title: Genetics

text: This messenger RNA molecule then serves to produce a corresponding amino acid sequence through a process called translation. Each group of three nucleotides in the sequence, called a codon, corresponds either to one of the twenty possible amino acids in a protein or an instruction to end the amino acid sequence; this correspondence is called the genetic code. The flow of information is unidirectional: information is transferred from nucleotide sequences into the amino acid sequence of proteins, but it never transfers from protein back into the sequence of DNA—a phenomenon Francis Crick called the central dogma of molecular biology.


title: Genetics

text: The specific sequence of amino acids results in a unique three-dimensional structure for that protein, and the three-dimensional structures of proteins are related to their functions. Some are simple structural molecules, like the fibers formed by the protein collagen. Proteins can bind to other proteins and simple molecules, sometimes acting as enzymes by facilitating chemical reactions within the bound molecules (without changing the structure of the protein itself). Protein structure is dynamic; the protein hemoglobin bends into slightly different forms as it facilitates the capture, transport, and release of oxygen molecules within mammalian blood.


title: Genetics

text: A single nucleotide difference within DNA can cause a change in the amino acid sequence of a protein. Because protein structures are the result of their amino acid sequences, some changes can dramatically change the properties of a protein by destabilizing the structure or changing the surface of the protein in a way that changes its interaction with other proteins and molecules. For example, sickle-cell anemia is a human genetic disease that results from a single base difference within the coding region for the β-globin section of hemoglobin, causing a single amino acid change that changes hemoglobin's physical properties.


title: Genetics

text: Sickle-cell versions of hemoglobin stick to themselves, stacking to form fibers that distort the shape of red blood cells carrying the protein. These sickle-shaped cells no longer flow smoothly through blood vessels, having a tendency to clog or degrade, causing the medical problems associated with this disease.


title: Genetics

text: Some DNA sequences are transcribed into RNA but are not translated into protein products—such RNA molecules are called non-coding RNA. In some cases, these products fold into structures which are involved in critical cell functions (e.g. ribosomal RNA and transfer RNA). RNA can also have regulatory effects through hybridization interactions with other RNA molecules (such as microRNA).


title: Genetics

text: The genetic code is a dictionary that matches together the amino acid and nucleotide sequences called add-ons. 64 genetic codons are there in which every codon has 3 bases. In 64 codons,20 amino acids are coded by 61 codons which are found in proteins and 3 codons don’t code for any amino acid. There are different types of codons. The codons that code for amino acids are called Sense codons and the codons that code for protein synthesis are called Signal codons. Signal codons are of two types which are Terminating codons and Initiating codons. UAA UAG UGA is termed as termination codons or also called nonsense codons. AUG is called an initiation codon used to code for the first amino acids in every protein. During the translation process the t-RNA base sequence pairs with the codon of m RNA which is known as an Anticodon. The difference between codon and anticodon is that codon is present not only in DNA but in RNA, whereas anticodon is present only in RNA but not in DNA. Codons will be directed from 5’ end to 3’ end in the same way anticodons are directed in the opposite way i.e., 3’ end to 5’ end. In some t RNA molecules, anticodons must pair with more than one codon. The arrangement of codons is sequence manner based while an arrangement of anticodons is discretely present in cells with amino acids.


title: Genetics

text: Although genes contain all the information an organism uses to function, the environment plays an important role in determining the ultimate phenotypes an organism displays. The phrase "nature and nurture" refers to this complementary relationship. The phenotype of an organism depends on the interaction of genes and the environment. An interesting example is the coat coloration of the Siamese cat. In this case, the body temperature of the cat plays the role of the environment. The cat's genes code for dark hair, thus the hair-producing cells in the cat make cellular proteins resulting in dark hair. But these dark hair-producing proteins are sensitive to temperature (i.e. have a mutation causing temperature-sensitivity) and denature in higher-temperature environments, failing to produce dark-hair pigment in areas where the cat has a higher body temperature. In a low-temperature environment, however, the protein's structure is stable and produces dark-hair pigment normally. The protein remains functional in areas of skin that are colder—such as its legs, ears, tail, and faceso the cat has dark hair at its extremities.


title: Genetics

text: Environment plays a major role in effects of the human genetic disease phenylketonuria. The mutation that causes phenylketonuria disrupts the ability of the body to break down the amino acid phenylalanine, causing a toxic build-up of an intermediate molecule that, in turn, causes severe symptoms of progressive intellectual disability and seizures. However, if someone with the phenylketonuria mutation follows a strict diet that avoids this amino acid, they remain normal and healthy.


title: Genetics

text: A common method for determining how genes and environment ("nature and nurture") contribute to a phenotype involves studying identical and fraternal twins, or other siblings of multiple births. Identical siblings are genetically the same since they come from the same zygote. Meanwhile, fraternal twins are as genetically different from one another as normal siblings. By comparing how often a certain disorder occurs in a pair of identical twins to how often it occurs in a pair of fraternal twins, scientists can determine whether that disorder is caused by genetic or postnatal environmental factors. One famous example involved the study of the Genain quadruplets, who were identical quadruplets all diagnosed with schizophrenia.


title: Genetics

text: The genome of a given organism contains thousands of genes, but not all these genes need to be active at any given moment. A gene is expressed when it is being transcribed into mRNA and there exist many cellular methods of controlling the expression of genes such that proteins are produced only when needed by the cell. Transcription factors are regulatory proteins that bind to DNA, either promoting or inhibiting the transcription of a gene. Within the genome of "Escherichia coli" bacteria, for example, there exists a series of genes necessary for the synthesis of the amino acid tryptophan. However, when tryptophan is already available to the cell, these genes for tryptophan synthesis are no longer needed. The presence of tryptophan directly affects the activity of the genes—tryptophan molecules bind to the tryptophan repressor (a transcription factor), changing the repressor's structure such that the repressor binds to the genes. The tryptophan repressor blocks the transcription and expression of the genes, thereby creating negative feedback regulation of the tryptophan synthesis process.


title: Genetics

text: Differences in gene expression are especially clear within multicellular organisms, where cells all contain the same genome but have very different structures and behaviors due to the expression of different sets of genes. All the cells in a multicellular organism derive from a single cell, differentiating into variant cell types in response to external and intercellular signals and gradually establishing different patterns of gene expression to create different behaviors. As no single gene is responsible for the development of structures within multicellular organisms, these patterns arise from the complex interactions between many cells.


title: Genetics

text: Within eukaryotes, there exist structural features of chromatin that influence the transcription of genes, often in the form of modifications to DNA and chromatin that are stably inherited by daughter cells. These features are called "epigenetic" because they exist "on top" of the DNA sequence and retain inheritance from one cell generation to the next. Because of epigenetic features, different cell types grown within the same medium can retain very different properties. Although epigenetic features are generally dynamic over the course of development, some, like the phenomenon of paramutation, have multigenerational inheritance and exist as rare exceptions to the general rule of DNA as the basis for inheritance.


title: Genetics

text: During the process of DNA replication, errors occasionally occur in the polymerization of the second strand. These errors, called mutations, can affect the phenotype of an organism, especially if they occur within the protein coding sequence of a gene. Error rates are usually very low—1 error in every 10–100 million bases—due to the "proofreading" ability of DNA polymerases. Processes that increase the rate of changes in DNA are called mutagenic: mutagenic chemicals promote errors in DNA replication, often by interfering with the structure of base-pairing, while UV radiation induces mutations by causing damage to the DNA structure. Chemical damage to DNA occurs naturally as well and cells use DNA repair mechanisms to repair mismatches and breaks. The repair does not, however, always restore the original sequence. A particularly important source of DNA damages appears to be reactive oxygen species produced by cellular aerobic respiration, and these can lead to mutations.


title: Genetics

text: In organisms that use chromosomal crossover to exchange DNA and recombine genes, errors in alignment during meiosis can also cause mutations. Errors in crossover are especially likely when similar sequences cause partner chromosomes to adopt a mistaken alignment; this makes some regions in genomes more prone to mutating in this way. These errors create large structural changes in DNA sequence—duplications, inversions, deletions of entire regions—or the accidental exchange of whole parts of sequences between different chromosomes, chromosomal translocation.


title: Genetics

text: A highly pathogenic, more or less permanent alteration to the genetic code (genome) of a virus or a cell in a living creature that can be handed down to the progeny of the original cell or virus. A somatic mutation is a change in a multicellular organism's DNA that can progress to progeny by DNA replication. Alterations can happen as a result of subjection to electromagnetic spectrum with high intensity (such as X-rays, ultraviolet light), mishaps that can place during the normal chemical transactions of DNA, most frequently during replication. The bulk of variations are expected to be harmful because they are random changes, however, certain mutations might be helpful in certain circumstances.


title: Genetics

text: Mutations and perhaps other gene changes can be inherited or acquired. An inherited gene mutation is one that, as its name suggests, is passed down from one parent to the next. As a result, it can be found in the very first cell that develops into a human after the egg cell and sperm cell have mated. Because it began in the first cell, which gave rise to all the other cells in the body, this modification is present in every cell in the body and can be passed on to the next generation. Because the cells that give rise to eggs and sperm are known as germ cells, also known as a hereditary alteration. A gene mutation that is acquired does not come from the parent. As opposed to that, it emerges at some point in a person's life. Acquired mutations start in one cell and spread to any subsequent cells that develop from that cell. Because this mutation does not affect sperm or egg cells, it cannot be passed down to a person's offspring. Somatic mutation or spontaneous mutation are other names for this kind of mutation.


title: Genetics

text: Mutations alter an organism's genotype and occasionally this causes different phenotypes to appear. Most mutations have little effect on an organism's phenotype, health, or reproductive fitness. Mutations that do have an effect are usually detrimental, but occasionally some can be beneficial. Studies in the fly "Drosophila melanogaster" suggest that if a mutation changes a protein produced by a gene, about 70 percent of these mutations are harmful with the remainder being either neutral or weakly beneficial.


