AFLW: Could it be more? – Atmaj Singh (ECO04)

The AFLW is the premier competition of Australian Rules Football for female players, having been launched in 2017 to a warm reception. The main purpose of the league was to improve the participation rate of females throughout the nation, especially young girls at the grassroots level. However, as the competition kicks on through to its fourth season this summer, the same question arises as it does with most Women’s sports:

Why aren’t they getting paid enough?

This question can appear in various forms: ‘Why isn’t the pay similar to the Men’s?’ or ‘Why aren’t they getting paid the same amount for the same work?’. Of course there are simple answers to these questions such as: The season isn’t as long enough as the Men’s, there isn’t much broadcast revenue being made, and the ticket sales and attendance numbers are not enough to muster up a hefty pay packet.

However, as the competition is now in its fourth season, the AFLW will soon have to make large calls in regards to these factors, factors that could possibly make or break the possible increase in salary for the players.

The ticket sales conundrum

Throughout it’s existence, the AFLW has rarely ever charged for tickets, with most games being priced as free entry. The move is understandable, as the purpose of free entry is to increase spectators to games, giving the public the opportunity to grow to the competition. But by continuing to price games for free, what is the opportunity cost by not pricing majority, if not all of the games?

Firstly, the lack of revenue from ticket’s sales results in less income for the players.

For the current 2020 season, only 7 of the 56 Home and Away Season games will be priced, with one of those games being a bushfire fundraiser. It is because of this many players have to partake in other sports competitions, as their pay from the AFLW alone is not enough to make a steady living.

I personally feel as if the AFLW should begin charging a gold coin entry to all games. This ensures that there is some increase in revenue, whilst at the same time not deterring fans by having an immediate jump in ticket prices.

The free entry system of the league, has no ticketing process, a risk that has backfired so far this season, as it left fans confused about how to purchase tickets, many being deterred from buying tickets, because of the process.

The 2020 Season opener between Carlton and Richmond was expected to be a lockout, with IKON Park expected to hold upwards of 24,000 spectators for the night. However, only 15,000 fans turned up, as many were left baffled by the non-existent ticketing process.

Play more, Earn More

Over the past four seasons in the AFLW, the number of games each team has played has increased from 7 to only 8. This is a concern, as from 2017 to 2019 to 2020, the number of teams has increased from 8 to 10 to 14. With a small growth of games and a large growth of teams, it only cuts the amount of revenue that each player receives.

The number of games was the focal point of the recent Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) that was finally agreed upon between the AFL representatives and Player representatives. The number of games for each team will increase by 1 game for the next two seasons, a very slow increase, one that is not very reassuring of the AFL’s faith in the competition.

Whilst the competition continues to grow, it is clear there is slow progress being made in terms of players having a decent salary. However, the AFLW is still to yet to take risks that could potentially benefit the revenue of the AFLW, inspiring the players to inspire a generation of young girls.