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The West Australian Football League (WAFL) is an
Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...
league based in
Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
, Western Australia. The league currently consists of ten teams, which play each other in a 20-round season usually lasting from March to September, with the top five teams playing off in a
finals series Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
, culminating in a
Grand Final Primarily in Australian sports, a grand final (sometimes colloquially abbreviated to "grannie") is a game that decides a sports league's premiership (or championship) winning team, i.e. the conclusive game of a finals (or play-off) series. Sy ...
. The league also runs reserves, colts (under-19) and
women's A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
competitions. The WAFL was founded in 1885 as the West Australian Football Association (WAFA), and has undergone a variety of name changes since then, re-adopting its current name in 2001. For most of its existence, the league was considered one of the traditional "big three" Australian rules football leagues, along with the
Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...
(VFL) and
South Australian National Football League The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport. Originally formed as the ...
(SANFL). However, since the introduction of two Western Australia-based clubs into the VFL (later renamed the Australian Football League) – the
West Coast Eagles The West Coast Eagles are a professional Australian rules football club based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 as one of two expansion teams in the Australian Football League (AFL), then known as the Victorian Football ...
in 1987 and the
Fremantle Football Club The Fremantle Football Club, nicknamed the Dockers, is a professional Australian rules football club competing in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. The team was founded in 1994 to represent the port city of ...
in 1995 – the popularity and standard of the league has decreased to the point where it is considered a feeder competition to the AFL. Although payments are made to players, it is generally considered to be a semi-professional competition. A
salary cap In professional sports, a salary cap (or wage cap) is an agreement or rule that places a limit on the amount of money that a team can spend on players' salaries. It exists as a per-player limit or a total limit for the team's roster, or both. Sever ...
of A$200,000 per club is in place. The league is currently affiliated with the two Western Australia-based AFL clubs. Players who are not selected to play with their respective AFL clubs instead play for allocated clubs in the WAFL. The competition is governed by the
West Australian Football Commission The West Australian Football Commission is the governing body of Australian rules football in the state of Western Australia. Operations The WAFC was formed in 1989 to manage the sport in Western Australia. The commission is registered as a not-f ...
, and based at
Subiaco Oval Subiaco Oval (; nicknamed Subi) was a sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia, located in the suburb of Subiaco. It was opened in 1908 and closed in 2017 after the completion of the new Perth Stadium in Burswood. Subiaco Oval was the high ...
.


Clubs


Current clubs

There are ten (10) teams that currently compete in the WAFL: ; : Claremont played at the
Claremont Showground The Claremont Showground near Perth, Western Australia is home to the annual Perth Royal Show. In 1902, of land were reserved in the Perth suburb of Claremont for a new showground to replace the Guildford Showgrounds. The Royal Agricultural S ...
from 1925 to 1927 and again from 2014 until 2016 when Claremont Oval was closed for re-development, and at
Subiaco Oval Subiaco Oval (; nicknamed Subi) was a sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia, located in the suburb of Subiaco. It was opened in 1908 and closed in 2017 after the completion of the new Perth Stadium in Burswood. Subiaco Oval was the high ...
from 1945 to 1947 when Claremont Oval was being rebuilt after a grandstand fire in 1944. : East Fremantle played at
Fremantle Oval Fremantle Oval, also known by naming rights sponsorship as Fremantle Community Bank Oval, is a stadium in the centre of Fremantle, Western Australia, located on Parry Street. It currently has a capacity of 17,500 with terracing and a members ...
from 1898 to 1952, excluding a period in 1906 where home games were played at East Fremantle Oval. : East Perth played at
Wellington Square Wellington Square may refer to: * A neighbourhood in Burlington, Ontario, Canada * Wellington Square, Chelsea, a garden square in Chelsea, London * A square in Hastings, on the south coast of England * A square in Kolkata, India, renamed Subodh ...
from 1902 to 1909, at
Perth Oval Perth Oval, currently branded HBF Park (under a sponsorship agreement with HBF Health Fund) and called Perth Rectangular Stadium for international football matches, is a sports stadium in Perth, the capital of the Australian state of Western A ...
from 1910 to 1987 and from 1990 to 1999, and at the WACA Ground during 1988 and 1989. East Perth were aligned with
West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to: Geography Australia * Western Australia *Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia * West Coast, Tasmania **West Coast Range, mountain range in the region Canada * Britis ...
between 2014 and 2018. : Perth played at the
WACA Ground The WACA (formally the WACA Ground) is a sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia. The stadium's name derives from the initials of its owners and operators, the Western Australian Cricket Association. The WACA has been referred to as Wester ...
from 1899 to 1958 and during 1987 and 1988. : Subiaco played at
Shenton Park Shenton is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Sutton Cheney, in the Hinckley and Bosworth district, in the county of Leicestershire, England, situated south-west of Market Bosworth. Shenton was formerly a chapelry an ...
between 1901 and 1905, at
Mueller Park Mueller Park is a park in Subiaco, Western Australia, situated next to Bob Hawke College between Perth Modern School and Subiaco Oval Subiaco Oval (; nicknamed Subi) was a sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia, located in the suburb of ...
in 1906 and 1907, and at
Subiaco Oval Subiaco Oval (; nicknamed Subi) was a sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia, located in the suburb of Subiaco. It was opened in 1908 and closed in 2017 after the completion of the new Perth Stadium in Burswood. Subiaco Oval was the high ...
from 1908 to 2003 . : West Perth played at
Leederville Oval Leederville Oval (known as Medibank Stadium under a naming rights agreement between 2006 and 2016) is an Australian rules football ground located in Leederville, a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. The ground is used as a home ground by two c ...
from 1915 to 1993. : West Coast mainly play away games, selling their home games to other clubs, when they do play home games it is at their training base at
Lathlain Park Lathlain Park (also known as Mineral Resources Park under ground sponsorship arrangements) is an Australian rules football ground, located in Lathlain, an inner-eastern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Since its opening in 1959, it has been ...


