NewConvert Posted January 30, 2014 Report Share Posted January 30, 2014 I'd be interested to know if Heart fans ever think football will overtake Aussie rules in the popularity stakes and how far behind it still is. Still a couple of generations away, if at all. Supporting AFL (like any popular sport) is engrained in the culture and people aren't just going to swap for no reason. ALeague may be gaining in popularity, but the AFL is also expanding and beating record attendances each year still. Most Heart supporters I daresay would consider AFL to be their number 1 sport, myself included. Agree with this. BUT since cricket bores me to tears, football has given me a team sport to follow during the summer months. Also for me they aren't in competition but just different sports. I also know a few AFL people who watch European football because the quality is higher, so if the A-League makes another leap they will eventually come on board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Embee Posted January 30, 2014 Report Share Posted January 30, 2014 I don't think it's a matter of one being more popular than the other. The real question is how many Football hating/Euro Snob fans can we get to take an interest in the A-League. People aren't going to abandon AFL to support Football, but they can support both. I already know a few people who hated football before they attended an A-League game and fell in love with it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M13 Posted January 30, 2014 Report Share Posted January 30, 2014 Football is football... We might call it "Aussie rules", soccer, rugby or just football but that´s just variations really. It all got the same origin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HEARTinator Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Football is football... We might call it "Aussie rules", soccer, rugby or just football but that´s just variations really. It all got the same origin. Hmmmm, you might be entering dangerous territory. There is a school of thought locally that says that Aussie rules (egg ball+marking+kicking+6 pt goals+1 pt behinds) was played by our indigenous friends and it became the basis of the game today. A theory that gets some attention. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marn_Grook "Some historians claim that Marn Grook had a role in the formation of Australian rules football, which originated in Melbourne in 1858 and was codified the following year by members of the Melbourne Football Club. This connection has become culturally important to many Indigenous Australians, including celebrities and professional footballers from communities in which Australian rules football is highly popular." The connection between AFL today and Marn Grook, real or otherwise, also helps the AFL to claim it to be Australia's game (not derived from elsewhere). This also plays into the idea that Australian's support Australia's game - that's my take on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murfy1 Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) I don't think it's a matter of one being more popular than the other. The real question is how many Football hating/Euro Snob fans can we get to take an interest in the A-League. People aren't going to abandon AFL to support Football, but they can support both. I already know a few people who hated football before they attended an A-League game and fell in love with it. Agree, there are many people with an interest in football, especially European football, that currently do not follow an A-League clubs. That the Australian football community has coined a widely used word, 'Euro Snobs', to describe this group of people is another reminder that there are many people that could readily start following the A-League (especially if the quality got better). I also don't really care about comparisons between sports in Australia (I do, however, think there are compelling arguments that football will be no. 1 in a few/several decades). The important thing is that football in Australia starts to fulfill more of its potential. And it has a huge amount of potential left to fulfill. Edited January 31, 2014 by Murfy1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharpy Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Have a mate who was a member in season 2 but gradually lost interest and has now switched to the Visitors as he's a Liverpool fan and can't back a City-funded club. Disappointing but can't imagine too many switching across because of the buyout Not a proper fan anyway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heart Inaugural Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Have a mate who was a member in season 2 but gradually lost interest and has now switched to the Visitors as he's a Liverpool fan and can't back a City-funded club. Disappointing but can't imagine too many switching across because of the buyout Not a proper fan anyway Yeah, he was never really involved with the club but came for the live match atmosphere. I'll keep chipping away but not a great loss tbh as he'll never be a MHTID sort of geezer. Have brought 12 mates to Heart games over the years and 5 have annually signed up as members, the rest are your typical 'Eurosnob' types and occasionally come not to support Heart but watch live football. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Falastur Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 That the Australian football community has coined a widely used word, 'Euro Snobs', to describe this group of people is another reminder that there are many people that could readily start following the A-League (especially if the quality got better). The "Eurosnobs" term has been around in the USA for quite some time - not sure where it appeared first though. In the USA it doesn't only refer to those who prefer European football to MLS, though, but also to those who want to create European atmospheres at games rather than the traditional All-American Experience. I'm curious - in Australia is there a strong preference for creating/maintaining an "Australian" or "natural" matchday experience, or do the crowds try to replicate European habits? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedukeofhearts Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 That the Australian football community has coined a widely used word, 'Euro Snobs', to describe this group of people is another reminder that there are many people that could readily start following the A-League (especially if the quality got better). The "Eurosnobs" term has been around in the USA for quite some time - not sure where it appeared first though. In the USA it doesn't only refer to those who prefer European football to MLS, though, but also to those who want to create European atmospheres at games rather than the traditional All-American Experience. I'm curious - in Australia is there a strong preference for creating/maintaining an "Australian" or "natural" matchday experience, or do the crowds try to replicate European habits? mixed big really. Most the teams have the capo styled support with guys at the front and a guy on a megaphone. Chants are taken from all over. UK, Europe, South America. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belaguttman Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 That the Australian football community has coined a widely used word, 'Euro Snobs', to describe this group of people is another reminder that there are many people that could readily start following the A-League (especially if the quality got better). The "Eurosnobs" term has been around in the USA for quite some time - not sure where it appeared first though. In the USA it doesn't only refer to those who prefer European football to MLS, though, but also to those who want to create European atmospheres at games rather than the traditional All-American Experience. I'm curious - in Australia is there a strong preference for creating/maintaining an "Australian" or "natural" matchday experience, or do the crowds try to replicate European habits? Hard question to answer, Australia is such a multicultural society or rather societies that 'Australian support' really means whatever you want it to mean. Certainly in AFL support is very tame compared to football with no active support or chants. There are good aspects to it though, rival fans sit next to each other and there is little conflict that isn't alcohol related. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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