Close to 38,000 spectators swarmed into Optus Stadium on Saturday afternoon to watch what was technically just an exhibition game. To the fans in the stands, the millions watching around the country and the players on the ground, however, this wasn't any ordinary pre-season match sim.
The reaction to the Indigenous All-Stars game speaks for itself. The specially designed All-Stars guernsey sold out rapidly on The AFL Store's online shop. Fans clamoured to social media to express their love for the spectacle, demanding the clash becomes an annual tradition. Their only complaint - it wasn't on free-to-air so more could watch. A crowd of the magnitude seen on Saturday for a pre-season game highlights how starved of representative football AFL fans have been, an element of this great sport that is not seen nearly enough.
The Indigenous representatives relished the moment, playing with pride. The 30-man squad, made up of players from 16 of the AFL's 18 clubs, gave the crowd electric celebrations, a beautifully flashy playstyle and an overall exhilarating watch that only a team of the best of the best could provide. As they beamed with joy post-game alongside the Dockers, AFL fans could clearly see what these games mean to both the Indigenous community and the football community as a whole.
As Michael Walters accepted the victory shield post-game, he said bluntly that "football wins." He couldn't have put it better than that.
The AFL thrives off its in-competition rivalries like no other. Its top 5 ranking for sports attendance figures globally is a result of that. Australian Football belonging to solely Australia on a professional level means it is in a unique position in the sports world, but it also means it lacks representative opportunities. Perhaps that's why it took a decade for the Indigenous All-Stars to return and for the AFL to bring back some form of representative game for the first time since the 2020 State of Origin for Bushfire Relief Match. There was no real need for it.ย
But you don't have to look far to see the desire for more representative sport in this country. The NRL's State of Origin is one of the nation's biggest sporting events yearly and the way the whole nation rallied around the Australian cricket team in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series against India was inspiring. If the AFL truly wants to spark even more attendance yearly to eclipse the 10 million mark, as AFL CEO Andrew Dillon recently claimed, more "marquee" match-ups in the home and away season will only do so much. To achieve this ambition, tapping into the underused representative matches is the way to go.
On a different continent, the NHL is proving that turning to representative games can be an effective way to increase fan engagement. The NHL replaced their traditional All-Star weekend this year with an international tournament and ratings have subsequently skyrocketed. Boasting the four strongest nations from its makeup of players, the Four Nations Face-Off has got the sports world talking, thanks to the players' passion for the competition and the bitter traditional rivalries between Canada, USA, Sweden and Finland on full display. The stirring rendition of the Canadian anthem on Sunday highlighted the passion the NHL's tournament has evoked. Furthermore, the Canada-USA game averaged 4.4 million viewers in the United States alone, the most watched non-Stanley Cup Final since 2019. It may full well out-perform the NBA's All-Star weekend for the first time, which has been struggling to provide an entertaining product to fans for many years now.
Despite its lack of regularity, seeing rival talents join forces is something AFL fans have always craved. It couldn't be more case and point than after this weekend. Its blatant success in other codes proves the AFL has an opportunity it simply cannot pass up on. It would be a narrow-minded decision to not bring back the Indigenous All-Stars next year, or at the very least some form of representative opportunity for the league's best, like the return of an International Rules series against Ireland's Gaelic and AFL stars.
The biggest concern ultimately is the timing of these events. But with the AFL season already extending itself back into mid-February and the Indigenous All-Stars game proving to be a success in this timeframe, the AFL might already be on the right track. These games can act as match simulations for participants, while leaving enough time for them to feature with their clubs in the AAMI Community Series in early March.
Additionally, if Dillon wants to grow attendance for the AFLW, why not have rep games for the women too? The league features an immense amount of talent with Indigenous and Irish backgrounds, and both have been calling for some version of an All-Stars game that has been seen in the men's competition. Seeing the AFLW's best players battle for the first time since its rapid expansion would immensely grow the game and help new fans identify their favourite team's superstars to watch.
An AFLW Indigenous All-Stars game or International Series could take place in the July pre-season in the lead-up to the AFLW's season opener in August, building anticipation for the home-and-away season. While Sir Doug Nicholls Round takes place in late May, the idea of an Indigenous All-Stars AFLW game featuring in this timeframe is an exciting proposition for an already special round too.
Ultimately, the AFL has the potential to enter an exciting new era if they capitalise on the interest presented. The fans want it and so do the players.
"I can't remember enjoying football that much," North Melbourne captain and Polly Farmer Medal winner Jy Simpkin said of the Indigenous All-Stars game. "It was super exciting, super fun. Even sitting on the benches, watching back, watching the boys run, carry, move the footy was awesome."
