sport news Baffling AFL move leaves fans short-changed and hands the NRL a huge advantage ... trends now
The AFL has abandoned Thursday night football despite having clear attendance and television victories over the NRL, giving the rival code a huge advantage for the rest of the 2024 season.
The AFL said it would base its decision on whether to retain Thursday night fixtures for the remainder of this year's rounds based on interest - and fans responded.
Viewership for Thursday night games on Channel Seven average 623,000 this season compared to 603,000 watching the NRL, while the average crowd is 50,650 attending these fixtures. The NRL's Thursday night attendance average is 21,035.
The Brisbane Broncos have been kings of Thursday night football, proving to be a major drawcard in the Sunshine State
Channel Seven's Thursday night reach is around 1.823million - more than Friday night footy.
Despite having a clear edge on its rival, the AFL has just four Thursday night games remaining in the schedule. After round 13, there will be none left.
It is a baffling decision that hands the NRL a vital free kick in the fight to be the dominant footy code in Australia.
'That will never make any sense to me. We'll hand Thursday nights back to the NRL and Netflix. That's crazy,' AFL analyst Gerard Whately said on SEN.
'1.8 million of us are going to be at a loose end on Thursday nights pretty soon. Any ideas what we might do?'
AFL fans that have been loving Thursday night footy will be disappointed with the league's decision to abandon the fixtures
With the NRL having a second team in Brisbane in The Dolphins, Suncorp Stadium (pictured) can be leveraged for even more Thursday