title: Genetics

text: Population genetics studies the distribution of genetic differences within populations and how these distributions change over time. Changes in the frequency of an allele in a population are mainly influenced by natural selection, where a given allele provides a selective or reproductive advantage to the organism, as well as other factors such as mutation, genetic drift, genetic hitchhiking, artificial selection and migration.


title: Genetics

text: Over many generations, the genomes of organisms can change significantly, resulting in evolution. In the process called adaptation, selection for beneficial mutations can cause a species to evolve into forms better able to survive in their environment. New species are formed through the process of speciation, often caused by geographical separations that prevent populations from exchanging genes with each other.


title: Genetics

text: By comparing the homology between different species' genomes, it is possible to calculate the evolutionary distance between them and when they may have diverged. Genetic comparisons are generally considered a more accurate method of characterizing the relatedness between species than the comparison of phenotypic characteristics. The evolutionary distances between species can be used to form evolutionary trees; these trees represent the common descent and divergence of species over time, although they do not show the transfer of genetic material between unrelated species (known as horizontal gene transfer and most common in bacteria).


title: Genetics

text: Although geneticists originally studied inheritance in a wide variety of organisms, the range of species studied has narrowed. One reason is that when significant research already exists for a given organism, new researchers are more likely to choose it for further study, and so eventually a few model organisms became the basis for most genetics research. Common research topics in model organism genetics include the study of gene regulation and the involvement of genes in development and cancer. Organisms were chosen, in part, for convenience—short generation times and easy genetic manipulation made some organisms popular genetics research tools. Widely used model organisms include the gut bacterium "Escherichia coli", the plant "Arabidopsis thaliana", baker's yeast ("Saccharomyces cerevisiae"), the nematode "Caenorhabditis elegans", the common fruit fly ("Drosophila melanogaster"), the zebrafish ("Danio rerio"), and the common house mouse ("Mus musculus").


title: Genetics

text: Medical genetics seeks to understand how genetic variation relates to human health and disease. When searching for an unknown gene that may be involved in a disease, researchers commonly use genetic linkage and genetic pedigree charts to find the location on the genome associated with the disease. At the population level, researchers take advantage of Mendelian randomization to look for locations in the genome that are associated with diseases, a method especially useful for multigenic traits not clearly defined by a single gene. Once a candidate gene is found, further research is often done on the corresponding (or homologous) genes of model organisms. In addition to studying genetic diseases, the increased availability of genotyping methods has led to the field of pharmacogenetics: the study of how genotype can affect drug responses.


title: Genetics

text: Individuals differ in their inherited tendency to develop cancer, and cancer is a genetic disease. The process of cancer development in the body is a combination of events. Mutations occasionally occur within cells in the body as they divide. Although these mutations will not be inherited by any offspring, they can affect the behavior of cells, sometimes causing them to grow and divide more frequently. There are biological mechanisms that attempt to stop this process; signals are given to inappropriately dividing cells that should trigger cell death, but sometimes additional mutations occur that cause cells to ignore these messages. An internal process of natural selection occurs within the body and eventually mutations accumulate within cells to promote their own growth, creating a cancerous tumor that grows and invades various tissues of the body. Normally, a cell divides only in response to signals called growth factors and stops growing once in contact with surrounding cells and in response to growth-inhibitory signals. It usually then divides a limited number of times and dies, staying within the epithelium where it is unable to migrate to other organs. To become a cancer cell, a cell has to accumulate mutations in a number of genes (three to seven). A cancer cell can divide without growth factor and ignores inhibitory signals. Also, it is immortal and can grow indefinitely, even after it makes contact with neighboring cells. It may escape from the epithelium and ultimately from the primary tumor. Then, the escaped cell can cross the endothelium of a blood vessel and get transported by the bloodstream to colonize a new organ, forming deadly metastasis. Although there are some genetic predispositions in a small fraction of cancers, the major fraction is due to a set of new genetic mutations that originally appear and accumulate in one or a small number of cells that will divide to form the tumor and are not transmitted to the progeny (somatic mutations). The most frequent mutations are a loss of function of p53 protein, a tumor suppressor, or in the p53 pathway, and gain of function mutations in the Ras proteins, or in other oncogenes.


title: Genetics

text: DNA can be manipulated in the laboratory. Restriction enzymes are commonly used enzymes that cut DNA at specific sequences, producing predictable fragments of DNA. DNA fragments can be visualized through use of gel electrophoresis, which separates fragments according to their length.


title: Genetics

text: The use of ligation enzymes allows DNA fragments to be connected. By binding ("ligating") fragments of DNA together from different sources, researchers can create recombinant DNA, the DNA often associated with genetically modified organisms. Recombinant DNA is commonly used in the context of plasmids: short circular DNA molecules with a few genes on them. In the process known as molecular cloning, researchers can amplify the DNA fragments by inserting plasmids into bacteria and then culturing them on plates of agar (to isolate clones of bacteria cells). "Cloning" can also refer to the various means of creating cloned ("clonal") organisms.


title: Genetics

text: DNA can also be amplified using a procedure called the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). By using specific short sequences of DNA, PCR can isolate and exponentially amplify a targeted region of DNA. Because it can amplify from extremely small amounts of DNA, PCR is also often used to detect the presence of specific DNA sequences.


title: Genetics

text: DNA sequencing, one of the most fundamental technologies developed to study genetics, allows researchers to determine the sequence of nucleotides in DNA fragments. The technique of chain-termination sequencing, developed in 1977 by a team led by Frederick Sanger, is still routinely used to sequence DNA fragments. Using this technology, researchers have been able to study the molecular sequences associated with many human diseases.


title: Genetics

text: As sequencing has become less expensive, researchers have sequenced the genomes of many organisms using a process called genome assembly, which uses computational tools to stitch together sequences from many different fragments. These technologies were used to sequence the human genome in the Human Genome Project completed in 2003. New high-throughput sequencing technologies are dramatically lowering the cost of DNA sequencing, with many researchers hoping to bring the cost of resequencing a human genome down to a thousand dollars.


title: Genetics

text: Next-generation sequencing (or high-throughput sequencing) came about due to the ever-increasing demand for low-cost sequencing. These sequencing technologies allow the production of potentially millions of sequences concurrently. The large amount of sequence data available has created the subfield of genomics, research that uses computational tools to search for and analyze patterns in the full genomes of organisms. Genomics can also be considered a subfield of bioinformatics, which uses computational approaches to analyze large sets of biological data. A common problem to these fields of research is how to manage and share data that deals with human subject and personally identifiable information.


title: Genetics

text: On 19 March 2015, a group of leading biologists urged a worldwide ban on clinical use of methods, particularly the use of CRISPR and zinc finger, to edit the human genome in a way that can be inherited. In April 2015, Chinese researchers reported results of basic research to edit the DNA of non-viable human embryos using CRISPR.


title: Australian Football League

text: The Australian Football League (AFL) is a company operating the premier and fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through its governing body, the AFL Commission, the AFL controls the laws of the game. Originally known as the Victorian Football League (VFL), it was founded in 1896 as a breakaway competition from the Victorian Football Association (VFA), with its inaugural season commencing the following year. The VFL, aiming to become a national competition, began expanding beyond Victoria to other Australian states in the 1980s, and changed its name to the AFL in 1990.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL currently consists of 18 teams spread over five of Australia's six states (Tasmania being the exception). Matches have been played in all states, plus the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory, as well as in New Zealand and China to expand the AFL audience. The AFL season currently consists of a 23-round regular (or "home-and-away") season, which runs during the Australian winter (March to September). The team with the best record after the home-and-away season is awarded the "minor premiership". The top eight teams then play off in a four-round finals series, culminating in the AFL Grand Final, which is normally held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground each year. The grand final winners are termed the "premiers" and are awarded the premiership cup and flag. and are the joint-most successful clubs in the competition, having won sixteen premierships apiece. The current premiers are , which won the 2022 AFL Grand Final.


title: Australian Football League

text: Several of the AFL's current member clubs date back to the origins of the sport and were instrumental in establishing its popularity which has ultimately culminated in the AFL. The oldest being Melbourne Football Club (which wrote the first laws of the code) and Geelong which date back to 1858 and 1859 respectively while Melbourne University, also founded in 1859, is also one of the oldest clubs to have later participated in the competition.


title: Australian Football League

text: The Victorian Football Association (VFA) was established in 1877 and quickly went on to become Victoria's football competition. During the 1890s, an off-field power struggle occurred between the VFA's stronger and weaker clubs, the former seeking greater administrative control commensurate with their relative financial contribution to the game. This came to a head in 1896 when it was proposed that gate profits, which were always lower in matches involving the weaker clubs, be shared equally amongst all teams in the VFA. After it was intimated that the proposal would be put to a vote, six of the strongest clubs—, , , Geelong, Melbourne and —seceded from the VFA, and later invited and to join them in founding a new competition, the Victorian Football League (VFL). The remaining VFA clubs—Footscray, North Melbourne, Port Melbourne, Richmond and Williamstown—were given the opportunity to compete as junior sides at a level beneath the VFL, but rejected the offer and remained for the 1897 VFA season.


title: Australian Football League

text: The VFL's inaugural season occurred in 1897. It made several innovations early on to entice the public's interest, including an annual finals tournament, rather than awarding the premiership to the team with the best record through the season; and, the formal establishment of the modern scoring system, in which six points are awarded for a goal, and one point for a behind.