Former clubs

Ten other clubs formerly competed in the competition: : Claremont known as Claremont-Cottesloe from 1926 to 1934. : Peel have been aligned with
Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...
since 2014 : Perth was known as Victoria Park from 1934 to 1935 Fremantle Football Club (II) was known as Unions Football Club from 1886 to 1889. : Up until the turn of the century, there were a limited number of grounds available for use by the clubs, with all clubs sharing the different grounds. As such, the Esplanade Park, Fremantle and Fremantle Park in Fremantle, and the Old Recreation Ground (Wellington Square) and the New Recreation Ground (
Esplanade Reserve The Esplanade Reserve in Perth, Western Australia was a heritage listed public space between Perth Water and the Perth central business district. It formed part of, and was occasionally referred to incorrectly as, the Perth foreshore and the P ...
) in Perth were all used as "home" grounds by the above teams. : The High School withdrew from the competition due to lack of players two rounds into the inaugural season. : Rovers were a "wandering" team – they had no home ground, and drew players from all over the metropolitan area. : West Australian Football Club merged with
Victorians In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardian ...
in 1889 to form the Metropolitan Football Club, which in turn became the
West Perth Football Club The West Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Falcons, is an Australian rules football club located in Joondalup, Western Australia. West Perth competes in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW) and is the oldest exis ...
. : In April 1889, West Perth was
Victorians In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardian ...
(1885–88) who merged with
West Australian Football Club The West Australian Football Club, often referred to as West Australians or Wests, was an Australian rules football club based in Perth, Western Australia. Formed in 1886, the club was originally not associated with any competition, but entered ...
(1886–1888) to form Metropolitans (1889–90)


