USA

 

The potential of Australian football in the world's largest sporting market is enormous. Many people believe that it is only a matter of time before we see an American play in the AFL.

The controlling body is the United States Australian Football League (USAFL). Teams:

• Atlanta Kookaburras
• Austin Crows
• Baltimore/Washington Eagles
• Boston Demons
• Buffalo VFC
• Chicago Sharks
• Chicago Swans
• Cincinnati Dockers
• Dallas Magpies
• Denver Bulldogs
• Detroit Overdrive
• Illinois Ironmen
• Inland Empire Eagles
• Kansas City Power
• Lehigh Valley Crocodiles
• Los Angeles Crows
• Louisville Football Club
• Milwaukee Bombers
• Minnesota Freeze
• Nashville Kangaroos
• New York Magpies
• North Carolina Tigers
• Orange County Bombers
• Philadelphia Crows
• Phoenix Hawks
• San Diego Lions
• Santa Cruz Roos
• Seattle Cats
• South Carolina Hawks
• St Louis Blues
• Tri-Cities Saints
• Tucson Javelinas
• Vermont Green Mountain Eagles
• Western Pennsylvania Wallabies

 

Early History

As far back as 1889 interest was shown in Australian football by a number of American businessmen on a visit to Australia. They thought that the game with its fast play and long kicking would become very popular in America. On returning home negotiations were conducted with Melbourne, Essendon, Geelong, South Melbourne and the VFA to send two teams to the USA to play a number of exhibition games. Unfortunately this was just at the time when thousands of Victorians were thrown out of work and, owing to the big financial crash of the banks and business concerns, the idea had to be abandoned.

Several Victorians, however, did go to America in search of work and started the game there with some success. Clubs were formed in Detroit, Boston, Brockton, St. Louis, Philadelphia, Oakland and San Francisco, and some of these teams adopted Australian names such as Victorians, Melbourne, Wattles, Kangaroos, Southern Cross, Batman, Fawkner, Royal Park, Magpies, Port Philip, Collingwood and Yarratown. The teams financed themselves and played on open allotments and at some matches collection boxes were taken around as no charges could be made.

It appears that some civic leaders saw these games and were impressed with both the style of play and the absence of serious injuries to players. At that time American football was extremely rough and not very attractive as a spectacle. Unfortunately the Australian code gradually died out owing to many players being able to get their jobs back in Melbourne. Despite this attempts were made to invite Melbourne and Essendon to play in San Francisco or the VFA to send a combined team, but negotiations fell through. A number of youth clubs sprang up around Los Angeles, Seattle and San Francisco, while it was reported that the game was being played in Wisconsin by University students.

In 1905 President Theodore Roosevelt became alarmed at the high numbers of deaths and serious injuries in American football. He was of the opinion that American football legislators should either make alterations to the rules of the game or perhaps adopt a new code altogether.

Seeing these reports the VFL wrote to the President suggesting that the Australian game be adopted. The League also sent copies of the laws of the game to 69 universities and colleges and some of them took the game up. In 1908 when the American Fleet visited Australia special exhibition matches were played in Melbourne during the Australasian Carnival and on returning home some of the Naval Cadets were encouraged to play the new code.

In 1909 Major Piexotto and Grant Holme brought a party of 60 schoolboys, aged between 14 and 18 years of age, to Australia on an educational visit. A number of baseball matches were played against school teams, and Australian football became popular with the students, who were very keen to learn the finer points of the game. Matches were played by the Americans against North of the Yarra and South of the Yarra State School teams on the MCG - other games being against College teams and the Melbourne YMCA. The team also played a curtain-raiser to a VFL match.

On returning home Piexotto and Holme were enthusiastic about the potential of Australian football and they organised the formation of a number of schoolboy teams. The game looked like catching on rapidly, but the outbreak of the first World War was its death blow, as it was in other countries where Australian football had obtained a footing. (C.C. Mullen, History of Australian Rules Football, pg. 159-160)

 

The USAFL

Over the years various cities in the USA had established Australian social organisations and it was these clubs that provided the catalyst for the rebirth of Australian football. In 1996 a match took place in Indianapolis, with players from Cincinnati, Nashville, Louisville and Indianapolis participating. It was a very humble beginning.

