130:
and "National
Australian Football") in an effort to emphasize its Australian origin and further differentiate it from rugby and soccer which were becoming more popular in New South Wales, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory. Its members' premier competitions were encouraged to include the term "Australian National Football" in their title, with the South Australian Football League (SAFL) becoming the
55:), the "Victorian game", "Australasian rules", the "Australian game" and "Australian national football", "national football", the "bouncing game" and, derisively, "aerial ping pong" as well as several other names. Today, the common names for the sport are "Australian Football" and "Australian rules football" and it is referred to as "football", "footy", "Aussie rules" or sometimes as "AFL" (a
19:
163:
was until the 1980s referred by locals simply as "Rules" or "Rules
Football". The name variations were typically also adopted by the respective governing bodies. The sport's popularity plummeted shortly after the NFL mandated that the Papua New Guineans call it Australian Rules. Branding of overseas
250:
The term "AFL" (abbreviation of
Australian Football League) is mistakenly used to refer to the sport, mostly by newcomers to Australian Football in areas where the sport has not been widely played and the name of the pre-eminent competition is better known than the name of the sport. The Australian
230:
In 1958, the
Australian National Football Council sought to officially rename "Australian Rules Football" to make it more accessible, "Mark" was the outright winner of the "Rename The Game" newspaper poll, with "Rules" and "Footy" being the other popular choices. Despite the poll, a name change was
129:
changed its name to the
Australian National Football Council. Dropping reference to Australasian also officially acknowledged that the sport was no longer being played competitively in New Zealand. The Council officially renamed the sport to "Australian National Football" (later "National Football"
227:, a New South Welshman, who suggested Lyons was "treading on dangerous ground". The secretary of the ANFC, Percy Page, sent a telegram reading: "Congratulations on your stand. The Prime Minister's obvious lack of knowledge of Australian sport is most regrettable."
149:
Internationally, some countries chose to drop references to
Australia from the name to aid its popularity and differentiate it from rugby (because rugby sides sent by Australia to these countries were branded as the "Australian football team"). Most notably
246:
The most common nicknames for the sport are "footy" and "Aussie rules". For much of the middle part of the 20th century, particularly in
Canberra, the latter was shortened further to simply "Rules", this usage is generally obsolete in Australia.
96:
prior to the turn of the 19th
Century was referred to as "Association Football" as the league had affiliated with the Victorian Football Association (VFA). However, as late as 1954, the term "Melbourne Rules" was used by newspapers in
195:
and the West
Australian Football Association (formerly the 1st Rate Juniors competition), though the latter integrated into the WAFL reserves in 1921. There was also a distinction made in WA between the "coastal" (WAFL) and "'fields"
154:
in the 1910s and 1920s was known simply as "Field Ball" or "Fieldball", during its revival in the 1990s, clubs chose to adopt the "Footy" moniker to differentiate it from rugby which many
Americans associated with Australia.
38:
has been called by a number of different names throughout its history. Since 1905, with the formation of the Australasian Football Council, the game has been called "Australian football". The name has been codified by the
109:
in the 1880s and 1890s to differentiate from the other codes, where bouncing was not permitted. The term "Bouncing Football" was introduced by West Australians early on to both the United States and Canada.
798:
86:
By 1860, the widespread adoption of the Melbourne Rules led to it being rebranded as the "Victorian Football". It was informally referred to as "the Victorian Game" or "Victorian Rules", although in
255:
in 1999. The Australian Football League took over the business of the New South Wales Australian Football League Ltd and changed the name of the competitions from Sydney Football League (SFL) to
238:
adopted the name "Australian Football" as the sport's official name to reflect its governance at the highest level, and this is the name given to the sport in the Laws of the Game.
791:
204:. In the 19th century, there was also a distinction made in most leagues between "senior" and "junior" football; this was not to do with age, rather with quality of play.
180:
71:
The first "Rules of the Melbourne Football Club" (also known as the "Rules of the Melbourne Football Club" or, informally, the "Melbourne Rules") were established in
1118:
784:
151:
1123:
160:
179:(known as soccer); and for a time in the 1930s and 1940s, the distinction between the two competitions was necessary because they had sufficiently significant
837:
742:
139:
264:
905:
131:
915:
93:
958:
167:
Several distinctions were made in the three major footballing states regarding the quality of play across different leagues. In Victoria, the
138:(TFL) becoming the Tasmanian Australian National Football League (TANFL) in 1928, and the West Australian Football League (WAFL) becoming the
945:
810:
1057:
829:
48:
1072:
824:
251:
Football League has encouraged competitions to include the term "AFL" in their name: the Queensland Football League changed its name to
1092:
1042:
994:
156:
1062:
764:
201:
113:
The informal name of "Australian football" was in use outside Victoria by the late 19th century. A variant of this, adopted by the
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35:
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competitions as AFL rather than Australian Football has helped standardise the sport's international brand.