Competition timeline

ImageSize = width:720 height:580 PlotArea = width:620 height:500 left:92 bottom:50 AlignBars = late BarData= bar:WP text:West Perth bar:WC text:West Coast bar:WA text:West Australian bar:SD text:Swan Districts bar:Su text:Subiaco bar:SF text:South Fremantle bar:Ro text:Rovers bar:PH text:Perth High School bar:Pe text:Perth bar:PT text:Peel Thunder bar:NF text:North Fremantle bar:MJ text:Midland Junction bar:Im text:Imperials bar:Ft text:Fremantle (II) bar:Fr text:Fremantle (I) bar:Ea text:East Perth (II) bar:EP text:East Perth (I) bar:EF text:East Fremantle bar:Cl text:Claremont bar:Ce text:Centrals Colors = id:grey value:gray(0.4) id:lgrey value:gray(0.8) id:vlgrey value:gray(0.95) id:premier value:brightblue legend:Premier id:spoon value:rgb(0.5,0,0) legend:Last_place id:rup value:powderblue # legend:Runner_Up # need more data id:minor value:orange # legend:Minor_Premier # need more data id:rup&minor value:lightpurple # legend:R-Up&Minor_Premier # need more data id:future value:rgb(0.94,0.92,0.92) DateFormat = yyyy Period = from:1884 till:2022 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:10 start:1890 gridcolor:lgrey ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:1884 gridcolor:vlgrey PlotData= color:lgrey width:12 bar:Ce from:1891 till:1891 at:1891 mark:(line, grey) shift:(2,-4) text:Withdrew bar:Cl from:1925 till:end at:1926 mark:(line,spoon) at:1927 mark:(line,spoon) at:1928 mark:(line,spoon) at:1931 mark:(line,spoon) at:1932 mark:(line,spoon) at:1933 mark:(line,spoon) at:1934 mark:(line,spoon) at:1938 mark:(line,premier) at:1939 mark:(line,premier) at:1940 mark:(line,premier) at:1944 mark:(line,spoon) at:1945 mark:(line,spoon) at:1946 mark:(line,spoon) at:1962 mark:(line,spoon) at:1963 mark:(line,spoon) at:1964 mark:(line,premier) at:1973 mark:(line,spoon) at:1975 mark:(line,spoon) at:1981 mark:(line,premier) at:1987 mark:(line,premier) at:1989 mark:(line,premier) at:1991 mark:(line,premier) at:1993 mark:(line,premier) at:1996 mark:(line,premier) at:2011 mark:(line,premier) at:2012 mark:(line,premier) bar:EF from:1899 till:end at:1900 mark:(line,premier) at:1902 mark:(line,premier) at:1903 mark:(line,premier) at:1904 mark:(line,premier) at:1906 mark:(line,premier) at:1908 mark:(line,premier) at:1909 mark:(line,premier) at:1910 mark:(line,premier) at:1911 mark:(line,premier) at:1914 mark:(line,premier) at:1918 mark:(line,premier) at:1925 mark:(line,premier) at:1928 mark:(line,premier) at:1929 mark:(line,premier) at:1930 mark:(line,premier) at:1931 mark:(line,premier) at:1933 mark:(line,premier) at:1937 mark:(line,premier) at:1943 mark:(line,premier) at:1945 mark:(line,premier) at:1946 mark:(line,premier) at:1957 mark:(line,premier) at:1965 mark:(line,premier) at:1974 mark:(line,premier) at:1979 mark:(line,premier) at:1985 mark:(line,premier) at:1992 mark:(line,premier) at:1994 mark:(line,premier) at:1998 mark:(line,premier) at:2004 mark:(line,spoon) at:2006 mark:(line,spoon) at:2018 mark:(line,spoon) bar:Ea from:1906 till:end at:1906 mark:(line,spoon) at:1911 mark:(line,spoon) at:1913 mark:(line,spoon) at:1919 mark:(line,premier) at:1920 mark:(line,premier) at:1921 mark:(line,premier) at:1922 mark:(line,premier) at:1923 mark:(line,premier) at:1926 mark:(line,premier) at:1927 mark:(line,premier) at:1929 mark:(line,spoon) at:1936 mark:(line,premier) at:1944 mark:(line,premier) at:1956 mark:(line,premier) at:1958 mark:(line,premier) at:1959 mark:(line,premier) at:1964 mark:(line,spoon) at:1972 mark:(line,premier) at:1978 mark:(line,premier) at:1985 mark:(line,spoon) at:1989 mark:(line,spoon) at:2000 mark:(line,premier) at:2001 mark:(line,premier) at:2002 mark:(line,premier) at:2008 mark:(line,spoon) bar:EP from:1891 till:1892 at:1891 mark:(line,spoon) at:1892 mark:(line,spoon) shift:(2,-4) text:Withdrew bar:Ft from:1886 till:1899 at:1887 mark:(line,premier) at:1888 mark:(line,premier) at:1889 mark:(line,premier) at:1890 mark:(line,premier) at:1892 mark:(line,premier) at:1893 mark:(line,premier) at:1894 mark:(line,premier) at:1895 mark:(line,premier) at:1896 mark:(line,premier) at:1898 mark:(line,premier) at:1899 mark:(line,grey) shift:(2,-4) text:Withdrew bar:Fr from:1885 till:1886 at:1886 mark:(line,premier) shift:(2,-4) text:Withdrew bar:Im from:1895 till:1897 at:1897 mark:(line,grey) shift:(2,-4) text:Withdrew bar:MJ from:1905 till:1910 at:1908 mark:(line,spoon) at:1909 mark:(line,spoon) bar:MJ from:1914 till:1917 at:1917 mark:(line,spoon) shift:(2,-4) text:Withdrew bar:NF from:1901 till:1915 at:1914 mark:(line,spoon) at:1915 mark:(line,spoon) shift:(2,-4) text:Withdrew bar:PT from:1997 till:end at:1997 mark:(line,spoon) at:1998 mark:(line,spoon) at:1999 mark:(line,spoon) at:2003 mark:(line,spoon) at:2005 mark:(line,spoon) at:2009 mark:(line,spoon) at:2011 mark:(line,spoon) at:2012 mark:(line,spoon) at:2013 mark:(line,spoon) at:2016 mark:(line,premier) at:2017 mark:(line,premier) at:2020 mark:(line,spoon) bar:Pe from:1899 till:end at:1900 mark:(line,spoon) at:1907 mark:(line,premier) at:1912 mark:(line,spoon) at:1921 mark:(line,spoon) at:1922 mark:(line,spoon) at:1923 mark:(line,spoon) at:1935 mark:(line,spoon) at:1942 mark:(line,spoon) at:1955 mark:(line,premier) at:1966 mark:(line,premier) at:1967 mark:(line,premier) at:1968 mark:(line,premier) at:1976 mark:(line,premier) at:1977 mark:(line,premier) at:1981 mark:(line,spoon) at:1983 mark:(line,spoon) at:1984 mark:(line,spoon) at:1993 mark:(line,spoon) at:1994 mark:(line,spoon) at:2000 mark:(line,spoon) at:2007 mark:(line,spoon) at:2010 mark:(line,spoon) at:2014 mark:(line,spoon) at:2015 mark:(line,spoon) at:2017 mark:(line,spoon) bar:PH from:1885 till:1885 at:1885 mark:(line,spoon) shift:(2,-4) text:Withdrew after two rounds bar:Ro from:1885 till:1899 at:1885 mark:(line,premier) at:1891 mark:(line,premier) at:1892 mark:(line,spoon) at:1893 mark:(line,spoon) at:1894 mark:(line,spoon) at:1896 mark:(line,spoon) at:1897 mark:(line,spoon) at:1899 mark:(line,spoon) shift:(2,-4) text:Withdrew midway through the season bar:SF from:1900 till:end at:1904 mark:(line,spoon) at:1916 mark:(line,premier) at:1917 mark:(line,premier) at:1920 mark:(line,spoon) at:1925 mark:(line,spoon) at:1936 mark:(line,spoon) at:1943 mark:(line,spoon) at:1944 mark:(line,spoon) at:1947 mark:(line,premier) at:1948 mark:(line,premier) at:1950 mark:(line,premier) at:1952 mark:(line,premier) at:1953 mark:(line,premier) at:1954 mark:(line,premier) at:1961 mark:(line,spoon) at:1965 mark:(line,spoon) at:1966 mark:(line,spoon) at:1969 mark:(line,spoon) at:1970 mark:(line,premier) at:1972 mark:(line,spoon) at:1980 mark:(line,premier) at:1987 mark:(line,spoon) at:1997 mark:(line,premier) at:2005 mark:(line,premier) at:2009 mark:(line,premier) at:2020 mark:(line,premier) bar:Su from:1901 till:end at:1901 mark:(line,spoon) at:1902 mark:(line,spoon) at:1903 mark:(line,spoon) at:1907 mark:(line,spoon) at:1908 mark:(line,spoon) at:1912 mark:(line,premier) at:1913 mark:(line,premier) at:1915 mark:(line,premier) at:1916 mark:(line,spoon) at:1937 mark:(line,spoon) at:1947 mark:(line,spoon) at:1949 mark:(line,spoon) at:1950 mark:(line,spoon) at:1953 mark:(line,spoon) at:1954 mark:(line,spoon) at:1955 mark:(line,spoon) at:1967 mark:(line,spoon) at:1973 mark:(line,premier) at:1976 mark:(line,spoon) at:1979 mark:(line,spoon) at:1980 mark:(line,spoon) at:1982 mark:(line,spoon) at:1986 mark:(line,premier) at:1988 mark:(line,premier) at:1996 mark:(line,spoon) at:2004 mark:(line,premier) at:2006 mark:(line,premier) at:2007 mark:(line,premier) at:2008 mark:(line,premier) at:2014 mark:(line,premier) at:2015 mark:(line,premier) at:2018 mark:(line,premier) at:2019 mark:(line,premier) at:2021 mark:(line,premier) bar:SD from:1934 till:1941 at:1940 mark:(line,spoon) at:1941 mark:(line,spoon) bar:SD from:1943 till:end at:1948 mark:(line,spoon) at:1951 mark:(line,spoon) at:1952 mark:(line,spoon) at:1956 mark:(line,spoon) at:1957 mark:(line,spoon) at:1959 mark:(line,spoon) at:1960 mark:(line,spoon) at:1961 mark:(line,premier) at:1962 mark:(line,premier) at:1963 mark:(line,premier) at:1968 mark:(line,spoon) at:1970 mark:(line,spoon) at:1971 mark:(line,spoon) at:1977 mark:(line,spoon) at:1978 mark:(line,spoon) at:1982 mark:(line,premier) at:1983 mark:(line,premier) at:1984 mark:(line,premier) at:1986 mark:(line,spoon) at:1988 mark:(line,spoon) at:1990 mark:(line,premier) at:2001 mark:(line,spoon) at:2002 mark:(line,spoon) at:2010 mark:(line,premier) at:2016 mark:(line,spoon) at:2019 mark:(line,spoon) bar:WA from:1887 till:1888 at:1887 mark:(line,spoon) at:1888 mark:(line,spoon) shift:(2,-4) text:Withdrew bar:WC from:2019 till:2019 at:2019 mark:(line,grey) shift:(2,-4) bar:WC from:2021 till:end at:2021 mark:(line,spoon) bar:WP from:1885 till:end at:1889 mark:(line,spoon) at:1890 mark:(line,spoon) at:1895 mark:(line,spoon) at:1897 mark:(line,premier) at:1899 mark:(line,premier) at:1901 mark:(line,premier) at:1905 mark:(line,premier) at:1918 mark:(line,spoon) at:1919 mark:(line,spoon) at:1924 mark:(line,spoon) at:1930 mark:(line,spoon) at:1932 mark:(line,premier) at:1934 mark:(line,premier) at:1935 mark:(line,premier) at:1938 mark:(line,spoon) at:1939 mark:(line,spoon) at:1941 mark:(line,premier) at:1942 mark:(line,premier) at:1949 mark:(line,premier) at:1951 mark:(line,premier) at:1969 mark:(line,premier) at:1971 mark:(line,premier) at:1974 mark:(line,spoon) at:1975 mark:(line,premier) at:1990 mark:(line,spoon) at:1991 mark:(line,spoon) at:1992 mark:(line,spoon) at:1995 mark:(line,premier) at:1999 mark:(line,premier) at:2003 mark:(line,premier) at:2013 mark:(line,premier) color:future width:12 bar:WP from:2019 till:end bar:Wc from:2021 till:end bar:SD from:2019 till:end bar:Su from:2019 till:end bar:SF from:2019 till:end bar:Pe from:2019 till:end bar:PT from:2019 till:end bar:Ea from:2019 till:end bar:EF from:2019 till:end bar:Cl from:2019 till:end Legend = left:50 top:20 columnwidth:90