The sport slowly grew during 1997. A team of all-comers met in Toronto for a game against Lawrence Park Rebels, a Toronto club. While this was not a fully-fledged international game it did mark the true beginning of the future USAFL. With players from five US cities, from Los Angeles to Milwaukee, the idea of a formal organisation was born.

1997 also brought the first national championship tournament to Cincinnati. The teams that competed for the title were from Los Angeles, Nashville, Louisville, St. Louis, a combined side of Kansas City and Indianapolis, and a guest team from Canada, the Broadview Hawks. Cincinnati will forever be remembered as the birthplace of USfooty as the host of the first three championships. This first national tournament was the beginning of an explosion.

During the tournament the United States Australian Football Association (USAFA) was formed. Like all great things Australian it happened over a beer. A dozen guys, led by Paul "Plugger" O'Keeffe, stood outside a rural Midwestern barn, under the moonlight, beer in hand, and discussed the future of footy. The original goal was to keep the momentum from the weekend going, continue to grow the sport and have organized tournament weekends throughout the year.

The year 1998 brought rapid expansion for the Association with the addition of clubs across the USA, including five California teams, bringing the total number to eighteen. Expatriate Australians found out about the new fledgling league and quickly formed their own football clubs. Some clubs were even started by Americans.

The internet was one of the major contributing factors to the rapid expansion of footy in the USA. The creation of a professional website, www.usfooty.com, spurred the spreading of the gospel.

The social clubs that would have a kick now and again were now turning into fully fledged footy clubs. The number of games played by clubs rose from 15 in 1997 to 44 in 1998 and took a big jump to 117 in 1999.

The year 1999 brought a multitude of changes to the rapidly growing USAFA. Their association with the AFL was solidified and the association changed its name and become incorporated as the United States Australian Football League (USAFL). The first full board took office and junior and umpire development programs were started.

The USAFL returned to Cincinnati in 1998 and 1999 to decide the national champion with the tournament growing to 12 teams in 1999. The Boston Demons set the standard on the field winning back-to-back titles.

1999 also saw the first American Revolution national team named. The first true international match with Canada was held in Chicago. The Revolution, under the expert tutelage of AFL Legend Paul Roos ran out eventual winners, setting up an intense rivalry with the Canadians.

In 2000 O'Keeffe stepped down from the Presidency and was replaced by Rich Mann. Rich was part of the now infamous meeting that started the league in 1997. The transition to Mann and a new executive board kept the growth of the sport running briskly along. O'Keeffe continued to be involved at the executive board level and took a more concerted focus on junior development and the international presence of USfooty.

The 2000 Nationals moved to the West Coast and were hosted by the Californian Australian Football League (CAFL). The tournament grew to 16 teams and saw a new National Champion in Denver. Ross Smith, newly appointed to the AFL Game Development Commission, traveled to the US to view the Championships.

The Revolution played a return match in Toronto against Canada, under new head coach Gary Hill. The selection process became tougher and only US citizens could represent the Revolution.

USfooty had now expanded to over 30 different cities and the number of games reached 175. Player numbers had grown to 1,000 and most importantly the mix of players had changed - originally 70% of players were Australian. By 2000 that number had decreased to 40% and by 2002 had continued to drop to 30%. This change was partly due to the limit of Australians that could take the field at the National Championships. In 1998 there were no limits. By 2001 the limit had increased to 50%.

The aim of the USAFL in 2001 was to stabilize the growth and increase the level of administrative professionalism of both the League and the Clubs. The main vehicle to accomplish this was the first USAFL Administrators Conference held in Cincinnati. Each club sent one administrator to the two-day conference where the future of the league was discussed. The Constitution was ratified which allowed the League to pursue tax-exempt status, which was approved by the IRS later that year.

In 2001 the Arizona Australian Football League (AZAFL) was established. The AZAFL was an experiment in the shortened version of the game. One of the biggest challenges in the US is finding a field large enough to hold a game. American football and soccer fields are plentiful and so a nine-a-side version of the game was developed. The new version has been branded as MetroFooty. Originally many were skeptical, but the success of the AZAFL, which has grown to 6 teams, has changed those opinions. In 2002 the number of Metro teams has risen to 30 with 6 clubs holding MetroFooty competitions. The beauty of MetroFooty is that it allows more people the opportunity to play and decreases the need to travel to get a game.