title: Australian Football League

text: Although the VFL and the VFA continued to compete for spectator interest for many years, the VFL quickly established itself as the premier competition in Victoria. In 1908, the league expanded to ten teams, with Richmond crossing from the VFA and University Football Club from the Metropolitan Junior Football Association. Professionalism began from the 1911 season, with clubs permitted to pay players beyond the reimbursement of expenses for the first time. University, after three promising seasons, finished last each year from 1911 until 1914, including losing 51 matches in a row, in part caused by its players' focus on their studies rather than football, and in part because it had chosen to remain amateur; as a result, the club withdrew from the VFL at the end of 1914.


title: Australian Football League

text: Beginning sporadically during the late 1890s and consistently from 1907 until World War I, the VFL premier and the premier of the South Australian Football League met in a playoff match for the Championship of Australia. South Australia's was the most successful club of the competition winning three titles during the period along with an earlier victory.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 1925, the VFL expanded from nine teams to twelve, with Footscray, Hawthorn and North Melbourne each crossing from the VFA. North Melbourne and Hawthorn remained very weak in the VFL for a very long period. Although North Melbourne would become the first of the 1925 expansion sides to reach a grand final in 1950, initially it was Footscray that adapted to the VFL with the most ease of the three clubs, and by 1928 were well off the bottom of the ladder.


title: Australian Football League

text: Between the years of 1927 and 1930, Collingwood became the first, and only VFL team, to win four successive Premierships.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 1952, the VFL hosted a "national day", when all six matches were played outside Melbourne. Matches were played at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Brisbane Exhibition Ground, North Hobart Oval, Albury Sports Ground and Victorian country towns Yallourn and Euroa.


title: Australian Football League

text: Melbourne became a powerhouse during the 1950s and early 1960s under coach Norm Smith and star player Ron Barassi. The club contested seven consecutive grand finals from 1954 to 1960, winning five premierships, including three in a row from 1955 to 1957.


title: Australian Football League

text: Television coverage commenced in 1957 with direct telecasts of the final quarter permitted. At first, several channels competed through broadcasting different games. When the VFL found that television reduced crowds it decided no coverage was to be allowed for 1960. In 1961 television replays in Melbourne were introduced although direct telecasts were rarely permitted. Other states and territories enjoyed live telecasts every Saturday afternoon.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 1959, the VFL planned the first purpose-built mega-stadium, VFL Park (later known as Waverley Park), to give it some independence from the Melbourne Cricket Club, which managed the Melbourne Cricket Ground. VFL Park was planned to hold 155,000 spectators, which would have made it one of the largest stadiums in the world – although it would ultimately be built with a capacity of 78,000. Land for the stadium was purchased at Mulgrave, then farmland but predicted to be near the demographic centre of Melbourne's population.


title: Australian Football League

text: The VFL premiership trophy was first awarded in addition to a pennant flag in 1959; essentially the same trophy design has been in use since.


title: Australian Football League

text: In the 1960s, television began to have a huge impact. Spectators hurried home from games to watch replays and many former players took up positions as commentators on pre-game preview programs and post-game review programs. There were also several attempts at variety programs featuring VFL players, who generally succeeded in demonstrating that their skills were limited to the football ground.


title: Australian Football League

text: The VFL played the first of a series of exhibition matches in 1962 in an effort to lift the international profile of the league.


title: Australian Football League

text: The 1970 season saw the opening of VFL Park, with the inaugural match being played between Geelong and Fitzroy, on 18 April 1970. Construction work was carried out at the stadium as the 1970s progressed, culminating in the building of the now heritage listed Sir Kenneth Luke Stand. Queen Elizabeth, was a guest at the game and officially opened the stadium to the public. The 1970 Grand Final between traditional rivals Carlton and Collingwood, arguably the league's most famous game, which saw Carlton recover from a 44-point deficit at half-time to win the game by 10 points, featured a famous spectacular mark by Alex Jesaulenko, and was witnessed by a record crowd of 121,696.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 1976, the National Football League, which was the national administrative body for Australian rules football at the time, established the NFL Night Series to succeed the Championship of Australia. Played concurrently with the premiership season, the Night Series was contested among twelve clubs from the VFL, SANFL and WANFL invited based on their finishing positions from the previous year. The event was mostly played on Tuesday nights, with night games at Norwood Oval in Adelaide, and all games were televised live in colour on Channel 9, which opened up unprecedented revenue streams from television rights and sponsorship opportunities for the sport. The NFL began plans to expand its Night Series to incorporate more teams from the VFL, SANFL and WAFL, as well as state representative teams from other states.


title: Australian Football League

text: In November 1976, the VFL announced that it was withdrawing from the NFL's competition, having arranged more substantial television and sponsorship deals for its own Night Series for 1977 to be based in Melbourne and feature only the VFL clubs. Light towers were erected at VFL Park specifically for the event. The VFL established a proprietary limited company called Australian Football Championships Pty Ltd in 1978 to run the Night Series, and offered shareholdings to the other state leagues in an attempt to lure other states into the competition.


title: Australian Football League

text: For the three years from 1977 until 1979, the NFL and AFC competitions were run separately as rival Night Series. In 1978, the Tasmanian representative team competed in both the NFL and AFC series, but all SANFL and WAFL clubs and the minor states teams remained in the NFL Night Series. In 1979, the WAFL clubs and the New South Wales and A.C.T. representative teams defected from the NFL Night Series and joined the AFC Night Series, leaving the NFL Night Series mostly composed of SANFL teams. The NFL Night Series was not revived in 1980, and the SANFL clubs joined the AFC Night Series. Although the NFL itself continued to exist as an administrative body into the early 1990s, the power gained by the VFL as a result of its Night Series take over was one of the first significant steps in its spread interstate and ultimately its take-over (as the Australian Football League) of administrative control of all football in Australia.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 1980 and 1981, the first years after the NFL Night Series had ended, the AFC Night Series competition was at its largest, with all VFL, WAFL and SANFL clubs plus the four minor states teams (selected under residential qualification rather than state of origin qualification) competing for a total of 34 teams. The size of the competition was reduced from 1982, and thereafter only the top two or three teams from the SANFL and WAFL and the winner of the minor states' annual carnival were invited.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 1987, the Night Series reverted to only the VFL teams. The competition was pushed earlier into the year, with the final played on 28 April. The following season, the competition did not overlap with the day premiership season at all, and became entirely a pre-season competition. The Night Series is generally considered to be of equivalent importance as the pre-season competition and the VFL Night Series (1956–1971), and records relating to the three competitions are often combined.


title: Australian Football League

text: With the number of players recruited from country leagues increasing, the wealthier VFL clubs were gaining an advantage that metropolitan zoning and the Coulter law (salary cap) restricting player payments had prevented in the past. Country zoning was introduced in the late 1960s, and while it pushed Essendon and Geelong from the top of the ladder, it created severe inequality during the 1970s and 1980s. Between 1972 and 1987, only six of the league's twelve clubs – Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Hawthorn, North Melbourne and Richmond – played in grand finals.


title: Australian Football League

text: The 1980s was a period of significant structural change in Australian football around the country. The VFL was the most popular and dominant of the state leagues around the country in terms of overall attendance, interest, and money, and began to look towards expanding its influence directly into other states. The VFL and its top clubs were asserting their financial power to recruit top players from interstate. As a result of this, rising cost pressures were driving some of Victoria's weaker clubs into dire financial situations. One of those clubs, the South Melbourne Swans, became the first VFL club to relocate interstate. The Swans moved their home games to Sydney in 1982, officially renaming themselves the Sydney Swans the following year. Under the private ownership of wealthy Dr Geoffrey Edelsten during the mid-1980s, Sydney became a successful team on-field.


title: Australian Football League

text: Throughout the 1980s approaches were made by SANFL and WAFL clubs to enter the VFL. Of particular note were approaches by the East Perth Royals in 1980, the Norwood Redlegs in 1986 and 1988, and an East–South Fremantle merger proposal in 1987. None of these attempts were successful despite Norwood trying again in 1990 and 1994.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 1986, the West Australian Football League and Queensland Australian Football League were awarded licences to field expansion teams in the VFL, leading to the establishment of the West Coast Eagles and Brisbane Bears, who both joined the league in 1987. These expansion team licences were awarded on payment of multimillion-dollar fees which were not required of the existing VFL clubs. In 1989 financial troubles nearly forced Footscray and Fitzroy to merge, but fees paid by the West Coast Eagles and Brisbane Bears, propped up the struggling VFL sides.


title: Australian Football League

text: The 1980s first saw new regular timeslots for VFL matches. VFL matches had previously been played on Saturday afternoons but Sydney began playing its home matches on Sunday afternoons and North Melbourne pioneered playing matches on Friday night. These have since become regular timeslots for all teams.


title: Australian Football League

text: The league was officially renamed the Australian Football League in 1990 to reflect its national composition.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 1990 the AFLPA, the players union, signed its first Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the league which outlined wages and conditions in what was becoming a sole source of income for players who had previously had part-time or full-time jobs outside of football. Functionally, the AFL gave up control over its Victorian-based minor grades at the end of 1991 – clubs continued to field reserves teams in a competition run by the new Victorian State Football League, and the under-19s competition and zone-based recruiting were abolished and replaced with an independent system.


title: Australian Football League

text: Midway through 1990, the SANFL's most successful club, Port Adelaide, made a bid for an AFL licence. In response, the SANFL gained an injunction via Glenelg and Norwood against Port Adelaide, allowing it time to establish a composite South Australian team called the Adelaide Crows, which was awarded the licence and joined the league in 1991 as the fourth non-Victorian club. The same year saw the West Coast Eagles become the first non-Victorian club to reach the grand final, which was won by Hawthorn. The Eagles would then win the premiership in 1992 and 1994. In 1994, the Fremantle Football Club was formed in Western Australia, and joined the AFL in 1995, becoming the fifth non-Victorian club.