Venues


Salary cap

The WAFL is a
semi-professional Semi-professional sports are sports in which athletes are not participating on a full-time basis, but still receive some payment. Semi-professionals are not amateur because they receive regular payment from their team, but generally at a consid ...
competition and has a
salary cap In professional sports, a salary cap (or wage cap) is an agreement or rule that places a limit on the amount of money that a team can spend on players' salaries. It exists as a per-player limit or a total limit for the team's roster, or both. Sever ...
in place. In 2016 the Total Player Payments cap is $294,000 for the non-AFL aligned clubs, while the cap for East Perth and Peel Thunder is $191,100.


Audience


Media


Television

In 2022, the WAFL signed a deal that will see 26 games including all finals matches broadcast on the
Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...
, with the remaining 72 matches to be available for streaming on the AFL's official app and AFL On Demand service. Previously in January 2015, the WAFL announced a deal struck with the Seven Network, where under the arrangement, Seven agreed to a three-year deal involving the telecast of 18 home and away matches as well as all Finals matches, broadcast throughout
Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
. Before this, the WAFL match of the round was broadcast on
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
throughout Western Australia every Saturday afternoon during the regular home and away season. Matches were replayed nationwide on-demand from the
ABC iView ABC iview is a video on demand and catch-up TV service run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Currently iview video content can only be viewed by users in Australia. As of 2016, ABC iview attracts around 50 million plays monthly and ac ...
service and re-broadcast on the
ABC2 ABC TV Plus (formerly ABC2 and ABC Comedy) is an Australian free-to-air television channel owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and part of its ABC Television network. The channel broadcasts a range of general entertainment progra ...
channel early Friday morning at 2.30 am local time.


Radio

Radio stations which cover the competition include
ABC Radio Perth ABC Radio Perth (call sign: 6WF) is the on-air identifier of a radio station located in Perth, Western Australia, operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and broadcasting at 720 kHz AM. It is the flagship ABC Local Radio station ...
,
ABC Grandstand ABC Sport, formerly ABC Radio Grandstand, is a live radio sports focused commentary and talk-back program which runs on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) local radio network across Australia and on one digital-only station. History Fr ...
Digital, 91.3 SportFM, 107.3 HFM and KIX Country Digital.


Sponsorship

There is currently no naming rights partner of the WAFL, so the competition is officially known as the "WAFL Premiership". the naming rights previously held by
Optus Singtel Optus Pty Limited (commonly referred to as Optus) is an Australian Telecommunications in Australia, telecommunications company headquartered in Macquarie Park, New South Wales, Australia. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore, Si ...
(2019-2021), And before that
McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...
(2015-2018) and earlier still
AAMI Australian Associated Motor Insurers Limited (commonly referred to as AAMI) is an Australian general insurance provider offering car, home, CTP and business insurance. AAMI has vehicle assessment centres in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland ...
(2010-2014).


Attendance

Attendance at WAFL matches dropped when each of the two Western Australian based AFL teams entered the league. In recent years, however the attendances have increased slightly, with 2009 recording the first combined annual attendance of more than 200,000 since 1994. A largest recent crowd was 24,638 at the 2010 WAFL Grand Final between Swan Districts and Claremont at
Subiaco Oval Subiaco Oval (; nicknamed Subi) was a sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia, located in the suburb of Subiaco. It was opened in 1908 and closed in 2017 after the completion of the new Perth Stadium in Burswood. Subiaco Oval was the high ...
. The all-time attendance record is 52,781 in 1979 for East Fremantle v South Fremantle at Subiaco Oval. Patrons at the WAFL pay at the gates. The following are relatively recent attendance figures. Source(s)
WAFL Fixtures & Results