122:
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27:
176:
87:
23:
1047:
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684:
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291:
760:
532:. Vol. 2, no. 11. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 18 August 1927. p. 6
106:
56:
159:
was simply called "Football", despite the presence of other codes including soccer. Likewise
146:(VFL) become the Victorian Australian National Football League; however, this did not occur.
978:
968:
953:
898:
894:
745:– smh.com.au. Written by Richards Hinds. Published 26 March 2005. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
433:
367:
183:
that they were considered to be separate codes, similar to the eventual distinction between
973:
572:"Field Ball" will be adopted here. The San Francisco call. 7 April 1911, Page 12, Image 12
274:
The derogatory term "aerial ping-pong" is sometimes used mockingly to refer to the sport.
105:
due to a long-held cultural rivalry. Another term was "the bouncing game", used mostly in
98:
22:
A New South Wales player outmarks a Western Australian opponent in the goal square at the
776:
929:
910:
841:
252:
235:
47:". Historically, the sport has been referred to as "Victorian rules" (referring to its
40:
504:. Vol. LXXXV, no. 188. Tasmania, Australia. 9 August 1927. p. 3 (DAILY)
1112:
1097:
999:
125:
featured a team from New Zealand. In 1927, the Council, as part of its new focus on
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224:
188:
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76:
72:
52:
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341:
117:
acknowledging the participation of its voting member New Zealand, was "
191:. In Western Australia, this distinction was also made between the
18:
17:
292:"About the AFL: Australian Football (Official title of the code)"
780:
267:
affiliated to the AFL also make use of this term. Most major
728:"Soccer, Rules or Rugby??? It's all football in Australia".
259:
in 1998 and Australian Capital Territory Football League to
215:, referred to Australian football as "our national game" in
701:
Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28511, 14 February 1958, Page 6
759:. Sydney: Reader's Digest Services Pty Ltd. p. 178.
90:, the general term was just "football" as early as 1860.
63:, the sport's pre-eminent and professional competition).
271:
use either "AFL" or "football" to refer to the sport.
602:. International, Australia. 9 March 1971. p. 22
1030:
987:
944:
817:
743:
An old favourite: aerial ping-pong v biff and barge
200:) leagues, who played each other regularly in the
757:Australia's Yesterdays: A look at our recent past
621:Rover (2 October 1939). "Gallant win by W'Town".
415:. Published 21 September 1952. Retrieved from
207:In December 1948, a controversy occurred when
152:Australian rules football in the United States
792:
666:. Published 10 December 1948. Retrieved from
161:Australian rules football in Papua New Guinea
8:
688:. Published 9 December 1948. Retrieved from
140:Western Australian National Football League
799:
785:
777:
610:– via National Library of Australia.
559:. Published 9 August 1927. Retrieved from
540:– via National Library of Australia.
512:– via National Library of Australia.
337:"Name of the game is up in the air in NSW"
142:(WANFL) in 1931. It was proposed that the
644:. Published 23 July 1901. Retrieved from
437:. Published 15 June 1954. Retrieved from
371:. Published 27 July 1903. Retrieved from
132:South Australian National Football League
459:. Published 16 May 1882. Retrieved from
393:. Published 14 May 1860. Retrieved from
481:. Published 3 May 1911. Retrieved from
283:
94:Australian rules football in Queensland
123:Jubilee Australasian Football Carnival
1119:Australian rules football terminology
7:
1124:History of Australian rules football
582:US Footy Ten Year Commemorative Book
171:football was considered superior to
717:. Australian Football League. 2024.
680:AUSTRALIA'S "NATIONAL" GAME UPHELD
175:football (not to be confused with
157:Australian rules football in Nauru
14:
335:Connolly, Rohan (22 March 2012).
24:1933 Australian Football Carnival
594:"RULES CHALLENGE FROM AUSTRALIA"
385:FOOTBALL. MELBOURNE V. RICHMOND
193:West Australian Football League
636:COASTAL EIGHTEEN V. GOLDFIELDS
314:"AFL Rules – Laws of the Game"
1:
712:"Laws of Australian Football"
599:Papua New Guinea Post-courier
115:Australasian Football Council
43:, as the game's name in the "
316:. Australian Football League
294:. Australian Football League
265:Leagues outside of Australia
177:English association football
219:. This was rebuffed by the
45:Laws of Australian football
1140:
198:Goldfields Football League
61:Australian Football League
808:Australian rules football
144:Victorian Football League
136:Tasmanian Football League
36:Australian rules football
964:Deliberate out of bounds
732:. 1 May 1950. p. 6.
625:. Melbourne. p. 13.
57:genericised abbreviation
529:Canberra Community News
501:The Examiner (Tasmania)
269:newspapers in Australia
81:Melbourne Football Club
473:THE AUSTRALASIAN GAME.
