"2006) and WCW pay-per-views from around the same time until they were bought out in March 2001. Main Event also began broadcasting TNA pay-per-views in May 2006, starting with Sacrifice. One year later, TNA pay per views were lifted from the 13-day tape delay format to a live format. This ceased after the transmission of Slammiversary on 29 June 2015. Professional wrestling in Australia Professional wrestling in Australia makes up a small part of Australian culture. Unlike the North American or Japanese products which have large, globally renowned organisations such as World Wrestling Entertainment, New Japan Pro Wrestling or Impact"
"Australian Professional Championship The Australian Professional Championship was a professional snooker tournament which was open only for Australian or Australian-based players. From 1963 to 1975 the Australian Professional Championship was held on a challenge basis and dominated by Eddie Charlton who won ten times in that period. There was no event in 1975 and it became a knockout tournament in 1977 and again in 1978. It was then not held until 1984 when the WPBSA offered a subsidy of £1,000 per man to any country holding a national professional championship. This subsidy ended in 1988/1989 after which date most national"
"Ron Miller and Larry O'Dea were all involved with the promotion which grew steadily through the 1960s and was a well-known product in the 1970s. However, with the introduction of World Series Cricket, WCW was left with no television deal and was forced to close down in 1978. This sent the Australian market into a large decline. With no access to any product anywhere in the world, the Australian market was almost dead until then World Wrestling Federation became a prominent figure in professional wrestling in the mid-1980s. Australia has depended on the North American product since 1985. Hosting tours"
"championships were discontinued. Eddie Charlton won the tournament on a record 20 occasions. Australian Professional Championship The Australian Professional Championship was a professional snooker tournament which was open only for Australian or Australian-based players. From 1963 to 1975 the Australian Professional Championship was held on a challenge basis and dominated by Eddie Charlton who won ten times in that period. There was no event in 1975 and it became a knockout tournament in 1977 and again in 1978. It was then not held until 1984 when the WPBSA offered a subsidy of £1,000 per man to any country holding a"
"The 1969 Australian Open was the first held under the name Australian Open. In 1967, Australia hosted the second Netball World Championships in Perth. That same year, South Australia became the last state to lift its ban on the playing of sports on Sunday. Starting in the early 1970s, Australian sport underwent a paradigm shift with sponsorship becoming one of the fundamental drivers of earnings for Australian sport on amateur and professional levels. By the mid-1980s, the need for the ability to acquire sponsorship dollars in sport was so great that job applicants for sport administrator positions were expected to"
"national sport) as well as Papua New Guinea and New Zealand. Most of the current amateur clubs and leagues in existence have developed since the 1980s, when leagues began to be established in North America, Europe and Asia. The sport developed a cult following in the United States when matches were broadcast on the fledgling ESPN network in the 1980s. As the size of the Australian diaspora has increased, so has the number of clubs outside Australia. This expansion has been further aided by multiculturalism and assisted by exhibition matches as well as exposure generated through players who have converted"
"Australian Pro The Australian Pro was a men's professional tennis tournament that started in 1954 and was held yearly, with the exception of 1961 and 1963, from 1957 through 1966. The tournament moved venues several times and therefore had the prefix of South when in Adelaide and Western when held in Perth. On the last two occasions that it was held in Perth the tournament was staged at the Perry Lakes Stadium. It was also called the Australian Pro Indoor Championships for one year when it was held at Melbourne's Olympic Pool. All other tournaments took place at the White"
"City Tennis Club in Sydney. In 1965 and 1966 there were two editions of the Australian Pro as Adelaide and Perth held separate events. Australian Pro The Australian Pro was a men's professional tennis tournament that started in 1954 and was held yearly, with the exception of 1961 and 1963, from 1957 through 1966. The tournament moved venues several times and therefore had the prefix of South when in Adelaide and Western when held in Perth. On the last two occasions that it was held in Perth the tournament was staged at the Perry Lakes Stadium. It was also called"
"also identified the need to increase cultural awareness and break down barriers between races using sport as the conduit. Recently, the competition was renamed to honour the football legend Ron Barassi a player with Italian origins who is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest ever Aussie Rules identities as both player and coach. Ron Barassi is now also the patron of the organisation. Subsequent tournaments have been held in 2001, 2003. As well as Australian amateur teams from the Australian Capital Territory, Western Australia and the Northern Territory other countries (depending on availability) including New Zealand, South Africa, Samoa,"
"honour of former Australian international John Kosmina. National Premier Leagues The National Premier Leagues (NPL) is a national association football competition in Australia which acts as the second tier of the sport in the country below the A-League. The NPL consists of the highest level state league in each state-based federation within Australia. In total the NPL is contested by clubs from eight divisions; these are ACT, NSW, Northern NSW, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. The NPL is overseen by Football Federation Australia (FFA), in partnership with participating state-based member federations. Since 2014 it has been sponsored"