History


Pre–1900: Formation and early years

Organised football in the
Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
/
Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...
region of Western Australia dates back to 1881. Back then though
rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
was the dominant football code, with only one senior club, "Unions", playing Australian Rules. In 1883 a second club, "Swans", emerged, but Australian Rules' growth remained much subdued compared to that of
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...
and
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
. However, in those days many young men of Perth's wealthier families were educated in
Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
, the capital of
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
. On returning home from there they naturally wished to play the sport they'd grown up with and no doubt exerted some influence on their less affluent peers as to such. Coincidentally, the press at the time reported there was a growing dissatisfaction with rugby as a spectacle. During the 1880s, the discoveries of gold, firstly in the Kimberley,
Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a glo ...
and Murchison regions, led to a dramatic increase in WA's population, including many players and supporters of Australian Rules from the eastern colonies. In 1885 one of the leading rugby clubs,
Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...
, decided to change to Australian Rules. It was quickly joined by three other clubs – "Rovers", "Victorians", and a team of schoolboys from Perth High. The schoolboy side lasted just two matches, but the three other sides went on to contest what in retrospect was viewed as the first-ever official Western Australian Football Association (WAFA) premiership, won by Rovers. And virtually overnight Australian Rules football became the dominant code for the spectator as well. However progress of Australian rules in Western Australia still lagged behind the big football cities of Melbourne, Adelaide and Geelong and is evidenced by the unstable nature of the clubs that participated in the early years. In 1886 a new club Fremantle-based club Unions joined. In 1887 Fremantle left the WAFA and the
West Australian Football Club The West Australian Football Club, often referred to as West Australians or Wests, was an Australian rules football club based in Perth, Western Australia. Formed in 1886, the club was originally not associated with any competition, but entered ...
joined but they would only play two seasons before they disappeared. In 1890 Unions would rename themselves Fremantle as those involved in the game saw the need to identify themselves with the region they were located in. 1891 saw two new clubs arrive, Centrals and East Perth, but they would be gone after one and two seasons respectively. 1898 saw the entry of East Fremantle to the league. 1899 would be the last season Fremantle would take part. Despite Unions/Fremantle being the most dominant club in the WAFA up to this point winning the competition 10 times in its 13 years of existence, problems with debt saw the club disappear and some people involved with the old entity formed
South Fremantle Football Club South Fremantle Football Club is an Australian rules football club based in Fremantle, Western Australia. The club plays in the Western Australian Football League (WAFL) and the WAFL Women's (WAFLW), commonly going by the nickname the ''Bulldogs ...
in its place. Despite the fact that many involved with Fremantle moved onto South Fremantle the new club is not seen as a continuation of the old and did not lay claim to its proud records to that date. 1899 was also the last time Rovers would take part. The move to regionalisation which saw Unions take on the old Fremantle's name and colours made it difficult for this club that didn't represent a particular area to attract players. They folded and were immediately replaced by
Perth Football Club The Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Demons, is an Australian rules football club based in Lathlain, Western Australia, currently playing in the West Australian Football League (WAFL). Representing the south-east area of the Perth metropo ...
who were promoted from the Perth First Rate Association.


Early 1900s

Major gold discoveries at Coolgardie and
Kalgoorlie Kalgoorlie is a city in the Goldfields–Esperance region of Western Australia, located east-northeast of Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway. It is sometimes referred to as Kalgoorlie–Boulder, as the surrounding urban area includ ...
in 1892, coupled with a major international economic depression, caused immigration from the eastern colonies to accelerate not only to the Goldfields but also onto Perth. These migrants came from a climate where Australian Rules football was more popular and included a large number of footballers including some celebrated players. The Goldfields competition (later known as the
Goldfields Football League The Goldfields Football League is an Australian rules football league based in the Goldfields region of Western Australia. Founded in 1896 as Hannans District Football Association, the league enjoyed a seat and full voting rights on the Austra ...
) was hence comparable in status and standard to the Perth competition for many years. (This was shown by the fact that it had a separate seat on the
Australian National Football Council The Australian National Football Council (ANFC) was the national governing body for Australian rules football in Australia from 1906 until 1995. The council was a body of delegates representing each of the principal leagues which controlled the ...
until 1919.) The higher standard of play that followed helped to increase the game's popularity and increased the professionalism of the WAFA which in turn saw a more stable look come to the league which to this point saw teams frequently coming and going, not to mention problems with frequent crowd violence. By 1901, the WAFA had grown to have six teams. Up to this point, five sides at most had been in the competition, and this number had invariably changed from year to year, as clubs came and went. And by 1906 there were eight teams: West Perth,
East Perth East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sunrise, Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from ...
,
East Fremantle East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...
, South Fremantle,
North Fremantle North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...
, Subiaco,
Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
and
Midland Junction Midland is a suburb in the Perth metropolitan region, as well as the regional centre for the City of Swan local government area that covers the Swan Valley and parts of the Darling Scarp to the east. It is situated at the intersection of G ...
. Recent arrivals East Fremantle became the dominant force in the league winning 11 premierships from 1900 to 1918. On 27 March 1907, the WAFA was renamed the West Australian Football League (WAFL). The West Australian State Premiership was awarded to the winner of a contest played between the GNFL premiers and the WAFL premiers. The contest was played intermittently between 1903 and 1924 and the winning team accorded the title ''Champions of Western Australia''. Unlike many other sporting competitions, the WAFL didn't go into recess during World War I, although two teams – North Fremantle and Midland Junction – were "casualties" of the war, competing for the last time in 1915 and 1917 respectively.


Between the wars

1919 saw East Perth win their first premiership, and they would go on to win 5 in a row – a national record until Port Adelaide managed 6 many years later. In 1921, the WAFL followed the idea of the
SANFL The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport. Originally formed as the ...
's
Magarey Medal The Magarey Medal is an Australian rules football honour awarded annually since 1898 to the fairest and most brilliant player in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL), as judged by field umpires. The award was created by Willia ...
and introduced the
Sandover Medal The Sandover Medal is an Australian rules football award, given annually since 1921 to the fairest and best player in the West Australian Football League. The award was donated by Alfred Sandover M.B.E., a prominent Perth hardware merchant and be ...
, for the fairest and best player over a season, as voted by the field umpires. The medal has been awarded annually ever since. Claremont/Cottesloe entered the league in 1926, bringing the number of teams back to seven. They would rename the club to simply Claremont a few years later. On Wednesday 12 October 1927, the WAFL was renamed the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL) – the "national" concept in the name being adopted by the SANFL, TANFL and other leagues when the Australian Football Council became the Australian National Football Council earlier in the year. Swan Districts entered the league in 1934. The eight competing sides at this point still remain today and are often referred to as the "traditional eight clubs" as opposed to Peel who would join much later on. Because of World War II, the league only ran an "under age" competition between 1942 and 1944. However, the three premierships won during this time are given equal status to any other, in official records (East Perth however don't give their 1944 premiership win equal status). All clubs competed, with the exception of Swan Districts who could not form a team in 1942, although they were back in 1943. The Sandover Medal was also presented each year.


