Australian rules football in South Australia
In South Australia, Australian rules football is traditionally a popular participation and spectator sport. It is governed by the South Australian Football Commission which runs the South Australia National Football League in the capital Adelaide, the highest profile competition among the 24 spread across the state. Participation has fallen substantially in recent years to a current rate of 4.1%. There are 63,969 adults and 28,692 children playing, less than a quarter of which are female. Prior to 2019 it was the most participated team sport in the state, however it dropped to third after both basketball and soccer there surpassed it in 2024.
Forms of football were played very early in the history of the Colony of South Australia pre-dating the organisation of Australian rules football in Victoria and rivalled football's popularity there. In 1877, the colony officially adopted the code in order to compete in the very first intercolonial representative football match in Australia against Victoria. The first governing body, the South Australian Football Association (now SANFL) formed on 13 April 1877, remains the oldest in Australia. Its clubs rivalled Victoria's in popularity and won 9 of 19 Championship of Australia titles from 1888 to 1975. Even with its current semi-professional status, it remains the second most popular and third strongest competition in the world in the sport.
The South Australian state football team (the "Croweaters") have defeated every state in Interstate matches in Australian rules football and has an intense rivalry with Victoria inspiring the popular catchcry "Kick a Vic". The state has the second most State of Origin titles. 3 time South Australian captain Russell Ebert has the most caps in State of Origin. Adelaide hosted national carnivals in 1911, 1930, 1953, 1969, 1975, 1980 and 1988.
South Australia has two fully professional teams competing in the Australian Football League (AFL) and AFL Women's (AFLW), both based in the capital Adelaide: the Adelaide Football Club (1990) and Port Adelaide Football Club (1870), the latter having the distinction of being the only pre-existing club to have entered the AFL from another league, as a founding member of the SAFA (SANFL). These two clubs compete against each other in the "Showdown". South Australia was chosen to host 'Gather Round' a special round where all AFL matches are played in one state annually between 2023 and 2026.
It is the most watched sport and has the second largest television audience in the country. From 1976 to 2003 the SANFL held the record for the largest attendance in the sport outside of Victoria. South Australia holds the world record for a non-VFL/AFL attendance with the 1976 SANFL Grand Final drawing an estimated 80,000 spectators which remains the record crowd for any code of football in the state and the third highest official attendance outside of Victoria. The SANFL remains the second most attended league worldwide in the sport and attracts a television audience larger than that of some AFL clubs. Since 1991 South Australia has attracted an average AFL premiership season attendance of 35,919, second in the country, boosted with the 2014 upgrade of the Adelaide Oval the state's flagship venue.
The state has produced some of the greatest Australian Footballers of all time, including the Australian Football Hall of Fame legends: Barrie Robran, Malcolm Blight, Jack Oatey and Russell Ebert. In addition, it has produced almost a thousand born and raised AFL/AFLW players, most notably: AFL players Craig Bradley who has the most games with 375 and Stephen Kernahan who has the most goals with 738. In women's Australian rules, AFLW player Erin Phillips is most notable with 2 league best and fairests, while Ebony Marinoff has the most games and Ashleigh Woodland has the most goals.