-united down the track when the advent of air-travel made national travel possible! Imagine the rivalry between clubs in Sydney and Melbourne if that had happened. Would have been great, unfortunately because of a short-sighted name attached to the game, almost qualifying as an accident of history IMO, it never happened.

Are we in danger of seeing that sort of history lesson repeat itself?


Ok, if not New Football - what suggestions do you guys have?

Try and be positive rather than just mindlessly tearing down a suggestion - things work a lot better when people try to co-operate on this sort of thing you know. Do you love the game or would prefer to keep it as an insular little novelty like it is now?

The only criterion is that it has to include the word Football - take that out and you're denying the game of itself.

 

[Hawkers]

World Footy

 

[RUNVS]

Universal Footy
Bestest Footy
Kickarse Footy
Yeeha Footy
Continental Footy

 

[fishmonger]

"New Football" sounds very A-League.
Using the word football does nothing to differentiate from the other football codes.

Aussie Rules is synonymous with Footy.

Why not just call it Footy.

There exists no governing body in the world that stakes a claim to sport by that name.

AFL South Africa began as Footy South Africa. Not sure why they ever dropped the name (probably about the same time the Demitriou started pushing IR/Gaelic Football garbage down their throats).

US Footy is one governing body (United States Australian Football League) that uses the informal name really well to differentiate it from other sports such as gridiron. They could easily become the United States Footy League. The AFL's stupid insistence to refer to the game as "AFL" at all levels doesn't cut it in North America, where they have the popular Arena Football League.

The AFL could become the Australian Footy League without even changing its acronym, and a governing body could be setup called the World Footy Federation.

 

[RUNVS]

"New Football" sounds very A-League.
Using the word football does nothing to differentiate from the other football codes.

Aussie Rules is synonymous with Footy.

Why not just call it Footy.

There exists no governing body in the world that stakes a claim to sport by that name.

US Footy is one governing body (United States Australian Football League) that uses the informal name really well to differentiate it from other sports such as gridiron. They could easily become the United States Footy League. The AFL's stupid insistence to refer to the game as "AFL" at all levels doesn't cut it in North America, where they have the popular Arena Football League.

The AFL could become the Australian Footy League without even changing its acronym, and a governing body could be setup called the World Footy Federation.

Elegant in its simplicity.


I like it

 

[Bollox]

New Football ?

ya kidding right ?

The halfwit tryhards that came up with the Barry Hall Hall might think its catchy tho.

No alternative suggestion coz it simply isnt necessary.

 

[RUNVS]

The halfwit tryhards that came up with the Barry Hall Hall might think its catchy tho.

I kind of liked seeing Barry Hall in tweed

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

edit: I see this has already been brought up.

How many other nations use the term "footy"?
Just use the colloquialism that already exists.

 

[McCrann]

edit: I see this has already been brought up.

How many other nations use the term "footy"?
Just use the colloquialism that already exists.

Ok, i take that on board - using footy is possibly a good way to go.

The only thing is, they do call their sport "footie" in England.

But then again, England isn't a country I'm too worried about taking the game.

 

[tandino]

Septopia Football.

 

[RUNVS]

Renaming our sport to just plane "Footy" would be great as it would seriously piss off all Rugby League fans as they like using to word "Footy" and they would have to rename "The Footy Show"

 

[marcus]

Speedball

 

[Sherrinator]

Call it Vagina Ball. At least that way you will be guaranteed exposure to the majority of the world's males. The Japanese would love it.

 

[greennick]

Universal Footy
Bestest Footy
Kickarse Footy
Yeeha Footy
Continental Footy

Awesomest football
Island football

All jokes aside, New Football sucks underage monkey balls.

 

[Upgrayedd]

"Footy"

 

[Ronin]

I know when I look at American Football, part of the reason I don't want to have anything to do with it - except for having a piss-up for the SuperBowl because let's face it - its impossible to actually watch the thing - is because its called American Football (and the fact it is unbearably slow and boring)

I don't want to derail your attempt to get some discussion going in finding a new name for AFL.

That said, you started off your argument with the kind of bunkum that blows up the rest of your post.

I am certain that the 41m that attended College Football, the 17m that attended the NFL and the countless millions that watched on the box, do not think that their game is BORING.

I bet there are people on their version of BF arguing that the world should be playing NFL. Only problem is, every time they have tried to push it overseas, it has died in the arse. You can work out the analogy champ.

Lastly, on your 'New Football' idea, it stinks.

 

[greennick]

England isn't a country I'm too worried about taking the game.

No shit, they are way too wimpy to play.

 

[Kollin Wood]

Roolz Football
AthloBall
(No matter how silly a name sounds now in 10 -20 years it would be part of everyday usage ,Think about it Rugby would have sounded lame at first, and what on earth is a Soccer ? . They are now excepted without a 2nd thought)

 

[MacMum]

Call it what it is always called....AUSSIE RULES....(in general talk overseas) or AFL when talking about it officially......then people know where it hails from, as well as no confusion with other "footy" games....common sense really...why change the name?

 

[Ron The Bear]

Keepingsoffball.