A truly national product: Why Sydney v Brisbane grand final proves the best time in the AFL is now
Two teams from two different states with a week to go, can any Australian sport better capture the truly national appeal of the AFL? What the Sydney v Brisbane grand final really means.
Two teams from two different states with a week to go, can any Australian sport better capture the truly national appeal of Australian rules football? It’s why the best time in the AFL is now as Queensland and News South Wales get represented on the big stage in Victoria.
Two of the game’s great visionaries in Ron Barassi and Dr Allen Aylett would be quietly toasting their dreams from 45 years ago when they first took steps to ensure the then VFL expanded its product into a truly national product.
With Tasmania to be included in that vision in 2028 and Darwin being discussed in future expansion talks, the AFL has stolen a match on every other sporting code with teams from five states having won Premierships in the 2000s.
The game’s unique appeal, where 170cm Nick “The Wizard” Watson competes against a 211cm Texan named Mason Cox, makes it open to a diverse range of body shapes like no other competition, just as its combination of skill, strength and speed, plus a 360 degrees aspect, takes it to a broad spectrum of fans.
Supporters haven’t been able to get enough AFL in 2024 and who can blame them when you have a weekend of finals action with the Brisbane Lions versus Sydney Swans in one of the more memorable grand finals in the game’s history. How other codes must envy the thousands of fans that stream through the turnstiles each weekend to watch their heroes in action.
It’s a game where junior numbers are growing exponentially in traditional rugby heartlands such as the Gold Coast and Sydney, where the AFL has poured millions of development money that is now showing genuine signs of fruition. And the growth has expanded to a women’s program named AFLW that has witnessed extraordinary improvement in skill levels in its short eight-year history.
Which means the AFL has conquered men and women, boys and girls, plus every state in our great land, all pointing to why the BEST time in the AFL is NOW.
Originally published as A truly national product: Why Sydney v Brisbane grand final proves the best time in the AFL is now
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