title: Australian Football League

text: The VFA took over the Victorian Football League name in 1996. In 1996 several Victorian clubs were in severe financial difficulties, most notably Fitzroy and Hawthorn. Hawthorn proposed to merge with Melbourne to form the Melbourne Hawks but the merger ultimately fell through and both teams continued as separate entities. Fitzroy, however, was too weak to continue by itself. The club nearly merged with North Melbourne to form the Fitzroy-North Melbourne Kangaroos but the other clubs voted against it. In 1994 Port Adelaide was awarded an AFL licence but could not enter until a Victorian team had folded or merged. At the end of 1996 Fitzroy played its last match and merged with Brisbane to form the Brisbane Lions. This allowed Port Adelaide to enter the AFL for the 1997 season as the sixth and only pre-existing non Victorian club.


title: Australian Football League

text: Through the 1990s there was a significant trend of Melbourne-based teams abandoning the use of their small (20,000–30,000 capacity) suburban venues for home matches in favour of the larger MCG and Waverley Park. The 1990s saw the last matches played at Windy Hill (Essendon), Moorabbin Oval (St Kilda), Western Oval (Footscray) and Victoria Park (Collingwood) and saw Princes Park abandoned by its long-term co-tenant, Hawthorn. The transition to the use of only two venues in Melbourne was ultimately completed in 2005 when Carlton abandoned the use of Princes Park. In 1999, the league sold Waverley Park stadium and used the funds in a joint venture to begin construction of a brand-new stadium situated at Melbourne's Docklands. Representative state football came to an end, with the last State of Origin match held in 1999.


title: Australian Football League

text: In the late 2000s, the AFL looked to establish a permanent presence on the Gold Coast in the state of Queensland, which was fast-developing as a major population centre. North Melbourne, which was in financial difficulty and had played a few home games on the Gold Coast in previous years, was offered significant subsidies to relocate to the Gold Coast but declined. The AFL then began work to establish a club on the Gold Coast as a new expansion team.


title: Australian Football League

text: Early in 2008, a meeting held by the AFL discussed having two new teams enter the AFL competition. In March 2008, the AFL won the support of the league's 16 club presidents to establish sides on the Gold Coast and in Western Sydney. The Gold Coast Suns were established and joined the AFL in 2011 as the 17th team. The Greater Western Sydney Giants, representing both Western Sydney and Canberra, were then established and entered the league as the 18th team in 2012.


title: Australian Football League

text: On 25 April 2013 the Westpac Stadium in Wellington, New Zealand hosted the first ever Australian Football League game played for premiership points outside Australia. The night game between and was played in front of a crowd of 22,183 on Anzac Day to honour the Anzac bond between the two countries.


title: Australian Football League

text: A national women's league comprising a subset of AFL clubs began in 2017. Thirteen AFL clubs placed bids to participate in the women's competition. Eight clubs – , , , , , , and the – were granted licences to participate in the inaugural season. Six clubs joined the league in the coming years; and entered the competition in 2019, while , , and made their debut in 2020. The remaining four clubs—, , , and — entered AFL Women's in the seventh season in 2022.


title: Australian Football League

text: On 14 May 2017, and the played the first-ever AFL match for premiership points in Shanghai, China, attracting a crowd of 10,114 at Jiangwan Stadium. Port Adelaide won the game by 72 points.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 2020, the AFL season was severely disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The first round of matches was played in front of no crowds due to the pandemic, before the season was suspended on 22 March due to health concerns and strict government regulations on non-essential travel. After nearly two months of planning with the assistance of state governments and health officials, the season resumed on 11 June, with the length of the season reduced from 22 matches per team to 17 matches. The grand final was played in October at The Gabba in Brisbane, the first time it was held outside of Victoria since the creation of the league due to the spiking cases in that state. The pandemic caused the league to lose out on up to $400 million in anticipated revenue, and also precipitated a 20% cut in industry jobs.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 2021 the grand final was played in September at Perth Stadium in Perth, because an ongoing COVID-19 lockdown prevented the match from being played with spectators at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Victoria. It was the first grand final played in Perth and the second consecutive grand final to be played outside Victoria. The event set a new attendance record for Australian rules football in Western Australia, eclipsing the previous record set in 2018, despite not featuring any WA based teams and being played during the COVID pandemic.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL operates on a single table system, with no divisions and conferences, nor promotion and relegation from other leagues.


title: Australian Football League

text: The league was founded as the Victorian Football League (VFL) in 1897, comprising eight teams only based in the state of Victoria. Over the next century, a series of expansions, a relocation, a merger and a club withdrawal saw the league's teams expand to the 18 teams there are today.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 1990, the national nature of the competition resulted in the name change to the Australian Football League (AFL). Australian Capital Territory, Northern Territory and Tasmania are the only states or territories not to have AFL clubs, although at least two games per year are played in each of these parts of the country. The current 18 teams are based across five states of Australia; the majority (ten) still remain in Victoria, nine of which are located in the Melbourne metropolitan area. The states of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia have two teams each.


title: Australian Football League

text: Since the league commenced in 1897 as the VFL, only one club, , has withdrawn from the competition. It last competed in 1914 and withdrew because, as an amateur club, it was unable to remain competitive in a time when player payments were becoming common; the club still competes to this day in the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA). Two other clubs, and the , merged in 1996 to form the . However, after coming out of financial administration in 1998, Fitzroy resumed its playing operations in 2009 and also competes in the VAFA.


title: Australian Football League

text: Throughout the history of the VFL/AFL, there have been a total of 45 different grounds used, with 17 used during the 2019 AFL season. The largest capacity ground in use is the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), which has a capacity of over 100,000 people, and hosts the Grand Final each year (see AFL Grand Final location debate). The MCG is shared by four teams as a home ground, while the other grounds used as home venues by multiple teams are Docklands Stadium in Melbourne (five teams), Adelaide Oval in Adelaide (two teams), and Perth Stadium in Perth (two teams). The AFL has had exclusive ownership of Docklands Stadium (commercially known as Marvel Stadium) since late 2016.


title: Australian Football League

text: Prior to the expansion of the competition, most grounds were located in suburban Melbourne, with Princes Park, Victoria Park, the Junction Oval, Waverley Park, and the Lake Oval each having hosted over 700 games. However, since the introduction of a national competition, each state and territory of Australia has hosted AFL games. On 25 April 2013 (Anzac Day), a match took place between St Kilda and Sydney at Wellington Regional Stadium in Wellington, New Zealand, being the first AFL match played outside Australia for official premiership points.


title: Australian Football League

text: Below are the other venues to have hosted matches during the AFL era (1990–present), with official capacities at the time.


title: Australian Football League

text: AFL players are drawn from a number of sources; however, most players enter the league through the AFL draft, held at the end of each season. A small number of players have converted from other sports, or been recruited internationally. Prior to the nationalisation of the competition, a zoning system was in place. At the end of the season, the best 22 players and coach from across the competition are selected in the All-Australian team.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL has tight controls over the player lists of each club. Currently, apart from the recently added expansion clubs who have some additional players, each team can have a senior list of 38 to 40 players plus 4 to 6 rookie players, to a total of 44 players (following a reduction by two of the number of rookies in 2012) and up to three development rookies (international, alternative talent or New South Wales scholarship players). Changes to playing lists are permitted only in the off-season: clubs can trade players during a "trade period" which follows each season and recruit new players through the three AFL drafts, the national draft, the pre-season draft and the rookie draft, which take place after the trade period. A mid-year draft was conducted between 1990 and 1993. The national draft is the primary method of recruiting new players and has been used since 1986. The draft order is based on reverse-finishing position from the previous year, but selections can be traded. Free agency player movements have only been permitted since the 2012/13 offseason, having been rejected by the AFL commission previously.


title: Australian Football League

text: A salary cap (known as the Total Player Payments or TPP) is also in place as part of the league's equalisation policy; this was $9,130,000 for the 2013 season with a salary floor of $8,673,500 except for the Gold Coast, whose salary cap was $9,630,000 with a salary floor of $9,171,500, and Greater Western Sydney, whose salary cap was $9,987,000 with a floor of $9,530,500. As part of the AFL's enhanced equalisation policies, in 2014 the league announced an increase of the TPP for the 2015 and 2016 seasons. TPP increased an additional $150,000 per club in 2015 above previously contracted amounts, increasing from $9.92m to $10.07m in 2015 and $10.22m to $10.37m in 2016.


title: Australian Football League

text: The salary cap was set at $1.25 million for 1987–1989 as per VFL agreement, with the salary floor set at 90% of the cap or $1.125 million; the salary floor was increased to 92.5% of the cap in 2001, and 95% of the cap for 2013 due to increased revenues. Both the salary cap and salary floor has increased substantially since the competition was rebranded as the AFL in 1990.


title: Australian Football League

text: Salaries of draft selections are fixed for two years. Salaries for senior players are not normally released to the public, though the average AFL player salary at the conclusion of the 2012 season was $251,559 and the top few players can expect to earn up to and above $1,000,000 a year. Upon successfully trading to the Sydney Swans in 2013, marquee player Lance Franklin signed a 9-year contract with the club, reportedly worth over $10 million and resulting in subsequent payments of $1.8 million annually in consecutive seasons. The Total Player Earnings (TPE) – or total amount of revenue spent on reimbursement of AFL listed players – at the conclusion of the 2012 season was $173.7 million, up by 13 per cent from $153.7 million in 2011.


title: Australian Football League

text: In June 2017, the AFL and AFL Players Association agreed to a new CBA deal which resulted in a 20% increase in players' salaries. The six-year deal, which began in 2017 and ends in 2022 means that the average player wage rises from $309,000 to $371,000 and the player salary cap from $10.37m to $12.45m. In 2022, the final year of the agreement, the average player wage will be $389,000 with a salary cap of $13.54m.