"the point where (like most sports) income from selling broadcasting rights is the single greatest source of revenue for the game. In Australia the 1967 NSWRFL season's grand final became the first football grand final of any code to be televised live in Australia. The Nine Network had paid $5,000 for the broadcasting rights. This period also saw further alterations to the rules of the sport. In 1964 substitutes were allowed for the first time, but only for players injured before half-time. In 1966 limited tackles were introduced. In 1967 professional matches were first allowed on Sundays. Also this year"
"ran on television. Competitors involved included Ron Barassi, NSWRL player Johnny Raper and horse trainer Tommie Smith. That year, the Australian team qualified for the 1974 FIFA World Cup, the first successful qualification to the FIFA World Cup in the country's history after failing to qualify to the 1966 and 1970 tournaments. It would prove to be the only appearance for the Australian team for more than three decades. The regional football code divide in Australia was still present in the 1980s, with rugby league football being the dominant code in Queensland, ACT and New South Wales while Australian rules"
"effect of television coverage on attendances became pronounced by the mid-1970s and crowds began to desert the Brisbane Rugby League competition. Clubs found themselves in financial hardship, and the public began to support the Sydney Rugby League which by then was being broadcast in Queensland. In 1978 the premiership trophy, the Kirks Cup was replaced by the Winfield Cup. The Queensland Rugby League commissioned Eric White Associates to investigate the administrative structure of the game in Queensland in 1977. One of the recommendations was the creation of a statewide competition. The Winfield State League was created in 1982. The State"
"the most notable being the National Soccer League (NSL). The formation of the NSL came after Australia's qualification for the 1974 FIFA World Cup, which led to discussion of a national league, with 14 teams eventually chosen to participate in the inaugural season of the NSL in 1977. Under the guidance of the then-governing body, the Australian Soccer Federation (later Soccer Australia), the NSL flourished through the 1980s and early 1990s but then fell into decline with the increasing departure of Australian players to overseas leagues, a disastrous television deal with the Seven Network and the resulting lack of sponsorship."
"Australian football) was preferred in the southern states. Rugby union had a diminished national profile for many decades after rugby league became the more popular football code in Sydney and Brisbane prior to the first world war. The game gradually expanded its reach again after the second world war, and rugby union was re-established in most areas of the country by the 1970s. Super Rugby, previously known as Super 12 and Super 14, is a multi-regional rugby union competition that involves teams from three nations across the southern hemisphere; Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, and expanded in 2016 to"
"21 January 1977. In 1977 the Victorian Football League Grand Final was shown live to Melbourne viewers for the first time. As with the Olympics, the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada were shown in the form of highlights packages on ABC TV. The Special Broadcasting Service, originally a group of radio stations broadcasting government information to ethnic minorities in Sydney and Melbourne, began test transmissions on ABC in the two cities – mainly showing foreign-language programming on Sunday mornings. The country's second national public broadcaster, the Special Broadcasting Service, launched Channel 0/28 in Sydney and Melbourne in October"
"disapproval for the event since there had been some confusion over which was the authentic World championship. Charlton was unable to find a sponsor and the event was cancelled. Charlton made another attempt to organise the event in January 1981 but this again failed because of the lack of a sponsor. World Professional Match-play Championship The World Professional Match-play Championship was a professional snooker tournament established in 1952 as an alternative to the World Snooker Championship and held annually until 1957. A one-off event with the same name was held in Australia in 1976. The events from 1952 to 1957"
"National Premier Leagues The National Premier Leagues (NPL) is a national association football competition in Australia which acts as the second tier of the sport in the country below the A-League. The NPL consists of the highest level state league in each state-based federation within Australia. In total the NPL is contested by clubs from eight divisions; these are ACT, NSW, Northern NSW, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. The NPL is overseen by Football Federation Australia (FFA), in partnership with participating state-based member federations. Since 2014 it has been sponsored by PlayStation 4 and thus officially known"
"Water polo in Australia Water polo in Australia is governed by the Australian Water Polo and its state based Water polo associations. Behind Great Britain, Australia was the second nation in the world to play the game of water polo. The first known Australian match occurred at St Kilda Sea Baths, Melbourne on the 3rd March 1879 and was demonstrated by Professor Fred Cavill, who had only just emigrated from England. Australian men's teams have competed at every Olympic Games Water Polo Tournament since 1948, excepting 1968 (controversially not nominated by the AOC) and 1996 (did not qualify). Australia were"
"in a row to lead again and, although Charlton levelled the match at 30–30, Reardon won the deciding frame to win 31–30. With Park Drive having ended their sponsorship, The WPBSA awarded the 1975 World Championship to Eddie Charlton Promotions. This was the second and, currently, the last world championship to be held in Australia. There were 27 competitors. 3 preliminary matches were played to reduce the field to 24. 8 seeded players received a bye to the last-16 stage. Most of the early round matches were played in New South Wales although the semi-finals were played in Canberra and"
