Anti-Football League
Encyclopedia
The Anti-Football League is an Australia
n organisation that pokes fun at the obsession with Australian Rules Football
. It was founded by Melbourne journalist Keith Dunstan
in 1967. The chief qualification for membership is not an active dislike but a disinterest in football, a desire to spend one’s time and conversation on other things.
in the offices of The Sun News-Pictorial
on Sunday 16 April 1967.
On that day, the building was filled with sports writers and ex-footballers – along with their ghost writers – preparing the Monday edition of the football round-up for the weekend. Amongst the relentless discussions pertaining to football, Wilkie, the Sun’s foreign correspondent made a remark to Dunstan that he had had enough. “There must be a better life than this. Couldn’t we start an anti football organisation?” Dunstan’s reply was found the next day in his column, “A Place in the Sun”. In two days Dunstan had received 104 letters from members of the public eager to join.
Dunstan suggested that a badge should be devised, so that League members could recognise each other and intelligent non-football discussion could take place. The badge was to be in the shape of a red cube, symbolic of an object that would not bounce. The firm of K.G. Luke and Company volunteered to make the badges, and by July 1967, 5,600 of them had been sold. Proceeds of the sales were donated to the Berry Street Babies Home (now Berry Street Victoria), and afterwards the MS Society. One of their mottos was "Kick the Footy Habit" The AFL had raised over $200,000 by the 1980s.
is the League's answer to the Australian Rules'
Brownlow Medal
. Similar to the Brownlow, it is named after a person not many people know much about. Wilkie was a former war correspondent and much admired columnist on The Sun, specializing in political and social commentary. Each year the Wilkie Medal honours the person who has done the least for football in the best and fairest manner. Past winners have included former Prime Minister Harold Holt
, satirist Barry Humphries
(once as himself and once in his Les Patterson
comic persona), and Olympic champion Raelene Boyle
. The award is presented on Anti-Football day, and the recipient is expected to destroy a football in a unique and creative manner to show their allegiance to the cause. Barry Humphries
would later go on to perform in his stage persona Dame Edna Everage
during a AFL Grand Final
pre match, drawing criticism from the organisation for hypocrisy.
was awarded for the first time since 1994.
In 2008 the organisation announced the Newman Award to be "presented to a footballer who displays the worst off-field performance, in the preceding 12 months." Sam Newman
is among those nominated for the inaugural award. The organisation also holds an Anti Grand Final Day Lunch to celebrate the end of the football season and the return to more civilised pursuits. No mention of football is allowed with the penalty being eviction from the lunch.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n organisation that pokes fun at the obsession with Australian Rules Football
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
. It was founded by Melbourne journalist Keith Dunstan
Keith Dunstan
Keith Dunstan OAM is an Australian journalist and author born in Melbourne, Australia, the son of William Dunstan VC and Marjorie Dunstan. He attended Geelong Grammar School and was a Flight Lieutenant in 1943-46 with the Royal Australian Air Force, stationed at Labuan in the Pacific...
in 1967. The chief qualification for membership is not an active dislike but a disinterest in football, a desire to spend one’s time and conversation on other things.
Origins
The "AFL" was created in response to a remark made by journalist Douglas WilkieDouglas Wilkie
Douglas Wilkie was a respected columnist for The Sun News-Pictorial . The son of travelling Shakespearean actors Allan Wilkie and Frediswyde Hunter-Watts, he began his newspaper career as a copy boy with the Hobart Mercury. This period was followed by Sir Keith Murdoch appointing him as Geelong...
in the offices of The Sun News-Pictorial
The Sun News-Pictorial
The Sun News-Pictorial, commonly known as The Sun, was a morning daily tabloid newspaper in Melbourne, Australia established in 1922 and closed in 1990.It was part of The Herald and Weekly Times Ltd stable of Melbourne newspapers...
on Sunday 16 April 1967.
On that day, the building was filled with sports writers and ex-footballers – along with their ghost writers – preparing the Monday edition of the football round-up for the weekend. Amongst the relentless discussions pertaining to football, Wilkie, the Sun’s foreign correspondent made a remark to Dunstan that he had had enough. “There must be a better life than this. Couldn’t we start an anti football organisation?” Dunstan’s reply was found the next day in his column, “A Place in the Sun”. In two days Dunstan had received 104 letters from members of the public eager to join.
Dunstan suggested that a badge should be devised, so that League members could recognise each other and intelligent non-football discussion could take place. The badge was to be in the shape of a red cube, symbolic of an object that would not bounce. The firm of K.G. Luke and Company volunteered to make the badges, and by July 1967, 5,600 of them had been sold. Proceeds of the sales were donated to the Berry Street Babies Home (now Berry Street Victoria), and afterwards the MS Society. One of their mottos was "Kick the Footy Habit" The AFL had raised over $200,000 by the 1980s.