title: Australian Football League

text: The breaches of the salary cap and salary floor regulations outlined by the AFL are: exceeding the TPP; falling below the salary floor; not informing the AFL of payments; late or incorrect lodgement or loss of documents; or engaging in draft tampering. Penalties include fines of up to triple the amount involved ($10,000 for each document late or incorrect lodged or lost), forfeiture of draft picks and/or deduction of premiership points. The most significant breach of the salary cap was that of the Carlton Football Club in the early 2000s.


title: Australian Football League

text: There were 801 players on AFL club senior, veteran, rookie and international lists in 2011, including players from every state and mainland territory of Australia.


title: Australian Football League

text: As of 2014, there were 68 players of Indigenous Australian descent on AFL club lists, comprising approximately 9% of the overall playing population.


title: Australian Football League

text: There were 12 players recruited from outside Australia on AFL lists in 2011, including 10 from Ireland, all converts from Gaelic football drafted as part of the Irish Experiment, and one each from the United States and Canada.


title: Australian Football League

text: There were also another five overseas-born players who emigrated to Australia at an early age on AFL lists.


title: Australian Football League

text: An international rookie list and international scholarship list were introduced in 2006. The international rookie list includes up to two players between the ages of 15 and 23 who are not Australian citizens. These players may remain on this list for up to three years before they must be transferred to the senior or rookie list. For the first year, payments made to international-rookie-listed players fell outside the salary cap. The international scholarship list gives AFL clubs the option of recruiting up to eight players from outside Australia (other than Ireland). Irish players are required to either be placed on clubs' senior or rookie lists. At the beginning of 2011, there were 14 international scholarship players.


title: Australian Football League

text: Of the 121 multicultural players, more than half have one parent from Anglophone countries, mainly the United Kingdom, Ireland and New Zealand.


title: Australian Football League

text: From 1988 until 2013, the AFL ran a pre-season competition that finished prior to the commencement of the premiership season, which served as both warm-up matches for the season and as a stand-alone competition.


title: Australian Football League

text: It was mostly contested as a four-week knock out tournament, but the format changed after the expansion of the league beyond sixteen clubs in 2011, and has frequently been used to trial rule changes.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 2014, the competition format was abandoned, and practice matches are now played under the sponsored name Marsh Community Series. This consists of all 18 clubs playing two matches each, which are played on some weekdays and weekends, throughout February and early March.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL home-and-away season at present lasts for 23 rounds, starting in mid-March and ending in late August. As of the 2022 AFL season, each team plays 22 matches, with one bye. Teams receive four premiership points for a win and two premiership points for a draw. Ladder finishing positions are based on the number of premiership points won. "Percentage," calculated as the ratio of points scored to points conceded throughout the season, is used as a tie-breaker when teams finish with equal premiership points. Further tie-breakers, if required, are the premiership points accumulated in head-to-head matches between the tied teams, and then the percentage earned in such matches, with a final tie-breaker being a random drawing of lots. At the end of the home-and-away season, the McClelland Trophy is awarded to the minor premiers.


title: Australian Football League

text: Several teams also play against each other at set times each year, with the most prominent of these being when Collingwood play Essendon in the annual Anzac Day clash at the MCG. Other prominent matches include the Queen's Birthday match between Collingwood and Melbourne, and the Easter Monday clash between Geelong and Hawthorn.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 2007, following the success of the Dreamtime at the 'G matches in 2005 and 2006, the AFL nominated a specific Indigenous Round (round 9) which has become an annual event in which the Dreamtime at the 'G match takes centre stage on a Saturday night. The success of the annual match, which now usually features crowds in excess of 80,000, led to the two clubs agreeing to cement the match's official status for an additional decade in May 2016.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 2016 the Round was named after Sir Doug Nicholls, the only VFL player to have been knighted and who served as a state Governor (of South Australia). Its official name is now the Sir Doug Nicholls Round, although it is still commonly referred to as the Indigenous Round.


title: Australian Football League

text: Each year, each player in all 18 clubs wears a specially-commissioned artwork by an Indigenous artist on their guernsey. In 2020, there was controversy over the Aboriginal flag copyright issue, after the AFL had decided not to enter into a commercial agreement with the clothing company who own the copyright over its use on clothing, as the general sentiment of the Aboriginal community that it should be free for use in Australia.


title: Australian Football League

text: The top eight teams at the end of the AFL Premiership season compete in a four-week finals series throughout September, culminating in a grand final to determine the premiers. The finals series is played under the AFL final eight system, and the grand final is traditionally played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on the afternoon of the last Saturday in September.


title: Australian Football League

text: The winning team receives a silver premiership cup, a navy blue premiership flag – a new one of each is manufactured each year – and is recorded on the perpetual E. L. Wilson Shield. The flag has been presented since the league began and is traditionally unfurled at the team's first home game of the following season. The Wilson Shield, named after Edwin Lionel Wilson, was first awarded after the 1929 premiership. The premiership cup was first introduced in 1959 and is manufactured annually by Cash's International at their metalworks in Frankston, Victoria. Additionally, each player in the grand final-winning team receives a premiership medallion.


title: Australian Football League

text: Other independent best and fairest awards are presented by different football and media organisations.


title: Australian Football League

text: Jack Elder was declared the "Umpire of the Century" to coincide with the Team of the Century. Since the naming of this side, most AFL clubs have nominated their own teams of the century. An Indigenous Team of the Century was also selected in 2005, featuring the best Aboriginal players of the previous 100 years from both the VFL/AFL and other state leagues.


title: Australian Football League

text: State representation football in the AFL initially ended in 1999. The concept has been revived twice since then in 2008 and 2020 when a Victorian state team took on all stars teams (in 2008 against "The Dream Team" and in 2020 against the "All Stars").


title: Australian Football League

text: VFL players first represented the Victoria representative team in 1897 regardless of their state of origin.


title: Australian Football League

text: Being the dominant league drawing many of the country's best players, the Victoria Australian rules football team (nicknamed the "Big V" and composed mostly of VFL players) dominated interstate matches until the introduction of State of Origin selection criteria by the Australian Football Council in 1977, after which Victoria's results with the other main Australian football states became more even.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL Commission assumed control of interstate football in 1993 and coordinated an annual State of Origin series typically held during a mid-season bye round.


title: Australian Football League

text: However, after the 1999 series, the AFL declared the concept of interstate football "on hold", citing club unwillingness to release star players and a lack of public interest: the 1999 series, where Victoria defeated South Australia by 54 points, was played in wet conditions in front of a crowd of 26,063, whereas 10 years earlier, the same match with a plethora of star players attracted a crowd of 91,960.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL shifted its focus of representative football to the International Rules Series, where at the time in the late 1990's, drew a greater television revenue. A once-off representative match, known as the AFL Hall of Fame Tribute Match, was played in 2008 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the sport between a team of players of Victorian origin and a team of players of interstate origin (the "Dream Team"), which was won by Victoria.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 2020 The AFL hosted a State of Origin match with the money raised from the event going towards affected bushfire communities. On 28 February the game took place at Marvel Stadium with Victoria defeating an All Stars team and Dustin Martin taking out best on ground.


title: Australian Football League

text: Although no professional leagues or teams exist outside Australia, the AFL has stated that it wishes to showcase Australian rules football to other countries such as India, China and South Africa so as to create a global following thus creating more exposure for its sponsors in the increasing Asian and African markets. On 17 October 2010, AFL clubs Melbourne Demons and Brisbane Lions played an exhibition game in front of 7,000 people at the Jiangwan Sports Center in Shanghai. This was the first professional AFL game to be played in China. Since then AFL premiership matches have been played in New Zealand and China, and the competition developed some interest in North America amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL has garnered increased interest in Ireland due to the introduction of the International Rules Series played between an AFL picked All Australian Team and Ireland international rules football team beginning from 1984. The series is organised under the auspices of the AFL and the Gaelic Athletic Association. The game itself is a hybrid sport, consisting of rules from both Australian football and Gaelic football. The series provides the only outlet for AFL players to represent their nation. This series encouraged young Irish footballers switching code to join AFL teams because of much higher salaries in the AFL than that of Gaelic Football. However, most Irish players fail to make the grade into 1st team football. This also paved the way for extended news coverage and increased broadcasting in the United Kingdom and Ireland.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL Commission is responsible for the administration of the AFL. It was established in December 1985, and then granted almost unilateral administrative control over the league in 1993, after the club parochialism and self-interest which came with the traditional club delegate based administrative structure threatened to undermine the competition.


title: Australian Football League

text: The commission's chairman is Richard Goyder, who officially took over from Mike Fitzpatrick on 4 April 2017. The CEO of the AFL is Gillon McLachlan, who replaced Andrew Demetriou in 2014.


title: Australian Football League

text: In addition to administering the national competition, the AFL is heavily involved in promoting and developing the sport in Australia. It provides funds for local leagues and in conjunction with local clubs, administers the Auskick program for young boys and girls.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL also plays a leading role in developing the game outside Australia, with projects to develop the game at junior level in other countries (e.g. South Africa) and by supporting affiliated competitions around the world (See Australian football around the world).


title: Australian Football League

text: The players of the AFL are represented by the AFL Players Association, the coaches are represented by the AFL Coaches Association, the umpires are represented by the AFL Umpires Association, and the related media employees are represented by the Australian Football Media Association.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL was the best-attended sporting league in Australia in 2012. According to market research, the AFL is the second-most-watched sporting event in Australia, behind cricket. Currently, broadcast rights for the AFL are shared between the Seven Network (free-to-air), Foxtel (pay TV), and Kayo Sports (internet). In 2019, a record 1,057,572 people were members of an AFL club. Total TV audiences during the 2022 AFL season 125.4 million viewers with an average of 537,000 people watching each match. 54% of viewers watched using the paid services of Foxtel or Kayo, while 46% watched the Seven Network's free-to-air broadcasts.


