Healthy Competition a Goldmine for AFL

Being a passionate Fremantle Dockers fan yet living on the other side of Australia meant I recently succumbed to purchasing the AFL’s mobile telecasting program ‘AFL Live’ for what seems like a small fee each week. But it wasn’t just for the desire to see my team of choice in action, it was to ensure I don’t miss out on any of the action in what has been a very entertaining couple of weeks in the AFL. With 7 of the last 19 games finishing with margins of less than 10 points and teams which were previously sorely underperforming now on the rise, how could you not want to watch it? It’s exciting.

Whilst yes, I do now make sure I catch at least a quarter of the Fremantle game each week, I have found myself actually watching more of other matches and getting far less work done while I do. I can tell you that no matter how convinced I am that I will do my homework with a small screen of the footy on my lap, it is yet to happen.

I am sure that there are many people who have recently done the same, especially considering the information recently released in a graph by The Economist (shown below) which indicates AFL is the most popular sport in the world based on the percentage of the population which engages in spectatorship at any stage during the season. Provided my assumptions are correct and this is resulting in In-App purchases for the AFL, it is meaning the closing gap between team’s performances throughout the competition is becoming an absolute goldmine for their marketing department. The matches are speaking for themselves; just begging for people to put down what they’re doing and focus entirely on watching the game to ensure they know what to talk about at work or school the next day.

I am not wild about spending some $6/week for the privilege, mostly because I am still a poor university student just trying to make it through my degree and still be able to eat and maintain a social life, however I will stick with it. At least just for the moment – until it no longer becomes worth it, or until my Mum takes a look at my bank statement and talks some sense into me.

A response to “600 million reasons for Australian cricket to worry”

One of my first assignments at university was to write a response to a media article on an issue facing the governance of a sport, sporting body, or sport in general. Being one of my favourite sports, I couldn’t miss the opportunity to complete this assignment in response to the following article written by Sam de Brito and published in ‘The Age’. The article can be located on the link below.

I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed being able to write about it!

http://www.theage.com.au/comment/600-million-reasons-for-australian-cricket-to-worry-20140120-314c7.html

Sam de Brito’s article ‘600 million reasons for Australian cricket to worry’ published by ‘The Age’ on the 21^st January 2014 outlines the impact of rising global betting syndicates and the possible implications of significant increases in the amount of money wagered on Australian cricket matches, particularly within the newly formed domestic Twenty20 competition, the ‘Big Bash League’ (BBL). De Brito highlights the issues of corruption and match fixing, (which have always been common to cricket, but never commonly identified with cricket in Australia) and suggests that a visit from punters looking to enter illegal dealings may actually appeal to some athletes, who are in between matches, bored, and lonely. These issues would have resounding impacts on the key stakeholders which include the players, Cricket Australia and the BBL, the state cricket governing bodies, and the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Such huge international interest in betting on the outcomes of Australian cricket matches poses an increased threat of games and their results being corrupted by punters who are seeking to ensure a win on the betting market, and as a result the integrity of the competition, the players, and the governing body Cricket Australia, are all put at stake. Arguably, the most likely to be affected of all these stakeholders is the players. They are at the most risk of becoming involved in these dishonest practices as they ultimately have control of the way the game is played, therefore making them the biggest target for money-hungry punters. As such, they are exposed to a dangerous and immoral culture of crime and corruption. Their involvement would signify a lack of integrity and respect for the game, and the implications of this would see them incur sanctions from the ICC which have the potential to end their career and any further involvement in cricket, as well as possibly obtaining a criminal record. This would bring about a poor public reputation and potentially raise issues around their welfare and wellbeing. It also can’t be forgotten that cricket players in Australia are role models to an entire generation of kids coming through the cricketing pathway. Allowing a strong culture of gambling in cricket could influence those younger generations and cause the practice to become increasingly popular, therefore increasing the level of risk associated with it. There is a chance that, if this form of corruption seeps it way into Australian cricket, younger generations will believe the only way to be successful is through cheating, or they could lose faith in the game and the current professional players.

Cricket Australia and the BBL stand to lose almost as much as any individual player if they aren’t proactive in controlling these issues. They are the governing body in charge of the competition and their role involves managing risks such as this which threaten to hurt the reputation of the competition. Without acting on the current issue of a high presence of betting they’re allowing the risks of corruption and match-fixing to compromise the honesty of the competition, therefore putting the popularity of the competition at risk. If issues of match-fixing do arise, the competition will no longer be seen as a showcase of the talent of Australia’s best cricketers, and it won’t be assured that the players on the field are out there to do the best for their team and aim to win. Such cheating would see a decrease in the level of public interest as there would be less excitement surrounding a match where the result has been decided before the start of play.

These effects would then filter down through to the state cricket bodies, who each have at least one representative team in the BBL (except Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory) and are in charge of their operations. They may see significant financial loss in the form of decreases in their grassroots participation rates, decreases in the attendance at home games and therefore a decrease in match day revenue, and a decrease in sponsorship opportunities or current sponsorship revenue. There could also be non-financial effects whereby particularly high profile players or teams lose their eminence through their participation in a tarnished sport.

The ICC, the overarching governing body of cricket, would also feel the impacts of these issues. Their role is to establish and monitor international standards of the way cricket is played throughout the world. Whilst betting and match-fixing are not an uncommon issue for them to face, another incident would cause increased pressure on them to help the game overcome a culture of cheating. Their reputation as an effective council would take a further hit and with that consequence there would be both public backlash and financial sacrifices including a possible decrease in attendance and profile of the Twenty20 and One Day World Cups.

As outlined in the article, there are current measures in place which are working to help ensure player involvement in these issues does not happen, such as banning any forms of communicative technology in change rooms. However, there is perhaps a need for further measures which are designed to turn spectators away from the idea of illegal betting. Cricket Australia could work in conjunction with the ICC to help develop an international campaign outlining the consequences of being caught, orperhaps the newly formed Cricket Australia Integrity unit could undertake a significant review of the level of in-play betting and highlight the opportunities which are most vulnerable to cheating and take appropriate action to limit these possibilities. The action that either the ICC or Cricket Australia do take will filter through and help limit the impact on state cricket bodies and their players as it is likely to take effect on a wide audience.

Gambling will always be a factor in spectating and the issues of illegal betting and match-fixing are always a threat to any sport. However, action must be taken to help change the culture of cricket in particular, which has seen case after case of these types of scandals, and Sam de Brito’s article highlights that Australia cannot expect to be immune from it.

Photo credit: http://www.news.com.au/national/big-bash-league-chief-anthony-everard-says-expectations-are-high-after-successful-first-season/story-e6frfkp9-1226512599068