127:Australian nationalism
31:
755:Pearl, Cyril (1974).
134:(SANFL) in 1927, the
28:Sydney Cricket Ground
21:
496:""NATIONAL" COUNCIL"
181:differences in rules
121:football". The 1908
1078:Priority draft pick
1012:coast-to-coast goal
926:chicken wing tackle
685:The West Australian
641:The West Australian
524:"NATIONAL FOOTBALL"
478:The West Australian
456:The West Australian
363:THE VICTORIAN GAME.
692:, 9 November 2011.
670:, 9 November 2011.
648:, 9 November 2011.
563:, 9 November 2011.
485:, 9 November 2011.
463:, 9 November 2011.
441:, 9 November 2011.
419:, 9 November 2011.
397:, 9 November 2011.
375:, 9 November 2011.
32:
1106:
1105:
1023:
1003:
937:
902:
881:
213:Member for Darwin
202:state premiership
107:Western Australia
1131:
1016:Goal of the Year
1009:
997:
979:Push in the back
969:Holding the ball
954:50-metre penalty
923:
899:spectacular mark
895:Mark of the Year
892:
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801:
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434:The Courier-Mail
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368:Brisbane Courier
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67:Historical names
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1130:
1129:
1128:
1109:
1108:
1107:
1102:
1048:Father–son rule
1026:
983:
974:Holding the man
940:
838:after the siren
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521:
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451:FOOTBALL RULES.
449:
445:
429:Melbourne Rules
427:
423:
407:Melbourne Rules
405:
401:
383:
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361:
357:
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345:
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333:
329:
319:
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231:not initiated.
209:Dame Enid Lyons
99:New South Wales
69:
12:
11:
5:
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911:Running bounce
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842:checkside punt
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730:Good Neighbour
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253:AFL Queensland
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236:AFL Commission
221:Prime Minister
68:
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41:AFL Commission
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1000:rushed behind
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906:One percenter
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766:0-909486-23-9
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658:National Game
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412:Sunday Herald
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234:In 1990, the
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223:at the time,
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50:
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42:
37:
34:The sport of
29:
25:
20:
16:
1067:
934:spear tackle
878:torpedo punt
874:up and under
756:
750:
738:
729:
723:
706:
697:
689:
683:
675:
667:
663:The Examiner
661:
653:
645:
639:
631:
622:
616:
606:26 September
604:. Retrieved
597:
588:
577:
568:
560:
556:The Advocate
554:
546:
536:23 September
534:. Retrieved
527:
518:
508:14 September
506:. Retrieved
499:
490:
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476:
468:
460:
454:
446:
438:
432:
424:
416:
410:
402:
394:
388:
380:
372:
366:
358:
346:. Retrieved
340:
330:
318:. Retrieved
308:
296:. Retrieved
286:
273:
261:AFL Canberra
249:
245:
233:
229:
206:
185:rugby league
166:
148:
119:Australasian
112:
92:
85:
70:
33:
15:
1083:Rookie list
811:terminology
320:18 November
298:18 November
225:Ben Chifley
189:rugby union
173:Association
75:in 1859 by
1113:Categories
1098:Footy gods
1020:super goal
959:Coathanger
946:Free kicks
858:place kick
278:References
257:Sydney AFL
217:Parliament
103:Queensland
1073:Positions
850:drop punt
846:drop kick
623:The Argus
390:The Argus
263:in 1999.
242:Nicknames
77:Tom Wills
73:Melbourne
53:Melbourne
1058:Guernsey
1053:Flooding
930:fend-off
916:Shepherd
866:set shot
830:Handball
88:Victoria
1088:Time-on
1038:Ball-up
988:Scoring
885:Kick-in
854:grubber
825:Clanger
348:4 April
342:The Age
79:of the
49:origins
26:at the
1093:Umpire
1043:Banner
995:Behind
921:Tackle
818:Skills
763:
211:, the
169:League
1068:Names
1031:Other
834:Kick
715:(PDF)
690:Trove
668:Trove
646:Trove
561:Trove
483:Trove
461:Trove
439:Trove
417:Trove
395:Trove
373:Trove
1063:Laws
1007:Goal
890:Mark
870:snap
862:punt
761:ISBN
608:2021
538:2022
510:2022
350:2012
322:2013
300:2013
187:and
101:and
59:of
51:in
1115::
1018:,
1014:,
932:,
928:,
897:,
876:,
872:,
868:,
864:,
860:,
856:,
852:,
848:,
844:,
840:,
682:–
660:–
638:–
596:.
553:–
526:.
498:.
475:–
453:–
431:–
409:–
387:–
365:–
339:.
83:.
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998:(
936:)
924:(
901:)
893:(
880:)
836:(
800:e
793:t
786:v
769:.
352:.
324:.
302:.
196:(
30:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