title: Australian Football League

text: AFL matches are currently broadcast in Australia by the free-to-air Seven Network, and subscription television provider Foxtel. The current deal was announced in August 2015 and covered the inclusive 2017–2022 seasons. In 2020, the deal was extended until 2024 inclusive.


title: Australian Football League

text: The Seven Network broadcasts an average of three-and-a-half games a round; Friday Night, Saturday Night, Sunday Afternoon, and any Thursday or Monday Night matches that may occur throughout the year. Channel Seven also airs the AFL Finals Series and the AFL Grand Final. Foxtel broadcasts every match through their Fox Footy channels, including simulcasts from the Seven Network except for the grand final, which is aired exclusively on Channel Seven. Foxtel also has the rights to air rounds on their internet protocol television platform titled Foxtel Now, as well as via the sports streaming service Kayo.


title: Australian Football League

text: The 1957 VFL season was the first broadcast after the commencement of television in Australia (introduced in 1956 to coincide with the Melbourne Olympic Games). During the late 1950s and 1960s, all Melbourne stations (ABV2, HSV7, GTV9 and, after it commenced in 1965, ATV0/ATV10) broadcast some games. However, in the late 1950s and early 1960s, the VFL was concerned that direct telecasts may affect attendances and stations were only permitted to telecast a delayed replay of the last quarter of games. In the early 1970s until 1986, the Seven Network and the Australian Broadcast Corporation (ABC) were given exclusive rights to VFL/AFL games. The only year Seven did not telecast games was 1987 when the rights were bought by Broadcom, which on-sold the rights to the ABC in Victoria. Seven regained the rights in 1988 and also exclusive rights.


title: Australian Football League

text: With the launch of subscription television in Australia, AFL match coverage commenced on cable television. Optus Vision bid for and won exclusive pay-TV rights from 1996 to 2001, screening coverage on its own 24-hour AFL channel, branded "Sports AFL" in Brisbane Sydney and Melbourne (where available). The Sports AFL channel was later closed due to financial issues and relaunched in March 1999 as C7 Sport by the Seven Network with AFL match coverage also transferred to the new channel. C7 Sport became available in regional areas not in the Foxtel or Optus Vision licence area via Austar soon after the re-launch. The AFL coverage was not available through Foxtel at this time as the Seven Network and Foxtel disagreed on the cost of carrying the C7 channel. These issues regarding C7 and AFL broadcasting rights evolved into a court case between not just the Seven Network and News Limited, but Seven against the owners of the Nine Network and Network Ten in the years that followed.


title: Australian Football League

text: On 25 January 2001, the Seven Network's main rivals, the Kerry Packer led Nine Network, Network Ten and pay-TV's Foxtel set up a consortium which bid $500 million for the right to broadcast the 2002–2006 seasons inclusive. Seven had purchased a guaranteed right to make the last bid in 1995, but decided not to outbid their rivals. The games were split between the networks, with Nine screening Friday Night Football, a live Sunday afternoon game in the east and, if needed, a doubleheader for WA and SA, Ten screened a Saturday afternoon and a Saturday night match, with the remaining four matches shown on Foxtel. Foxtel set up its own version of a dedicated AFL-only channel, the Fox Footy Channel, which showed every game on replay during the week, as well as many news, talkback and general interest shows related to Australian rules football.


title: Australian Football League

text: When the rights were offered again in January 2006 for the 2007 to 2011 seasons, Seven formed an alliance with Ten and used its guaranteed last bid rights to match Nine's offer of $780 million to win back the broadcast rights in what was the biggest sport telecasting deal in Australian history at the time. After lengthy negotiations, Foxtel agreed to be a broadcast partner and showed four live matches each week, although no longer on a dedicated AFL channel. Seven took back the Friday night match and only one game on Sunday, while Ten retained showing two matches on Saturdays. Foxtel showed two games on Saturday and two on Sunday, including a late afternoon or twilight game.


title: Australian Football League

text: The 2012–2016 rights were bought by Seven, Foxtel, and Telstra for $1.25 billion, the biggest sport telecasting deal in Australian history at the time. As part of the deal, Foxtel would show all home-and-away AFL matches live, as well as all Finals bar the grand final, via the resurrected Fox Footy. Telstra would broadcast all matches via mobile, and Seven would broadcast three live matches (Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday afternoon) and one delayed match (Saturday afternoon). Seven also had the option to on-sell one game a week to either Nine or Ten; this did not happen.


title: Australian Football League

text: The 2017–2022 rights were re-bought by Seven, Foxtel and Telstra for $2.5 billion, besting the previous deal to become the most lucrative in Australian history at the time. Under the terms of the deal, Seven broadcasts at least three live matches per round as well as all Finals matches, whilst Foxtel broadcasts (or simulcasts Seven's feed) all nine matches per round, as well as all Finals bar the grand final, which is exclusively broadcast by Seven. Telstra continues to maintain exclusive mobile broadcast rights to all matches. There are some variations in broadcasting dependent on the relevant state or territory. The agreement with Seven, Foxtel and Telstra was extended in 2020 by two years to include the 2023 and 2024 seasons.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 2021 Telstra's AFL streaming service, AFL Live Pass, was removed and replaced with access to Kayo, run by Streamotion, a wholly owned subsidiary of Foxtel.


title: Australian Football League

text: The 2025-2031 rights were re-bought by Seven, Foxtel and Telstra for $4.5 billion, once again besting the previous deal to become the most lucrative in Australian history. As part of the deal, Seven would show three-and-a-half games a week on average during the home-and-away season, as well as all Finals and the Brownlow Medal. This includes Thursday Night games for the first 15 rounds of each season, and streaming rights to all matches they broadcast via 7+. Fox Footy would continue to show every home-and-away game and every final live bar the Grand Final via Foxtel and Kayo. All Foxtel matches will have Fox Footy commentary, including simulcasts of Channel Seven matches, and Saturday matches will be exclusive to Fox Footy for the first eight rounds bar any marquee matches. These arrangements differ outside of Victoria, where every local team's match will be broadcast on free-to-air, most of them live.


title: Australian Football League

text: In late 1979, the brand new ESPN cable network signed the league's first international TV contract. Coverage began with the 1980 season with matches airing on late Friday and Saturday nights, sometimes live but usually one or two week tape delayed to up to 2.5 million subscribers. At the time, reports indicated ESPN paid the VFL nearly $100,000 (the VFL's Australian TV rights deal at the time was just $600,000). The 1983 VFL Grand Final was the first time in history that the Grand Final was broadcast live into the US. Coverage continued on ESPN until 1986, when the sport was dropped after which it was not broadcast in the US for over a decade.


title: Australian Football League

text: New Zealand was the second country which held broadcast rights in 1980, with highlight packages with the Grand Final going live into the country.


title: Australian Football League

text: In the early 1990s, American regional sports network Prime Sports (unrelated to the Australian regional television network) aired Seven's weekly highlight show as well as the grand final. Some other English speaking countries have shown the game, however, it has been since 2008 that channels in other countries began televising matches. From 1998 to 2006 games were broadcast in the United States by the Fox Sports World network.


title: Australian Football League

text: In 2007, after the record domestic television rights deal, the AFL secured an additional bonus: greater international television rights and increase exposure to overseas markets, including a five-year deal with Setanta Sports and new deals with other overseas pay-TV networks. The deal ended early in 2009 when Setanta stopped broadcasting into Great Britain. ESPN again took up the contract.


title: Australian Football League

text: Additionally, AFL games can be shown in Irish pubs and sport pubs by request in Bangkok although Thailand has no AFL rights because these pubs have subscribed internet cable services.


title: Australian Football League

text: The following countries are ranked by the approximate extent of their current television coverage (and whether it is free to air):


title: Australian Football League

text: The first broadcast of a VFL game was by 3AR in 1923, the year that broadcasting officially commenced in Australia. The first commentator was Wallace (Jumbo) Shallard, a former Geelong player who went on to have a long and respected career in print and broadcast media. The VFL/AFL has been broadcast every year since then by the ABC and (since 1927) by various commercial stations. The saturation period was the early 1960s when seven of the eight extant radio stations (3AR, 3UZ, 3DB, 3KZ, 3AW, 3XY and 3AK) broadcast VFL games each week, as well as broadcasts of Geelong games by local station 3GL. (At this time, the only alternative that radio listeners had to listen to the football on a Saturday afternoon were the classical music and fine arts programs that were broadcast by 3LO).


title: Australian Football League

text: The official internet/mobile broadcast partner of the AFL is Telstra. The AFL also provides exclusive broadband content including streaming video for international fans via its website. Telstra also hosts the official websites of all the 18 AFL clubs.


title: Australian Football League

text: However, the website is frequently derided by users for its convoluted information architecture and bloated presentation.


title: Australian Football League

text: Since 2012, Telstra has broadcast live matches over its Next G mobile network for a pay-per-view or season fee.


title: Australian Football League

text: Since 2019, Kayo has broadcast every game live bar the Grand Final. In Feb 2021, Telstra officially terminated the AFL Live Pass service, replacing it with access to Kayo at a discount for Telstra customers.


title: Australian Football League

text: Streaming rights outside of Australia for full games are currently held by the Watch AFL subscription service operated by Fox Sports Australia.


title: Australian Football League

text: The official print broadcast partner of the AFL is News Corp Australia. The "AFL Record" is a match-day magazine published by the AFL and is read by around 225,000 people each week.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL sells memberships that entitle subscribers to reserve seats for matches at Docklands Stadium and the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne. AFL members also receive priority access to finals. Three levels of memberships are offered, bronze, silver and full (gold). Only full members have guaranteed access to preliminary and grand final matches. Bronze members are restricted to fewer matches at the MCG only.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL runs a chain of stores that sell merchandise from all clubs. Merchandise is also available from other retailers.