The Nationals moved to Washington DC and were hosted by the Baltimore/Washington Eagles. The best Nationals to date saw 20 teams split into two divisions and 500 players attend. The Division I honors went to San Diego and Division II saw a spirited New York team run away the victors. The Nationals have now become the highlight of the USfooty year and is eagerly anticipated by all involved. The organization of the tournament was taken to a new level and has set the standard for all clubs to follow.

The Revolution made their first trip outside of North America with their attendance at the inaugural Atlantic Alliance Cup in London in October 2001. The team played four games in four days and walked away with a 2-2 record. The Revolution ended up second in pool play, but was not able to play in the finals due to the timing of their Nationals. Ireland ran out deserved winners over Denmark in the final. While in London the Atlantic Alliance Committee was formed with the aim of bringing the five countries closer together off the field.

The usfooty.com website continues to be the heart of the league. Throughout 2001 it averaged over 500 user sessions per day. The most popular section of the site is the club pages that outline the details of all the member clubs.

Following Rich Mann's return to Australia, Jon Lenicheck, from Boston, took over the reigns as the USAFL's first American President. Lenicheck hosted the first executive board conference in January 2002. Previously the board had only ever meet via teleconference. The opportunity to meet face-to-face and strategize the future has lead to a more structured approach to the development of the game in the USA.

 

Americans in the AFL

In 1995 former LA Raiders player Dwayne Armstrong attended the Anzac Day match between Essendon and Collingwood and was impressed by what he saw. After a chance meeting with Ron Barassi at a function, Armstrong found his way on to the Essendon supplementary list. "I met Ron Barassi and he said I should try a real game where you don't have pads or protection. I was keen and Essendon gave me the chance," says Armstrong.

Armstrong was sent up to Darwin to play for Wanderers in the Northern Territory Football League before a stint in the Essendon reserves. He didn't make the senior team but it begs the question, will an American play in the AFL?

The answer is yes. In the USA there exists a vast pool of talented athletes who, while considered good enough to be awarded college scholarships, have been unable to make the grade in the NFL or NBA. Unlike Australia, there is no second tier club system for them to play in if they do not make the professional leagues. If they do not make the pros, they simply stop playing.

In 2001 the USAFL and Essendon created an annual scholarship allowing the best USAFL player to train with the Bombers. The inaugural recipient was Dustin Jones from the Lehigh Valley Crocodiles. Cincinnati Dockers ruckman, 21-year-old Jeremy Kraus (196 centimetres and 86 kilograms) was selected by the USAFL as the 2002 AFL scholarship player. Apart from training with Essendon he also gained invaluable experience playing for a local amateur team.

 

National Championships

Year	Venue	National Champion
1997	Cincinnati, Ohio	Cincinnati Dockers
1998	Cincinnati, Ohio	Boston Demons
1999	Cincinnati, Ohio	Boston Demons
2000	Los Angeles, California	Denver Bulldogs
2001	Washington, D.C.	San Diego Lions
2002	Kansas City, Kansas	Denver Bulldogs

 

International Matches

1999	USA 10.15 (75) d. Canada 8.7 (55)
2000	USA 4.17 (41) d. Canada 2.4 (16)
2001	Denmark 6.10 (46) d. USA 5.4 (34)
2001	Ireland 9.9 (63) d. USA 4.5 (29)
2001	USA 10.8 (68) d. Great Britain 3.3 (21)
2001	USA 8.9 (57) d. Canada 5.5 (35)
2002	USA 7.10 (52) d. Samoa 4.7 (31)
2002	New Zealand 11.12 (78) d. USA 4.1 (25)
2002	Ireland 7.7 (49) d. USA 6.3 (39)
2002	USA 8.4 (52) d. Canada 1.1 (7)
2002	USA 20.12 (132) d. South Africa 0.4 (4)
2002	USA 13.15 (93) d. Great Britain 2.3 (15)

 

AFL matches in the USA

Year	City	Result
1963	Honolulu	Melbourne 17.21 (123) d. Geelong 15.21 (111)
1963	San Francisco	Melbourne 10.11 (71) d. Geelong 9.12 (66)
1988	Miami	Collingwood 18.16 (124) d. Geelong 10.18 (78)
1989	Miami	Essendon 18.16 (124) d. Hawthorn 15.20 (110)
1990	Portland	Melbourne 24.16 (160) d. West Coast 11.13 (79)

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