Post-war

Western Australian football was particularly strong during the years immediately following World War II. The state side enjoyed unparalleled success, downing Victoria in each of the first three post war meetings as well as enjoying the better of their encounters with South Australia. In 1952, the Avon Valley Football Association applied to enter a team in the WANFL, following concerns about its players being poached by Perth-based teams. It would have been based at Northam's Jubilee Oval. The proposal was raised again in 1954 but did not proceed. South Fremantle were without dispute one of the strongest teams in Australia during much of the period 1947 to 1954, not only winning 6 premierships but also defeating many touring sides from Victoria and South Australia. From 1956 to 1961 it would be East Perth's turn to dominate the WAFL with them featuring in all 6 Grand Finals of this period and coming out with 3 victories. Their team featured
Graham Farmer Graham Vivian "Polly" Farmer (10 March 1935 14 August 2019) was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Geelong Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and the East Perth Football Club and West Perth Football Club in th ...
who would leave at the end of the '61 season and carve out a reputation in the VFL as one of the game's greatest ever players. The 1960s saw crowds get bigger and bigger, as WAFL football captured the hearts and minds of the WA public like never before, and in the 1970s and early 1980s it was easily the biggest show in town. However, during this period more and more star WAFL players were looking to head to the
Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...
(VFL), enticed by the bigger money and the fact that it was more and more gaining a reputation as the "big" league. This is perhaps best evidenced in that Victoria (i.e. the VFL representative team) had by far the best record in interstate games for a long time. But in 1977, when the first proper
State of Origin A State of Origin competition is a type of sporting event between players representing their state or territory. State of Origin began in Australian rules football on 8 October 1977 between Western Australia (WA) and Victoria, at Subiaco Oval ...
match was played, it saw Western Australia inflict its biggest defeat on a Victorian team. East Perth's 1961 loss to Swan Districts would see that side's first-ever premiership. Captain/coached by Haydn Bunton, Jr., they became the team of the early 1960s when they followed it up in 1962 and 1963 to make it three in a row. The dominating sides of the late 1960s and early 1970s were the three Perth teams. Perth won 3 in a row from 1966 to 1968, and West Perth won in 1969 and 1971 captain/coached by Graham Farmer who had returned from over east. All 5 of these grand final wins came at the expense of East Perth who earned the bridesmaid tag in this era. However East Perth finally won through in the 1972 grand final. After 1972 the competition was more evenly matched with every team winning a grand final over the next 10 years. At this time crowds were as big as they ever were. The 1979 grand final was played before a record crowd of 52,781 and saw East Fremantle defeat archrivals South Fremantle.


1980s

In 1980, the WANFL dropped the "N" and the "ern" and reverted to being called the WAFL. At the end of the 1980 season East Perth put in an application to join the VFL. The offer was withdrawn. Crowds had been buoyed by State of Origin football that saw Western Australia's best players return home briefly, but this effect was short lived. Interest in the WAFL began a slow decline, as it became increasingly obvious that even larger numbers of the WAFL's best players were going to head east. By 1983 the management of the WAFL itself acknowledged that economic crisis loomed. They approached the state government for financial aid, and were rewarded with a grant of $1.9 million. In response, the government wanted a full-scale investigation into the likely future financial demands of football. This led to the formation of the West Australian Football Commission who functioned independently of the WAFL. In 1986 the decision had been made that the WAFL needed to become involved in helping the VFL, where several clubs were also struggling financially, to become national. Against a backdrop in which several WAFL clubs were looking to enter the VFL or in which a struggling Victorian club may be relocated to Perth, the WAFL decided to hastily form a new club to enter the VFL such that they could retain control of a West Australian presence in the situation. Meanwhile, in the league Swan Districts won another hat-trick of premierships from 1982 to 1984. East Fremantle, the WAFL's most successful club, won the centenary premiership in 1985 and in 1986 Subiaco had the honour to be the last club to win the premiership prior to Western Australia's participation in the national league.


