AFL celebrates Multicultural Round

AFL NSW/ACT will celebrate Multicultural Round this week to acknowledge and commemorate our game’s cultural diversity.

Since 2005, the AFL NSW/ACT Multicultural Program has engaged thousands of diverse children and communities in Australian football.

The response from the community has been positively overwhelming. From programs run with young refugees and migrants through Intensive English Centres to lucky Auskickers who have been given a chance to play at halftime during a Sydney Swans match, new programs and activities are being established to show the opportunities available for everyone to get involved in AFL.

In 2010, one of the most successful multicultural sporting stories emerged from Auburn in Sydney’s west, a traditional rugby league and soccer stronghold.

Australia’s most multicultural suburb, which is home to 60 percent of immigrants to Australia, established a predominantly all-Muslim AFL team into AFL Sydney.

What followed was 160 Auskickers from the area – all of which are new to the game – and this year a second side was established, so too, was a women’s team.

There is no denying the room to grow the game among multicultural Australians. There are 100 different cultures living in western Sydney alone and a large proportion of NSW/ACT’s population has had little or no engagement with AFL.

Over time, more resources and dedicated programs will be put into growing the game as the AFL strives to have one million participants and one million members in the next five years.

AFL Community Engagement Manager Jason Mifsud said it is critical the AFL responds to, and reflects Australia’s changing demographics.  

“AFL Multicultural Round gives us a terrific platform to celebrate the role multicultural communities have played in the game over the last 150 years and importantly to encourage new communities to enjoy our game as supporters, players or administrators in the future,” Mifsud said.

“Australian football has the extraordinary power to bring people together regardless of their background and we respect this position enormously.  

“The AFL will increase its investment in multicultural programs and will continue to take a leadership position, providing opportunities and ensuring our game is inclusive and accessible to everyone.”