There’s more to AFL supporters than footy
It’s the weekend that 7,579,000 AFL supporters (or 40% of the Australian population aged 14+) have been waiting for — the start of the official 2013 AFL season. To kick off the next seven months of thrills, spills, goals and glory, Roy Morgan Research takes a look at footy supporters across the country to reveal what makes them tick…
Nobody would be surprised to learn that Australia’s largest concentration of footy fans (38%) can be found in Victoria, the AFL’s historic heartland. In fact, a hefty 61% of all Victorians support an AFL team, in contrast to 24% of people in New South Wales and 28% of Queenslanders. Men comprise the majority (55%) of all supporters.
Sporty is as sporty does
AFL supporters don’t just follow the footy: sport is a way of life for them. Not only are they 22% more likely than the average Australian to have played a sport in any given three-month period, they’re 63% likelier to have attended a professional sports event.
Of all the teams, the Richmond Tigers have the highest proportion of fans who play sport themselves, while more Hawthorn Hawks supporters attend sporting events than those of any other team.
Eating out, gambling and playing sport: what AFL supporters
like doing more than the average Australian
This chart shows the index of the target profile group compared to the population average in terms of leisure, entertainment and eating out activities participated in, with 100 being the average.
Source: Roy Morgan Single Source (Australia), January 2012 – December 2012.
* Base: Aust population 14+, except for placed a bet which is Aust population 18+.
A game of chance
As any AFL supporter knows, a match’s outcome depends on more than just talent and teamwork: Lady Luck also plays a part. Could this explain why, in any given three-month period, footy fans are:
- 45% likelier than the average Australian to have placed a bet
- 49% more likely to have gone to the races
- 24% likelier to have visited a casino?
A larger proportion of North Melbourne Kangaroos and Carlton Blues supporters go to the racetrack than followers of any other team. Fans of the West Coast Eagles and the Fremantle Dockers, on the other hand, are more partial to trying their luck in casinos.
Eat, drink and be merry
When it comes to eating out and ordering in, AFL supporters are consistently more likely to do both than the rest of the population. In any given three-month period, the typical footy fan is:
- 9% likelier to have dined at a licensed restaurant
- 18% likelier to have had a pub meal
- 12% likelier to have eaten at a BYO restaurant
- 20% likelier to have gone to the pub for a drink.
Melbourne Demons fans are most likely to dine at licensed restaurants; whereas Collingwood Magpies supporters reveal a marked preference for fast food joints.
Norman Morris, Industry Communications Director, Roy Morgan Research, says:
“There’s a lot more to the average footy supporter than football. Roy Morgan Research data reveals that this huge section of the population is more likely than other Australians to gamble, eat out and go to professional sporting events.
“This presents many possibilities for prospective sponsors across various industries: reaching this influential group shouldn’t be difficult given their wide-ranging interests.”
Click here to view our extensive range of sports supporter profiles and sports spectator profiles, including AFL and specific teams, or our range of Media Profiles including the Internet, social media, television, pay TV, radio and more. These profiles provide a broad understanding of the target audience, in terms of demographics, attitudes, activities and media usage in Australia.
Margin of Error
The margin of error to be allowed for in any estimate depends mainly on the number of interviews on which it is based. Margin of error gives indications of the likely range within which estimates would be 95% likely to fall, expressed as the number of percentage points above or below the actual estimate. Allowance for design effects (such as stratification and weighting) should be made as appropriate.
| Sample Size | Percentage Estimate |
| 40% – 60% | 25% or 75% | 10% or 90% | 5% or 95% | |
| 1,000 | ±3.0 | ±2.7 | ±1.9 | ±1.3 |
| 5,000 | ±1.4 | ±1.2 | ±0.8 | ±0.6 |
| 7,500 | ±1.1 | ±1.0 | ±0.7 | ±0.5 |
| 10,000 | ±1.0 | ±0.9 | ±0.6 | ±0.4 |
| 20,000 | ±0.7 | ±0.6 | ±0.4 | ±0.3 |
| 50,000 | ±0.4 | ±0.4 | ±0.3 | ±0.2 |