Effect of VFL expansion and the AFL

The
West Coast Eagles The West Coast Eagles are a professional Australian rules football club based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 as one of two expansion teams in the Australian Football League (AFL), then known as the Victorian Football ...
were formed and competed in the VFL for the first time in 1987 (the VFL was renamed the
AFL AFL may refer to: Sports * American Football League (AFL), a name shared by several separate and unrelated professional American football leagues: ** American Football League (1926) (a.k.a. "AFL I"), first rival of the National Football Leagu ...
in 1990). With many of Western Australia's best players now competing in a team that represented Western Australia on a national scale, it was suddenly apparent that the WAFL was not the prime focus of the football public as crowds and media attention centred on the 'national' league. In 1990 the league was renamed the Western Australian State Football League, but it had reverted to WAFL by 1991. Another locally based AFL team, the
Fremantle Football Club The Fremantle Football Club, nicknamed the Dockers, is a professional Australian rules football club competing in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. The team was founded in 1994 to represent the port city of ...
were formed in 1994, and this cemented the position of WAFL as a second-class competition. (Indeed, the 1991 introduction of the
Adelaide Crows The Adelaide Crows (officially the Adelaide Football Club) are a professional Australian rules football team based in Adelaide, South Australia. Founded in 1990. The Crows has fielded a men's team in the Australian Football League (AFL) sinc ...
to the
VFL/AFL The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...
meant that the
SANFL The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport. Originally formed as the ...
was experiencing a similar decline to the WAFL.) WAFL clubs have struggled ever since with their sudden demise from being technically equal to any VFL club, to feeder club status. However, they have enjoyed some benefits, such as the funds flowing from the WA-based AFL teams and the influx of talented players from other states, attempting to make a name for themselves. In 1997,
Peel Thunder The Peel Thunder Football Club is an Australian rules football club playing in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). The team is based in Mandurah, Western Australia, with their home ground being Rushton Park. The ...
– somewhat controversially – became the ninth WAFL club. Throughout their brief history, they have struggled to compete with the traditional eight clubs, which are generally opposed to their presence. This is partly because having an odd number of teams forces one team to have a bye each week. Also in 1997, the WAFL was renamed Westar Rules, in an attempt to revamp the league's image. The name again reverted to WAFL in 2001 although retained the logo. Recent years have seen the WAFL stabilise itself as a league a step down from the
AFL AFL may refer to: Sports * American Football League (AFL), a name shared by several separate and unrelated professional American football leagues: ** American Football League (1926) (a.k.a. "AFL I"), first rival of the National Football Leagu ...
. Having the best football players all playing in the AFL has lessened the standard of play; however this has recovered somewhat, with retired or delisted AFL players returning and young players coming through. It is becoming fairly common, however, for young players to be drafted as 17- or 18-year-olds directly to the AFL and not play in the WAFL football for more than a few games. Attendances have recovered slightly and in 2004, the league posted a total attendance of 202,797. The total attendance, including AFL games was a record 1,030,000. In 2019 the West Coast Eagles entered the Wafl so the teams are now 10.


Future

While the WAFL has not been as keen as the SANFL to include teams from other states, there have been proposals to include teams from regions unwanted by the AFL, and to serve as a second-tier national league. The most pushed for expansion team was to be from
Darwin, Northern Territory Darwin ( ; Larrakia: ) is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. With an estimated population of 147,255 as of 2019, the city contains the majority of the residents of the sparsely populated Northern Territory. It is the smalle ...
, formed as a representative club of the
Northern Territory Football League The Northern Territory Football League (NTFL) is an Australian rules football semi-professional league operating in Darwin in the Northern Territory. The league is one of few (and the highest level) Australian Rules competitions played during ...
, however the NT team opted to join the
Queensland Australian Football League The Queensland Australian Football League (QAFL) is an Australian rules football competition organised by the AFL Queensland, contested by clubs from South East Queensland. Previously known as the Queensland Football League (QFL), Queensland ...
for the 2009 season, and moved to the newly created
North East Australian Football League The North East Australian Football League (NEAFL) was an Australian rules football league in New South Wales, Queensland, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory. The league was formed in November 2010, and its inaugural co ...
in 2011 after the top divisions of the Queensland AFL and
AFL Canberra AFL Canberra is the name of the local governing body for and premier competition of Australian rules football in the Australian Capital Territory (and the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales). It acts as an umbrella to several competitions be ...
merged. In 2019 the WAFL partnered with the
West Australian Women's Football League The West Australian Women's Football League (WAWFL) was the governing body of women's Australian rules football in the state of Western Australia from 1987 until its dissolution in 2021. It organised the premier women's football league in Wes ...
to create a new women's state league, the
WAFL Women's WAFL Women's (WAFLW) is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The WAFLW is the premier women's football competition in Western Australia, and from 2023 is contested by eight teams owned and operated by clubs in ...
. The league is run adjacent to the WAFL premiership.


Awards and records


Awards

The following awards are or were awarded each season: *The WAFL Premiership Cup for the winner of the WAFL Grand Final. *The
Sandover Medal The Sandover Medal is an Australian rules football award, given annually since 1921 to the fairest and best player in the West Australian Football League. The award was donated by Alfred Sandover M.B.E., a prominent Perth hardware merchant and be ...
for the fairest & best player(s) in the WAFL. *The
Simpson Medal The Simpson Medal is an individual prize awarded for Australian rules football in Western Australia. The medal has been donated by Dr Fred Simpson and family since 1945. Simpson Medals are currently awarded to the following players: *The best pla ...
for the best players in the WAFL Grand Final. *The
Bernie Naylor Medal The Bernie Naylor Medal is an Australian rules football award which is given to the leading goalkicker at the end of each home and away season in the West Australian Football League. It is named after South Fremantle full-forward Bernie Naylor. Be ...
for the leading goalkicker during the home and away season. *The JJ Leonard Medal for the best coach during the season. *The Montgomery Medal for the best field umpire during the season. *The RP Rodriguez Shield for the best overall team, combining league, reserves and colts games
Click here
for a list of winners. *The Prendergast Medal for the fairest & best player(s) in the reserves. *The Jack Clarke Medal for the fairest & best player(s) in the colts. *The WA State Premiership (1903–24), awarded to the winner of a match between the WAFA/WAFL premiers and the GFA/GFL premiers.


Premierships

East Fremantle East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...
has won the most premierships, with 29, most recently in 1998. West Perth rank second with 20 premierships, the most recent in 2022. The reigning premiers (2022) are West Perth, winning its 20th premiership. The first premiership was awarded in 1885, and was won by the Rovers Football Club, which disbanded in 1899.


Wooden spoons

Subiaco and Swan Districts have the equal most wooden spoons, with 21. Swan Districts most recent wooden spoon was in 2019, while Subiaco had their most recent in 1996. The reigning wooden spooners (2022) are
West Coast Eagles The West Coast Eagles are a professional Australian rules football club based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 as one of two expansion teams in the Australian Football League (AFL), then known as the Victorian Football ...
, with its 2nd wooden spoon.


