Fantasy football (Australian rules)

In fantasy football, a type of fantasy sport, players assemble and manage virtual teams of real Australian rules footballers. Teams score points based on their footballers' performance in real-world matches.^[1][2] Players compete against all other participants in a fantasy football competition,^[3] but may also form smaller leagues, often with friends or co-workers.^[4] Most fantasy football competitions use players from the Australian Football League (AFL), although several competitions based on the AFL Women's (AFLW) have emerged.^[5][6]

A screenshot of a team in the Footytips competition.

Fantasy football competitions based on a salary cap are the most popular. Under this format, the competition's administrators price every footballer based on their estimated scoring potential.^[7] Players receive a limited amount of virtual currency to spend on footballers for their squad. During the season, footballers' prices rise, fall or stagnate, depending on their weekly performances. Every round, players may opt to trade a limited number of footballers to improve their teams, subject to the salary cap.^[8] In another common format, players instead select footballers for their teams through a virtual draft. Unlike under the salary-cap format, no two players in a league may own the same footballer. Daily fantasy football, an emerging type, sees players assemble teams for a single game or single week rather than an entire season. In this format, players generally pay a fee to participate.^[9]

For season-long formats, the two major fantasy football competitions are AFL SuperCoach, operated by News Corp Australia, and AFL Fantasy, operated by the AFL itself.^{[10][11][12][13]} Draftstars and Moneyball are notable competitions in daily fantasy football.^[14]

References

1. Karg, Adam; McDonald, Heath (2009). "Profiling the sport consumption attitudes and behaviours of fantasy football players". Australian and New Zealand Marketing Academy Conference: 1–12.
2. Windholz, Eric (26 April 2021). "Fantasy sports in Australia: co‑regulation and commercial accommodation". The International Sports Law Journal. 21 (3): 154–165. doi:10.1007/s40318-021-00187-x. S2CID 256368045.
3. Reilly, Eliza (24 August 2021). "West Coast defender Harry Edwards finishes eighth overall in AFL Fantasy but can't claim prize". The West Australian. Seven West Media. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
4. Josey, Liam (8 February 2012). "Your Crikey guide to why AFL fantasy football is so damn popular". Crikey. Archived from the original on 11 February 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
5. O'Halloran, Kate (22 March 2021). "Fantasy sport could boost AFLW and women's sport, say W-League fans, citing She Plays". ABC News. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
6. Reilly, Eliza (5 January 2022). "Two time AFL fantasy winner Selby Lee-Steere launches AFLW fantasy competition". The West Australian. Seven West Media. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
7. Mark, David (16 March 2022). "Fantasy football: Can data science beat intuition to win the game?". ABC News. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
8. Brodie, Will (23 March 2011). "Finding the magical bargain: the cult of fantasy footy". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media.
9. Cooper, Adam (27 March 2012). "Fantasy sports enjoy very real growth". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
10. "Paying for news". Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
11. Canning, Simon (13 April 2009). "Rivals scramble for fantasy football dollars". The Australian.
12. White, Ryman (1 February 2013). "AFL Fantasy wars: Dream Team vs SuperCoach". The Roar. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
13. White, Ryman (19 December 2012). "Is a rebrand the answer for AFL Fantasy?". The Roar. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
14. Pickering, Dylan (5 July 2017). "What the rise of daily fantasy sports will mean for problem gambling". The Conversation. Retrieved 22 June 2022.