Wilkie Award
The Douglas Wilkie MedalDouglas Wilkie Medal
The Douglas Wilkie Medal is an award presented to those who do the least for Australian rules football, in the best and fairest manner. An accolade presented by the Anti-Football League, it is named after Douglas Wilkie, a Sun News-Pictorial columnist who wrote for the paper during the years...
is the League's answer to the Australian Rules'
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
Brownlow Medal
Brownlow Medal
The Chas Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal , is awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the Australian Football League during the regular season as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game...
. Similar to the Brownlow, it is named after a person not many people know much about. Wilkie was a former war correspondent and much admired columnist on The Sun, specializing in political and social commentary. Each year the Wilkie Medal honours the person who has done the least for football in the best and fairest manner. Past winners have included former Prime Minister Harold Holt
Harold Holt
Harold Edward Holt, CH was an Australian politician and the 17th Prime Minister of Australia.His term as Prime Minister was brought to an early and dramatic end in December 1967 when he disappeared while swimming at Cheviot Beach near Portsea, Victoria, and was presumed drowned.Holt spent 32 years...
, satirist Barry Humphries
Barry Humphries
John Barry Humphries, AO, CBE is an Australian comedian, satirist, dadaist, artist, author and character actor, best known for his on-stage and television alter egos Dame Edna Everage, a Melbourne housewife and "gigastar", and Sir Les Patterson, Australia's foul-mouthed cultural attaché to the...
(once as himself and once in his Les Patterson
Sir Les Patterson
Dr Sir Leslie Colin Patterson is a fictional character portrayed by the Australian comedian Barry Humphries. Obese, lecherous and offensive, this farting, belching, nose-picking figure of Rabelaisian excess is an antipodean Falstaff...
comic persona), and Olympic champion Raelene Boyle
Raelene Boyle
Raelene Ann Boyle, AM, MBE, , Australian athlete, represented Australia at three Olympic Games as a sprinter, winning three silver medals. In 1998, Boyle was named one of 100 National Living Treasures by the National Trust of Australia.-Early life:Boyle was born on 24 June 1951, the daughter of...
. The award is presented on Anti-Football day, and the recipient is expected to destroy a football in a unique and creative manner to show their allegiance to the cause. Barry Humphries
Barry Humphries
John Barry Humphries, AO, CBE is an Australian comedian, satirist, dadaist, artist, author and character actor, best known for his on-stage and television alter egos Dame Edna Everage, a Melbourne housewife and "gigastar", and Sir Les Patterson, Australia's foul-mouthed cultural attaché to the...
would later go on to perform in his stage persona Dame Edna Everage
Dame Edna Everage
Dame Edna is a character created and played by Australian dadaist performer and comedian, Barry Humphries, famous for her lilac-coloured or "wisteria hue" hair and cat eye glasses or "face furniture," her favorite flower, the gladiola and her boisterous greeting: "Hello Possums!" As Dame Edna,...
during a AFL Grand Final
AFL Grand Final
The AFL Grand Final is an annual Australian rules football match, traditionally held on the final Saturday in September at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia to determine the Australian Football League premiership champions for that year...
pre match, drawing criticism from the organisation for hypocrisy.
Re-formation
The organisation's website was launched in 2006, giving new impetus to the organisation. In an article in the Australian newspaper, the Herald Sun, published on 12 May 2007. Dunstan is quoted as declaring "the AFL is back" after a hiatus of 10 years. He cited recent "behaviour" of the players as a reason to start the League again. Along with the league re-forming, the Douglas Wilkie MedalDouglas Wilkie Medal
The Douglas Wilkie Medal is an award presented to those who do the least for Australian rules football, in the best and fairest manner. An accolade presented by the Anti-Football League, it is named after Douglas Wilkie, a Sun News-Pictorial columnist who wrote for the paper during the years...
was awarded for the first time since 1994.
In 2008 the organisation announced the Newman Award to be "presented to a footballer who displays the worst off-field performance, in the preceding 12 months." Sam Newman
Sam Newman
John Noel William "Sam" Newman is a retired Australian rules football player and current television personality. He is a featured presenter on the AFL version of The Footy Show.-VFL career:...
is among those nominated for the inaugural award. The organisation also holds an Anti Grand Final Day Lunch to celebrate the end of the football season and the return to more civilised pursuits. No mention of football is allowed with the penalty being eviction from the lunch.