One recent tragic incident that has shocked the Australian Football League (AFL) to their core. In the AFL’s recent Round 23 match, Collingwood defender Isaac Quaynor was targeted by homophobic hate speech from the crowd. The offending player was Adelaide Crows’ Izak Rankine, who allegedly used the racial slur against Quaynor. Rankine was given a four-match ban. This opened up a wider conversation regarding the use of discriminatory language in the game.
Brayden Maynard, another player in the AFL League, condemned the use of these slurs, as they have been becoming increasing normative in the league. He reiterated that this kind of language has no place in the game of football and needs to be eliminated. Commentators are divided in their approval of Rankine’s punishment. Others doubt that the homophobic quadruple-header will have any enduring impact or really serve as a deterrent to homophobia.
The Need for Zero Tolerance
Olympic athlete Tom Dixon pushes for safer high school sports culture. He uses these platforms to showcase the adverse impacts of racism, homophobia, sexism, and ableism in sports at both the professional and grassroots level. He urged the adoption of a “genuine zero tolerance” policy on vilification and discrimination incidents. Dixon said that when people of color experience hostility in sports, it is usually not their first experience with it.
“When people experience those things in the sporting field, it’s probably not the first time they’ve experienced that in their life,” – Tom Dixon
Most importantly, Dixon highlighted parents’ role in modeling respectful behaviors for their children. He encouraged parents to have discussions with their children about the language that is inappropriate to hear at a sporting event and what that language can do.
“Parents have a role to model respectful behaviours for their children and talk to them about the language they hear at sporting events … around why we don’t use certain words and what the impacts could be,” – Tom Dixon
This demand for accountability shouldn’t just stop at the players, or end when we leave the stands. Dixon hopes that with a strong culture of respect, teammates stop expecting too much of each other and sports teams can become a more supportive space for everyone.
Experiences from the Stands
Angela Coe, with her son Archie, at a recent Port Adelaide game where they experienced violent supporter culture. To cope with the crude language they overheard, Coe and Archie initiated a game called “swearing spotto,” where they recorded slurs and derogatory terms mentioned during the match. This creative tactic gave them the freedom to bring attention to a serious problem in a more fun way.
“We’d been warned by a few friends that it can get a bit colourful in the members’ area. I thought, ‘Let’s make it a little bit of a game’,” – Angela Coe
Coe described how this game allowed them to fully engross themselves in the environment. They rightly identified harmful language as being all-too-often part of the experience. As her closing remark, she noted that it was fun. Perhaps as importantly, it raised critical questions about how this type of behavior affects impressionable younger fans.
“If we’re showing that type of language and supporting at an AFL game, how does that translate to our younger kids and at their local footy level?” – Angela Coe
This note of urgency was strongly echoed by her son Alexandre. He expressed on air why the verbal abuse of players and referees at games is unacceptable.
“Sometimes people said bad words and insulted the referee and players, so I think it was a bit weird, but it was OK,” – Alexandre Mahè
The Impact on Umpires and Community Sports
Dr. Alyson Crozier, a senior lecturer in exercise and sport psychology at the University of South Australia, made a startling discovery when analyzing the research. These discoveries expose some horrendous abuse being aimed at AFL umpires. Her research found that over one in five umpires have been physically assaulted while officiating games. This harassment helps create the atmosphere wherein nasty rhetoric shifted to everyday conversation, the everyday debate.
Dr. Crozier was a co-author of a separate study published in 2024. The study examined the impact of parental sideline behavior on kids playing community sports. In fact, the results showed that children who witnessed unsportsmanlike behavior were more likely to go on and replicate that behavior.
“They’re models to young athletes and children, so they do have a role to play in terms of showcasing what’s acceptable, moral behaviour,” – Dr. Alyson Crozier
Dr. Crozier noted that the emotionally charged atmosphere of sporting events can lead to outbursts of inappropriate language from both fans and players.
“That’s part of the emotionally charged environment, but also this culture where potentially people think it’s acceptable to act in those ways,” – Dr. Alyson Crozier
These revelations show the AFL and the general sporting community need to implement systemic change as a matter of priority. We have much more to do jointly to create a culture where discrimination simply isn’t tolerated.