title: Australian Football League

text: A modern museum called the Hall of Fame and Sensation opened in Melbourne in 2003 to celebrate the culture of the AFL and to provide a venue for the Australian Football Hall of Fame. The museum, a licensed offshoot of the AFL, was originally touted for the MCG, but the Hall of Fame failed to receive support from the Melbourne Cricket Club. The new QV shopping centre on Swanston Street was then chosen as the location. However, controversy followed the appointment of an administrator as the museum began running at a loss. Many blamed high entry prices, which were subsequently reduced, and the museum remained open to the public. In early 2006 the name was changed to AFL World. It featured various honour boards and memorabilia as well as a range of innovative interactive displays designed to immerse visitors in the experience of elite Australian rules football. It was closed in 2008.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL is the subject of footy tipping and betting competitions around Australia run by individuals, syndicates, workplaces and professional bookmakers. In recent years national website based tipping competitions have started to replace the traditional, but more labour-intensive, office or pub run competitions.


title: Australian Football League

text: Fantasy football competitions based on actual player statistics (number of kicks, marks, goals etc.) are also very popular on websites and in newspapers.


title: Australian Football League

text: The AFL is a supporter of the LGBTI community. In September 2017, in conjunction with the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey, the AFL modified its logo in support of same-sex marriage. However they reverted to the original logo 24 hours later.


title: Australian Football League

text: However, in September 2017 the AFL ruled that Hannah Mouncey, a transgender woman, was ineligible for selection in the 2018 AFLW draft. There has been some opposition to the AFL's decision.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: The FN 5.7×28mm (designated as the 5.7×28 by the C.I.P. and FN 5.7x28mm NATO) is a small-caliber, high-velocity, smokeless powder, rebated rim, bottlenecked centerfire cartridge designed for handgun and personal defense weapon (PDW) uses manufactured by FN Herstal. It is similar in length to the .22 WMR (5.7×27mm) and to some degree similar also to the .22 Hornet or .22 K-Hornet. Unlike many new cartridges, it has no parent case; the complete package was developed from scratch by FN.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: The 5.7×28mm was developed in conjunction with the FN P90 PDW and FN Five-seven pistol in response to NATO requests for a replacement for the 9×19mm Parabellum cartridge.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: In 2002 and 2003, NATO conducted a series of tests with the intention of standardizing a PDW cartridge as a replacement for the 9×19mm Parabellum cartridge. The tests compared the relative merits of the 5.7×28mm cartridge and the 4.6×30mm cartridge, which was created by Heckler & Koch as a competitor to the 5.7×28mm. The NATO group subsequently recommended the 5.7×28mm cartridge, citing superior performance in testing, but the German delegation objected and the standardization process was halted until 2021 when it was officially adopted as a NATO standard STANAG 4509.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: By 2006, FN's 5.7×28mm firearms—the P90 PDW and Five-Seven pistol—were in service with military and police forces in over 40 nations throughout the world. In the United States, 5.7×28mm firearms are currently used by numerous law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Secret Service.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: In addition to being used in the FN P90 and FN Five-seven firearms, the 5.7×28mm cartridge has subsequently been used in a number of other weapons, such as the AR-57 and FN PS90 carbines. Excel Arms has developed four firearms chambered in 5.7×28mm, MasterPiece Arms offers three different firearms in 5.7×28mm., and CMMG offers several of its AR-Style Banshee firearms in 5.7x28. As of December, 2019, Ruger offers its Ruger-57 semi-automatic pistol chambered in this cartridge. January 2021 saw the announcement by Kel-Tec of the P50 handgun, which uses 50 round P90 magazines. Palmetto State Armory introduced its Rock 5.7 pistol in January 2022; it became available for purchase in May 2022.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: The 5.7×28mm cartridge itself is produced in a number of varieties, two of which—the SS195LF and SS197SR—are currently offered by FN to civilian shooters.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: The 5.7×28mm cartridge was designed in response to NATO requests for a replacement for the 9×19mm Parabellum cartridge. According to the NATO requirement, the new cartridge was to have greater range, accuracy, and terminal performance than the 9×19mm cartridge. Additionally, it was to be capable of penetrating body armor. FN Herstal responded to the NATO requirement by developing the 5.7×28mm cartridge and two associated weapons: the FN P90 personal defense weapon (PDW) and FN Five-seven pistol.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: The original 5.7×28mm cartridge, called the "SS90", was introduced in 1990. It used a plastic-core projectile, which was propelled at a muzzle velocity of roughly when fired from the P90. A United States patent application for the projectile design used in the SS90 was filed by FN's Jean-Paul Denis and Marc Neuforge in 1989. U.S. Patent 5,012,743 ("High-Performance Projectile") was received in 1991.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: When fired from the FN P90, the 5.7×28mm SS190 can penetrate the NATO CRISAT vest or a Level IIIA Kevlar vest at a range of .


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: The 5.7×28mm SS90 cartridge was discontinued, and replaced, in 1993, with the 5.7×28mm SS190. The SS190 uses a shorter projectile with a mass of , which has, when fired from the P90, a muzzle velocity of roughly . The shorter length of the SS190 projectile allows it to be more conveniently used in the 5.7×28mm FN Five-seven pistol, which was also being developed at that time.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: In 1993, FN introduced a modified version of the P90 with a magazine adapted to use the SS190 cartridge. Several specialized 5.7×28mm varieties were also developed alongside the SS190, such as the L191 tracer round and the subsonic SB193 bullet for sound-suppressed use. The 5.7×28mm chambered FN Five-seven pistol then went into production in 1998.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: In 2002 and 2003, NATO conducted a series of tests with the intention of standardizing a PDW cartridge as a replacement for the 9×19mm Parabellum. The tests compared the relative merits of the 5.7×28mm cartridge and the HK 4.6×30mm cartridge, which was created by German small arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch as a competitor to the 5.7×28mm. The results of the NATO tests were analyzed by a group formed of experts from Canada, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States, and the group's conclusion was that the 5.7×28mm was "undoubtedly" the more efficient cartridge.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: Among other points, the NATO group cited superior effectiveness (27 percent greater) for the 5.7×28mm against unprotected targets and equal effectiveness against protected targets. It also cited less sensitivity to extreme temperatures for the 5.7×28mm, and cited a greater potential risk of barrel erosion with the 4.6×30mm. In addition, the group pointed out that 5.7×28mm is close to the 5.56×45mm NATO by its design and manufacture process, allowing it to be manufactured on existing production lines. The group also noted that 5.7×28mm firearms had existed for a longer period of time than 4.6×30mm firearms, and that the 5.7×28mm FN Five-seven pistol was already in production at that time, while the 4.6×30mm Heckler & Koch UCP pistol was a new concept.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: However, the German delegation and others rejected the NATO recommendation that 5.7×28mm be standardized, halting the standardization process indefinitely. As a result, both the 4.6×30mm and 5.7×28mm cartridges (and the associated weapons) have been independently adopted by various NATO countries, according to preference; both the P90 and Five-seven are currently in service with military and police forces in over 40 nations throughout the world.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: In 2004, the "SS192" hollow-point cartridge was introduced to civilian shooters alongside the new "IOM" variant of the Five-seven pistol. After being met with controversy, the SS192 variety was discontinued in the same year, and in 2005 the "SS196SR" variety was introduced using a 2.6 g (40 grain) Hornady V-Max projectile. The SS196 was also quickly discontinued in favor of the newer SS195LF and SS197SR varieties, which are currently offered to civilian shooters for use in 5.7×28mm firearms, followed by the SS198LF variety, which is currently produced but is restricted by FN to military and law enforcement customers.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: FN's 5.7×28mm ammunition types were briefly manufactured by Olin-Winchester, but today they are made by FN Herstal in Belgium and (since 2006) Fiocchi in the United States. In 2009, the National Rifle Association added 5.7×28mm firearms to its NRA Tactical Police Competition standards, allowing law enforcement agencies to compete in this event using 5.7×28mm firearms. Starting in 2012, Federal began producing a new 5.7×28mm round for civilian shooters, designated the "AE5728A".