Records


Team records

*Highest score: 40.18 (258) – South Fremantle v West Perth 12.6 (78) at
Fremantle Oval Fremantle Oval, also known by naming rights sponsorship as Fremantle Community Bank Oval, is a stadium in the centre of Fremantle, Western Australia, located on Parry Street. It currently has a capacity of 17,500 with terracing and a members ...
, Round 21, 1981 *Lowest score (1898 onwards): ::::0.0 (0) – Subiaco v South Fremantle 12.23 (95) at North Fremantle Oval, 4 August 1906 ::::0.0 (0) – Peel Thunder v Claremont 17.15 (117) at Rushton Park, 2004 *Most premierships (club): 29 – East Fremantle *Most "wooden spoons": 21 – Subiaco & Swan Districts *Most successive finals appearances: 36 – East Fremantle (1916–1951) *Most consecutive unbeaten games: 35 – East Fremantle (1945–1947) *Most consecutive winless games: 27 – Subiaco (1903–1905) *Most Sandover Medals (club): 18 (East Perth) *Most Bernie Naylor Medals/Leading Goalkicker Awards (club): 21 (Subiaco) *Highest attendance: 52,781 at
Subiaco Oval Subiaco Oval (; nicknamed Subi) was a sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia, located in the suburb of Subiaco. It was opened in 1908 and closed in 2017 after the completion of the new Perth Stadium in Burswood. Subiaco Oval was the high ...
, 1979 WAFL Grand Final, East Fremantle v South Fremantle


Individual records

*Most games: 367 – Mel Whinnen () *Most consecutive games: 218 – Joel Cornelius (), 1995–2006 *Most goals: 1211 –
Austin Robertson, Jr. Austin Christopher Robertson (born 29 April 1943) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and in the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL). He is the son of former South Me ...
() *Most goals in a season: 167 – Bernie Naylor (), 1953 *Most goals in a game: 23 – Bernie Naylor () vs. , 1953 *Most Sandover Medals (player): 4 –
Bill Walker Bill Walker may refer to: Australian rules football * Bill A. Walker (1886–1934), Australian rules footballer for Essendon * Bill Walker (Australian footballer, born 1883) (1883–1971), Australian rules footballer for Fitzroy * Bill J. V. Wal ...
(), 1965–1967, 1970 *Most Bernie Naylor Medals/Leading Goalkicker Awards (player): 8 –
Austin Robertson, Jr. Austin Christopher Robertson (born 29 April 1943) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and in the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL). He is the son of former South Me ...
(), 1962; 1964–65; 1968–1972 *Oldest player: 44 years *Youngest player: 14 years, 25 days, Stan Hussey (Centrals), 1891


West Australian Football Hall of Fame

On 12 March 2004, a West Australian Football Hall of Fame was formed when 81 former players, coaches, umpires, administrators and media representatives were inducted. More people have been inducted every year since then, and as of 2017, there are sixteen who have been elevated to 'Legend status': * Haydn Bunton, Jr. *
Barry Cable Barry Thomas Cable MBE (born 22 September 1943) is a former Australian rules footballer and coach. Considered one of the greatest rovers in the sport's history, he played in 379 premiership games in the Western Australian Football League (WAFL ...
*
George Doig George Ronald Doig (25 May 1913 – 27 November 2006) was an Australian rules footballer who played for and later coached the East Fremantle Football Club in the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL). A member of the Doig sporting ...
*
Graham Farmer Graham Vivian "Polly" Farmer (10 March 1935 14 August 2019) was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Geelong Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and the East Perth Football Club and West Perth Football Club in th ...
* Stan Heal *
Johnny Leonard John James Leonard (8 June 1903 – 3 May 1995) was a player and coach of Australian rules football in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and the Victorian Football League (later renamed to Australian Football League) in the period ...
* Steve Marsh *
Phillip Matson Phillip Henry Matson (22 October 1884 – 13 June 1928) was a record-breaking swimmer, and both a highly successful player and coach of Australian rules football in the early 20th century, chiefly in Western Australia. Family The son of Georg ...
* Denis Marshall *
Merv McIntosh Mervyn Frederick "Merv" McIntosh (25 November 1922 – 3 May 2010) was an Australian rules footballer in the (then) West Australian National Football League (WANFL). A brilliant ruckman, he was awarded the Sandover Medal as the fairest and b ...
*
George Moloney George Michael Moloney (7 August 1909 – 5 January 1983) was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Claremont Football Club in the West Australian National Football League (WANFL) and for the Geelong Football Club in the Victor ...
*
Graham Moss Graham Frank Moss (born 14 May 1950) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Essendon Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and for the Claremont Football Club in the West Australian Football League (WAFL). A ...
* Jack Sheedy * John Todd * William "Nipper" Truscott *
Bill Walker Bill Walker may refer to: Australian rules football * Bill A. Walker (1886–1934), Australian rules footballer for Essendon * Bill Walker (Australian footballer, born 1883) (1883–1971), Australian rules footballer for Fitzroy * Bill J. V. Wal ...


Top 25 Players over the Past 25 years

In March 2012, the ''Top 25 players over the Past 25 Years'' were announced, to recognise the WAFL performances of players, rather than the performances of Western Australian players in the AFL. The judges were
The West Australian ''The West Australian'' is the only locally edited daily newspaper published in Perth, Western Australia. It is owned by Seven West Media (SWM), as is the state's other major newspaper, ''The Sunday Times''. It is the second-oldest continuousl ...
's sports reporter Ross Lewis, Football Budget editor
Tracey Lewis Tracey Lewis is an Australian Paralympic amputee swimmer. She was born in Gympie, Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_typ ...
, Claremont CEO Todd Shimmon, former players Clint Roberts, Bill Monaghan, Todd Ridley plus historians Greg Wardell-Johnson and Steve Davies.


Other WAFL competitions

The WAFL has run a simultaneous reserves competition and colts (under-19s) competition for its clubs since 1925 and 1957 respectively. A fourths-grade premiership was held between 1965 and 1974. A senior women's competition was inaugurated in 2019.


See also

*
Australian rules football in Western Australia Australian rules football in Western Australia (WA) is the most popular sport in the state and Western Australia has the second highest number of Australian rules football participants of any state. Western Australia was the last Australian co ...
* Western Australian State Premiership *
WAFL Women's WAFL Women's (WAFLW) is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The WAFLW is the premier women's football competition in Western Australia, and from 2023 is contested by eight teams owned and operated by clubs in ...


References


External links

*
WAFL FootyFacts

Video of 2006 WAFL Highlights
from the WAFL {{Australian rules football Australian rules football competitions in Western Australia 1885 establishments in Australia Sports leagues established in 1885 Professional sports leagues in Australia