Australian rules football in South Africa
| Australian rules football in South Africa | |
|---|---|
| Country | South Africa |
| Governing body | AFL South Africa |
| National team | South Africa |
| Nickname(s) | Lions (formerly Buffaloes) |
| First played | 1898 |
| Registered players | 9,400 (total) 2,000 (adult) 7,400 (junior) |
| Clubs | 20 |
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Club competitions
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Audience records
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| Single match | 10,123 (1998). Brisbane v. Fremantle. (Cape Town) |
Australian rules football in South Africa is a fast-growing team sport, having grown in participation by 160% between 2005–07.
Since 1996, the sport has been growing quickly amongst indigenous communities, beginning in the North West province and later spreading to Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape Province through the work of development officers. South Africa's national team made history in 2007 by competing against Australia's best Under 17 players as well as defeating a touring Australian amateur senior team for the first time. The governing body for the game in South Africa is AFL South Africa.
Australian rules football was first played in South Africa in 1898 when Australian soldiers on Boer War service in South Africa played the game behind the lines. Following this time, the game was played by some local teams. It is generally believed that interest and support for Australian rules football died following World War I.
In 1967, it was reported in the VFL Record's "Footy Facts" column that Australian football clubs existed in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Cape Town and that the VFL was optimistic about the future of the game in South Africa. Little is known of how and when these clubs formed or what later became of them.
In 1997, the Australian Defence Force visited the North West Province and the first talks of re-introducing the game began with some football clinics. The key benefits of the game were seen to be the apartheid racial issues which plagued the nation's national sport, rugby union and providing potential indigenous athletes with other choices a chance to possibly play a professional sport besides association football (soccer), which is popular amongst indigenous communities. Australian Football is highly popular with indigenous Australian communities, and the potential for cross-cultural links was also regarded as an opportunity.
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