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: On February 25, 2021, FN Herstal announced that 5.7×28mm caliber was recently recognized as a NATO caliber with the NATO STANAG 4509.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: The 5.7×28mm cartridge was designed by FN Herstal specifically for use in the FN P90 personal defense weapon and FN Five-seven pistol. Subsequently, it has been used in a number of other weapons, such as the FN PS90 carbine and the AR-57, an upper receiver for M16 and AR-15 rifles. The ST Kinetics CPW can be configured for the 5.7×28mm cartridge by changing the barrel and magazine groups. Excel Arms has developed four firearms chambered in 5.7×28mm, and MasterPiece Arms offers three different 5.7×28mm firearms.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: The 5.7×28mm cartridge weighs 6.0 grams (93 grains)—roughly two-thirds as much as a typical 9×19mm Parabellum cartridge—making extra ammunition less burdensome, or allowing more ammunition to be carried for the same weight. Since the 5.7×28mm cartridge also has a relatively small diameter, a relatively high number of cartridges can be contained in a magazine. The cartridge has a loud report and produces considerable muzzle flash (when fired from a pistol), but it has roughly 30 percent less recoil than the 9×19mm cartridge, improving controllability. Due to its high velocity, the 5.7×28mm also exhibits an exceptionally flat trajectory.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: One of the design intents of the SS190 variety of this cartridge was that it have the ability to penetrate Kevlar protective vests—such as the NATO CRISAT vest—that will stop conventional pistol bullets. Fired from the P90, the SS190 is capable of penetrating the CRISAT vest at a range of 200 m (219 yd), or a Level IIIA Kevlar vest at the same range. However, sporting variants of the 5.7×28mm are classified by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) as not armor-piercing.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: According to FN, the 5.7×28mm cartridge has an effective range of 200 m (219 yd) and a maximum range of 1,800 m (1,969 yd) when fired from the P90, and an effective range of 50 m (55 yd) and a maximum range of 1,510 m (1,651 yd) when fired from the Five-seven. In testing, the SS190 and similar 5.7×28mm projectiles consistently turn base over point ("tumble") as they pass through ballistic gelatin and other media, using the 21.6 mm (.85 in) projectile length to create a larger wound cavity. However, some are skeptical of the bullet's terminal performance, and it is a subject of debate among civilian shooters in the United States.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: The 5.7×28mm projectile potentially poses less risk of collateral damage than conventional pistol bullets, because the projectile design limits overpenetration, as well as risk of ricochet. The lightweight projectile also poses less risk of collateral damage in the event of a miss, because it loses much of its kinetic energy after traveling only 400 m (437 yd), whereas a conventional pistol bullet such as the 9×19mm retains significant energy beyond 800 m (875 yd). This range exceeds the engagement distances expected for the 5.7×28mm cartridge's intended applications, so the cartridge's limited energy at long range is not conversely considered to be disadvantageous.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: Since the 5.7×28mm SS190 projectile does not rely on fragmentation or the expansion of a hollow-point bullet, the cartridge (and 5.7×28mm firearms) are considered suitable for military use under the Hague Convention of 1899, which prohibits the use of expanding bullets in warfare.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: FN's 5.7×28mm cartridge cases are covered with a special polymer coating for easier extraction with the PS90 carbine due to the high chamber pressures and lack of case tapering. In addition, this coating ensures proper feeding and function in the magazines.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: Americans define the shoulder angle at alpha/2 ≈ 35 degrees. The common rifling twist rate for this cartridge is 1:228.6 mm (1:9 in), 8 grooves, Ø lands = 5.53 mm, Ø grooves = 5.62 mm, land width = 1.63 mm and the recommended primer type is small rifle.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: According to the official C.I.P. (Commission Internationale Permanente pour l'Epreuve des Armes à Feu Portatives) rulings, the 5.7×28mm can handle up to Pmax (the nominal maximum) piezo pressure. In C.I.P. regulated countries, every rifle cartridge combination has to be proofed at 125% of this maximum C.I.P. pressure to be certified for sale to consumers, referred to as "PE". This means that 5.7×28mm chambered arms in C.I.P. regulated countries are currently (2018) proof tested at PE piezo pressure.


title: FN 5.7×28mm

text: Fired from the longer barrel of the PS90, the muzzle velocity of SS195LF is roughly faster, and the muzzle velocity of SS197SR is roughly faster. Fired from the shorter barrel of the Five-seven pistol, the muzzle velocity of SS195LF is roughly slower, and the muzzle velocity of SS197SR is roughly slower.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: Daniil Vyacheslavovich Kvyat (; born 26 April 1994) is a Russian professional racing driver who competed in Formula One between 2014–2017 and 2019–2020. He became the second Formula One driver from Russia and is the most successful of the four Russian drivers to date, with three podiums.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: He was runner-up at the 2012 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0, and a champion in 2012 Formula Renault 2.0 Alps Series and 2013 GP3 Series. He made his debut in Formula One as a Toro Rosso driver in finishing 15th in the World Championship. He then moved on to Red Bull Racing to partner Daniel Ricciardo for the 2015 season. He scored his first Formula One podium finish at the 2015 Hungarian Grand Prix, finishing second behind Sebastian Vettel. In his first season with Red Bull Racing, Kvyat finished 7th in the Drivers' Championship, ahead of his teammate. He started the 2016 season with Red Bull Racing, scoring his second podium, finishing third at the 2016 Chinese Grand Prix. However, following a controversial collision during the opening lap of his home race in Sochi, Kvyat was demoted to Toro Rosso ahead of the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix, where he finished the season and was retained by the team for the next season. Although consistently demonstrating solid qualifying performances in 2017, his season was plagued by various problems, including several retirements in races where he could have scored points. After the 2017 United States Grand Prix, Kvyat and Red Bull parted ways, effectively terminating his contract. Kvyat spent 2018 as a development driver for Scuderia Ferrari, before being re-signed by Toro Rosso for the season. At the 2019 German Grand Prix Kvyat claimed the third podium of his career by finishing third; this was also Scuderia Toro Rosso's second podium finish after they won the 2008 Italian Grand Prix with Sebastian Vettel.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: In 2022, Kvyat was entered to compete in the FIA World Endurance Championship for G-Drive Racing, but this team withdrew on 6 March in response to conditions introduced by the FIA following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. He called the restrictions "unfair and discriminatory". Kvyat drove at the Indianapolis Road Course race in the NASCAR Cup Series for Team Hezeberg on July 31.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: Daniil Kvyat was born in Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia, on 26 April 1994 to Vyacheslav and Zulfiya Kvyat. Vyacheslav Kvyat worked for Bashneft, initially as a mechanic at the Novo-Ufan refinery, but rose through the ranks to become the financial director of the export division until 1996. Later he branched out and worked with other energy companies, ending up as CFO of West Siberian Energy. At the same time he stood for election as a Deputy in the Bashkortostan state parliament.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: In January 2005, Kvyat made his professional debut in motorsports winning his very first race in Sochi. During the 2005 and 2006 seasons, Kvyat participated in local events, including the Russian karting championship and cup as well as in the occasional races in Italy. Consistently demonstrating strong performances, he later moved to Italy to fully concentrate on racing in one of the most competitive environments. Kvyat's first professional team in Italy was Franco Pellegrini's crew.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: During the winter of 2007, Kvyat's family moved to Italy to support his commitment demonstrated by his strong results. The young driver's parents stayed with him alternately, and he started education in Italian school, continuing to race in local tournaments. Before the start of the 2008 season, Kvyat, who had already proved himself in the Italian karting scene, signed a contract with the Zanardi factory team, led by well-known manager Dino Chiesa. Kvyat moved to the KF3 junior category and became a participant of the prestigious World Series Karting series. However, the Russian driver and Zanardi's partnership did not result in any success. He achieved European Championship qualification but Kvyat switched teams just before the championships started, to join privateers from Morsicani Racing, who used an FA Kart chassis. In their very first race, the new partnership produced an excellent result: Kvyat, who had tested the new kart of the new team just a couple of days before the start of the championship, not only made it to the finals but was fighting for the win.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: Kvyat and Morsicani Racing won several prestigious competitions, including WSK rounds and the Bridgestone Cup. The Russian defeated his Zanardi ex-teammate, Nyck de Vries, who was now a protégé of the McLaren Formula 1 team. Kvyat also won the "Trofeo delle Industrie", in the final heat of which Kvyat finished ahead of Antonio Giovinazzi and Rafaele Marchiello, future members of the Ferrari Academy.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: Kvyat's European winning streak continued at the beginning of the 2009 season. The Morsicani Racing driver won the prestigious Winter Cup in the KF3 category and then added more victories to his name in the WSK rounds in Sarno and Le-Castellet. His victory in the Winter Cup was especially outstanding because he made it to the top of the podium after starting from the last position on the grid, where Kvyat found himself as a result of a clutch failure in qualifying. Kvyat first made his way into the final heat and then, starting from P3, he won that race, overtaking Carlos Sainz Jr along the way. Kvyat became one of the leaders in the WSK series, and began to draw the attention of sponsors. In the spring, he got backing from the Russian Lukoil company. However, the young driver was also noticed by Red Bull. During the summer, Kvyat participated in his first testing session in an open-wheel car, arranged by Red Bull alongside Carlos Sainz Jr, another candidate for the Red Bull Junior Team. Both drivers made a strong impression and signed contracts with the Austrian company.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: Kvyat continued to race successfully in karting, taking the bronze at the 2009 European Championship one more time but was unable to reach the finals of the World Cup in Sarno. During the qualifying session slot, chosen for Kvyat by the team, it started to rain and his lap time was not fast enough in comparison with the times posted by drivers on the dry track. Improving his situation during the qualifying heats was barely possible, primarily because the team had decided to place their bets on their second driver, Italian Guliano Maria Niceta. Kvyat decided to part ways with Angelo Morsicani's team after the World Cup and joined the Intrepid factory team. He raced for Intrepid in the last two races of the WSK season, winning the final one. It was the last win of his career in karting as the Red Bull Junior Team bosses decided to progress Kvyat to the next level, straight into the cockpit of the Formula BMW car for the 2010 season.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: Before the start of the European season, Kvyat travelled to Malaysia with the Eurointernational team, which prepared cars for both the Red Bull juniors, to race in the Formula BMW Asian Championship, where he won his first race. However, his first races back in Europe were not very successful. Sainz, who had more tests under the belt before his debut in open-wheelers, was the first to deliver a result. However, by mid-season, Kvyat had improved his results. In Germany, he qualified in the front row for the first time and after that he finished every race in the points, including the final round in Monza, where he finished in 2nd place, making it to the podium for the first time during his debut European season. Two weeks later, Kvyat won a race in the Asian Championships in Singapore, a positive ending to his campaign in Formula BMW. The Bavarian company had earlier announced the closing of their open-wheel programme by the end of the 2010 season, so Kvyat could not continue to compete in the series.


title: Daniil Kvyat

text: Before the start of the 2011 season in Europe, Kvyat went for a pre-season boot camp in New Zealand to race in the Toyota Racing Series. He raced in four rounds for the Victory Motor Racing team, finishing fifth in the championship with a win in the Dan Higgins Trophy at Manfeild and another five podiums.