What Does Afl Stand for in Sports?
Contents
If you’re a sports fan, you’ve probably heard of the AFL. But what does AFL stand for, and what is it all about? Keep reading to find out!
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Australian Football League
The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent and only fully professional men’s competition in Australia. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport’s governing body, and is responsible for controlling the laws of the game. The AFL is the most popular sporting league in Australia.
History
Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional competition of Australianrules football in Australia and features only Australian teams. Eight teams from across the country compete in the annual AFL Premiership season to be crowned premiers, with the grand final being held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground each year. The game is also popular at an amateur level, with tens of thousands of players competing in local leagues across Australia.
The origins of Australian rules football can be traced back to the game of English public school football, which was itself influenced by earlier games such as mob football and rugby football. The first recorded game of Australian rules football was played in 1858 between Melbourne Grammar School and Scotch College, Melbourne. The game quickly gained popularity, with a number of clubs being formed in the following years.
The Victorian Football Association (VFA) was established in 1877, becoming the first governing body for the sport in Australia. The VFA oversaw the sport’s development during its formative years and played a major role in helping to spread the game to other parts of Australia. In 1896, the VFA merged with another Victorian competitions to form the Victorian Football League (VFL), which would go on to become one of Australia’s top sporting leagues.
Today, Australian rules football is played professionally by 18 teams across five states and territories of Australia. It is one of the most popular spectator sports in the country, with millions of fans attending matches each year.
Rules
The AFL is a full contact sport played by two teams of eighteen players on an oval field. The object of the game is to score goals by kicking or punching the ball through the opponents’ goal posts. The team that scores the most goals in a match wins.
AFL games are divided into four quarters, each lasting 20 minutes. There is a two-minute break between the first and second quarters, and a ten-minute break at half-time. There is also a two-minute break between the third and fourth quarters.
Players can be substituted during AFL matches, but there are only three substitutions allowed per team per game. Substitutions can only be made during stoppages in play, and must be made before play restarts.
AFL matches are officiated by umpires. There are three field umpires and two goal umpires in each game. The field umpires are responsible for enforcing the rules of the game, while the goal umpires keep track of the score and award points for goals kicked through the opponents’ goal posts.
American Football League
The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated between 1960 and 1969. It was the rival of the more established National Football League (NFL). The upstart AFL began to challenge the established NFL in popularity, gaining lucrative television contracts and engaging in a bidding war with the NFL for free-agent players.
History
The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence. It was more successful than earlier rivals to the NFL with the same name, the 1926, 1936 and 1940 leagues, and became a major force in professional football in the 1960s.
Rules
In American football, the rules of the game are determined by the National Football League (NFL). The AFL was originally founded as an alternative to the NFL, and while it used different rules initially, it eventually merged with the NFL in 1970. While there are some small differences between the two leagues, they both use essentially the same rules.
Comparison
Similarities
AFL and NFL differ in a number of ways:
-The playing field in AFL is slightly larger than in NFL;
-AFL teams have 12 players on the field at once, while NFL teams have 11;
-In AFL, there are three downs instead of four;
-In AFL, kicking the ball through the uprights results in a score of one point, while in NFL it is worth three points;
-etc.
Differences
There are a few key differences between American football and its European cousin, rugby. Perhaps the most notable is the use of pads and helmets in American football. This is due to the fact that American football is a much more violent sport than rugby, with players often colliding head-first into each other.
Rugby also does not have as many set plays as American football, instead relying on spontaneity and creativity from its players. This makes for a more open and exciting game, but one that is harder to predict. Another key difference is the scoring system; in rugby, points can be scored in several ways, while in American football only touchdowns (worth six points) and field goals (worth three points) are possible.
