Paul Starick: AFL Gather Round in South Australia the biggest show since Adelaide Formula One Grand Prix

The AFL’s Gather Round will put a spotlight on SA unlike anything we’ve seen since Adelaide waved goodbye to the Formula One, says Paul Starick.

“Adelaide comes alive, November 85, this is one show no one wants to miss.” The Adelaide Alive earworm jingle from renowned ad agency Mojo promoted the city’s first Formula One race in 1985 – the biggest show to hit the South Australian capital.

The same slogan, minus the date, could well be affixed to the AFL’s inaugural Gather Round, starting on Thursday night.

Adelaide will be in the national spotlight like never before – at least since the Grand Prix days – as all nine games of Australia’s most popular sport are played within a 35km radius.

The AFL’s hype is correct: “Nine matches, four days, three venues and all 18 clubs descend on South Australia for a round of footy like never before.”

The internationally renowned Adelaide Oval will host six matches in four days, including Saturday and Sunday double headers. Norwood Oval, home of the reigning SANFL premier, will host one and Mount Barker’s Summit Sports and Recreation Park will host another.

Hosting Gather Round is a major coup for the state, which fended off the favourite Sydney.

Premier Peter Malinauskas, a keen footy player and Port Adelaide fan, has refused to reveal the amount of public money paid to the AFL, citing the too-often-used commercial-in-confidence justification. He has said Gather Round and the more controversial LIV Golf were funded from a $40m Major Events fund but together did not exhaust that pool. Some have put the Gather Round fee at more than $14m. If that’s correct, it’s money well spent – on promotional, economic, advertising and community spirit grounds.

Lachie Jones of Port Adelaide celebrates a goal during the April 1 Showdown between Port Adelaide and Adelaide at Adelaide Oval. (Photo by Mark Brake/Getty Images)

Adelaide Oval’s $535m upgrade transformed the CBD and the city’s image. Interstate commentators and fans alike have enthused for years about the magic of attending an AFL game at the Oval.

Every footy fan, across the whole country, will watch their team play in Adelaide or Mount Barker. Even the snide detractors of SA would concede that Adelaide Oval, in particular, is one of the world’s most attractive sporting grounds and, therefore, a magnificent showcase for the state.

Many South Australians will have friends or family visiting for Gather Round. By Wednesday, more than 50,000 of the 170,000 tickets sold for the round were to interstate or overseas fans. More than 5000 four-day Adelaide Oval passes were sold: about half to South Australians, 25 per cent of these to Victorians and 20 per cent to the rest of Australia.

Apart from the unverifiable cost, it’s difficult to criticise Gather Round from a political perspective. This is feel-good politics and an example of bipartisanship. A key ally of Mr Malinauskas’s in luring Gather Round was Adelaide Football Club chairman John Olsen, a former Liberal premier and current Liberal Party federal president.

Sport is one of the few institutions about which many Australians remain impassioned, plus respect and enjoy. Communities are bound together by junior and local clubs.

Adelaide’s Josh Rachele celebrates a goal during the April 1 Showdown between Port Adelaide Adelaide at Adelaide Oval. (Photo by James Elsby/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

After the havoc of a global pandemic, Australians are worn out by conflict and are demanding “positive” politics. This is reinforced by new research showing expectations of business have fundamentally changed and are reshaping consumer demand. The Forces of Good report, by News Corp Australia’s Growth D_Stillery and strategic research agency The Lab Strategy, found 84 per cent of Australians expect companies and businesses to take responsibility on issues of “Goodness”, particularly sustainability, community and ethics. Most Australians feel they are doing their part, but believe business and governments should be doing more. The report says both should talk to people about things they care about.

Large numbers of people care intensely about watching their AFL clubs. Others complain Gather Round is a waste of money better spent on hospitals, schools or roads. They are entitled to their opinions.

But one inarguable fact is SA is about to be in the spotlight like rarely before. The challenge now is to capitalise from an economic, social and promotional perspective.