Talking Footy

King-Eliagh wrote:

Surely it would be much smarter putting more money into existing developments such as south africa and possibly nz.

Beaussie wrote: ↑Thu Jan 12, 2012 8:51 am

Would love to see the game take off in China and India. Great to hear the AFL is finally taking China seriously. Baby steps I know, but a good start.

Last dancer says China ripe for AFL expansion
Jared Lynch
January 12, 2012 Read later

THE Chinese market is ripe for the taking by the AFL, according to former star ballet dancer turned stockbroking whiz, Li Cunxin.

Cunxin, of Mao's Last Dancer fame, said the Chinese were fans of all types of sport, but there was no code in China they could proudly call their own. He said his native land was ''a great potential market'' for Australian football, and could create one billion new fans for the code.

''The basketball game is very weak and the standard is very low. Soccer is also very average,'' said Cunxin, who quickly became an AFL convert after he moved to Melbourne 16 years ago.

''If I'm your average Chinese fan, then I think you could have over a billion people following you. There is no reason why China should not be an incredible future market for AFL.''

The AFL is already taking the first steps of an Asian expansion. It plans to filter Chinese athletes into the annual draft combine in coming years.

AFL international development manager Tony Woods said the league would establish an academy in Guangzhou in the country's south by the end of the year. ''We are realists and realise it is bold and ambitious,'' he said.

''We are taking the first steps into tapping into the Chinese market, and I believe absolutely that we will one day have a Chinese-born athlete running around the MCG.''

The AFL, with the Melbourne Football Club and City of Melbourne, has already invested $1.5 million in China, launching a purpose-built oval in Tianjin, northern China, in October.

Cunxin was speaking at the 15th anniversary dinner of the AIS/AFL Academy.

He told the 60 young academy members, many of whom are expected to go on to play AFL, never to lose the drive and passion needed to reach the sport's highest level - even after their playing careers had ended.

He said in the last 3½ years of his dancing career he studied his investment diploma. ''Even though I was passionate and committed about ballet, I was always interested in other things as well. I was fascinated with discovering the stock market, so I went to do some accounting courses to understand it better.

''By the time I was ready to stop dancing I made a very smooth career transition from dancing to finances. I'm a senior manger at one of the largest stockbroking firms in Australia today, so not only was I able to make that career transition smoothly, but also very successfully.

''It took the same discipline, dedication and work ethic from dance - you can apply that to any field.

''That discipline you have today is going to set you up for life.''

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/afl/afl-news/last ... z1jBlaLZC3

pussycat wrote: ↑Thu Nov 02, 2017 10:00 am

Beaussie wrote: ↑Thu Jan 12, 2012 8:51 am

Would love to see the game take off in China and India. Great to hear the AFL is finally taking China seriously. Baby steps I know, but a good start.

Last dancer says China ripe for AFL expansion
Jared Lynch
January 12, 2012 Read later

THE Chinese market is ripe for the taking by the AFL, according to former star ballet dancer turned stockbroking whiz, Li Cunxin.

Cunxin, of Mao's Last Dancer fame, said the Chinese were fans of all types of sport, but there was no code in China they could proudly call their own. He said his native land was ''a great potential market'' for Australian football, and could create one billion new fans for the code.

''The basketball game is very weak and the standard is very low. Soccer is also very average,'' said Cunxin, who quickly became an AFL convert after he moved to Melbourne 16 years ago.

''If I'm your average Chinese fan, then I think you could have over a billion people following you. There is no reason why China should not be an incredible future market for AFL.''

The AFL is already taking the first steps of an Asian expansion. It plans to filter Chinese athletes into the annual draft combine in coming years.

AFL international development manager Tony Woods said the league would establish an academy in Guangzhou in the country's south by the end of the year. ''We are realists and realise it is bold and ambitious,'' he said.

''We are taking the first steps into tapping into the Chinese market, and I believe absolutely that we will one day have a Chinese-born athlete running around the MCG.''

The AFL, with the Melbourne Football Club and City of Melbourne, has already invested $1.5 million in China, launching a purpose-built oval in Tianjin, northern China, in October.

Cunxin was speaking at the 15th anniversary dinner of the AIS/AFL Academy.

He told the 60 young academy members, many of whom are expected to go on to play AFL, never to lose the drive and passion needed to reach the sport's highest level - even after their playing careers had ended.

He said in the last 3½ years of his dancing career he studied his investment diploma. ''Even though I was passionate and committed about ballet, I was always interested in other things as well. I was fascinated with discovering the stock market, so I went to do some accounting courses to understand it better.

''By the time I was ready to stop dancing I made a very smooth career transition from dancing to finances. I'm a senior manger at one of the largest stockbroking firms in Australia today, so not only was I able to make that career transition smoothly, but also very successfully.

''It took the same discipline, dedication and work ethic from dance - you can apply that to any field.

''That discipline you have today is going to set you up for life.''

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/afl/afl-news/last ... z1jBlaLZC3

SportCapital wrote: ↑Thu Nov 02, 2017 12:21 pm

pussycat wrote: ↑Thu Nov 02, 2017 10:00 am

Beaussie wrote: ↑Thu Jan 12, 2012 8:51 am

Would love to see the game take off in China and India. Great to hear the AFL is finally taking China seriously. Baby steps I know, but a good start.

I wonder if any of the other Australian leagues are trying to expand at this level. Or at least having a conversation about it.... Doubt it. 5 years from now they'll wished they had.

Beaussie wrote: ↑Tue Dec 13, 2011 3:53 pm

Would love to see this plan and a push into India really take off in the years to come. India in particular with the abundance of cricket grounds not used in winter.

League's giant push to China
8:57 AM Mon 12 Dec, 2011
THE AFL plans to play a premiership game in China by as soon as 2016 with Greater Western Sydney coach Kevin Sheedy saying the Giants are interested in going.

Melbourne would also be a logical choice, having forged close ties to China, having played an exhibition game against the Brisbane Lions in Shanghai in 2010 and exploring the possibility of taking pre-season training to the mountainous region of Kunming recently.

The AFL has also taken a number of significant steps in gaining a foothold in China, ensuring one game a week is beamed live into Shanghai and funding an AFL oval in Tianjin.

"If you've got that type of energy behind it, there's no reason why we can't aim for that type of outcome in the next three to five years," AFL international development manager Tony Woods told the Herald Sun.

"Ultimately, you've got to have two clubs who are really keen and driving it. It has to sit within our fixturing here and in the end it has to be a joint decision and endorsed by the AFL Commission.

"Absolutely, playing a game there for premiership points in the future is a consideration."

In November, Sheedy declared he wanted to take the Giants to China for a home and away game.

"A lot of clubs wouldn't be interested, but we are saying that we want to do it," Sheedy said.

"I have spoken to our chairman about it as it is in our best interests to be first.

"I haven't spoken to anyone at the AFL yet, but they know it is something that I want to do.

"We could even [open the 2013 season] with a game, and I think it would work really well."

The Demons are also keen to play in China with chief executive Cameron Schwab declaring that Melbourne is a "pioneering" club.

"At some point there will be a venue, a time, a reason and there will be enough momentum behind it that there will be clubs prepared to host games in other countries," Schwab told the Herald Sun.

"It makes a lot of sense for that to be in China, given the number of levels we relate to China on."

http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/ ... fault.aspx