"for each of the Australian states. These are: Water Polo ACT, Water Polo New South Wales, Water Polo Queensland, Water Polo Tasmania, Water Polo South Australia, Water Polo Victoria, and Water Polo Western Australia. Behind Great Britain, Australia was the second nation in the world to play the game of water polo. The first known Australian match occurred at St. Kilda Baths, Melbourne on the 3rd March 1879 and was demonstrated by Professor Fred Cavill, who had only just emigrated from England. Australian men's teams have competed at every Olympic Games Water Polo Tournament since 1948, excepting 1968 (controversially not"
"playoff system was used at the Australian Rugby League Championship 1954-1972. In Australia, its most notable use today is in netball, having been adopted by Suncorp Super Netball when it began play in 2017. The system has been used since 1990 by the International Softball Federation and its successor, the World Baseball Softball Confederation, for the Women's Softball World Championship and from 1996 to 2008 at the Olympic Games. Its first use in curling was by the Canadian Curling Association in the 1995 Labatt Brier, the men's championship, and was adopted the next year at the 1996 Scott Tournament of"
"identity as a sport-obsessed country, an identity which was embraced inside the country. This was so well known that in a 1962 edition of ""Sports Illustrated"", Australia was named the most sports obsessed country in the world. In 1967, Australia hosted the second World Netball Championships in Perth. That same year, South Australia became the last state to lift its ban on the playing of sports on Sunday. Starting in the early 1970s, Australian sport underwent a paradigm shift with sponsorship becoming one of the fundamental drivers of earnings for Australian sport on amateur and professional levels. By the mid-1980s,"
"two complete competitions with initial heats and finals, while the 1977 and 1978 seasons featured only one each. Following the 1977 grand final, the season finale featured a competition between the top two teams from the grand final and a team representing New Zealand. An Australian version of ""It's a Knockout!"" ran on Network Ten from 1985 to 1987. The teams were divided into the Australian states: New South Wales (NSW), Victoria (VIC), Queensland (QLD) and South Australia (SA). The show was hosted by Billy J. Smith, along with Fiona MacDonald for the duration that it aired in Australia. They"
"who was an Australian rugby league football administrator in both Australia and the United Kingdom, the Trophy was first awarded in the Rugby Football League Championship Final of the 1964–65 season following Sunderland's death. The Super League Grand Final has been the championship-deciding game since Super League III in 1998: These final were held at Old Trafford. In rugby league, the term 'the Double' is referring to the achievement of a club that wins the top division and Challenge Cup in the same season. To date, this has been achieved by a total ten different clubs but by only four"
"weren't interested in its safe keeping. Australia Cup The Australia Cup was a soccer knockout cup competition in Australia. It was the first national club tournament in the country, initiated in 1962 by the newly formed governing body of the sport, Australian Soccer Federation. The inaugural season of the tournament was contested by biggest teams from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Newcastle. In 1963 the Australia Cup grew to take in teams from throughout Tasmania, and from 1964 Perth and Canberra clubs were represented, giving the competition a truly national feel. Played throughout football's first real boom period in the"
"In December 1888, an American, Albert Spalding, brought his Chicago White Stockings and a team of U.S. all-stars to Australia, as part of a world tour. Sydney Cricket Ground hosted three games. At the end of the 19th century, Americans also tried to set up baseball leagues and competitions in Australia, with some success. A national league was initiated in 1934, and the national team entered World Championship competition in the late 1970s. Prior to winning the silver medal at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Australia had finished 7th in the Olympics twice, which is also the highest position"
"Australia became founding members of the Oceania Football Federation (now Oceania Football Confederation). Pre-1960s, competitive soccer in Australia was state-based. In 1962, the Australia Cup was established, but its ambition of becoming an FA Cup style knockout competition went unfulfilled with its demise in 1968. In 1977, the first national soccer competition, the National Soccer League, was founded. In 1984, the National Soccer Youth League was founded as a reserve and academy league to run in parallel to the National Soccer League. In 1996, the first national women's football competition, the Women's National Soccer League was founded. The National Soccer"
"made between $5,000 - $10,000 a year. Australian athletes have gone overseas to play professional sport. Amongst these are Lauren Jackson, Erin Phillips, Kristi Harrower, Belinda Snell and Penny Taylor who played basketball in the United States. During the 2010/2011 season, the Women's National Basketball League had 77,944 total spectators watch a game live. On television that season, the league had an aggregate of 1,352,096 total viewers. In 1984, the national team competed at the 1984 Summer Olympics. This was their first appearance at the Olympic Games. Comparatively, their male counterparts first competed at the 1956 Summer Olympics. In 1988,"
"the Australian Olympic team (from 1908). In 1927, the tennis Australasian Championships were renamed as the Australian Championships, and was held at Kooyong Stadium Melbourne. Netball Australia was founded in 1927 as the All Australia Women's Basket Ball Association. During the 1930s, the playing of sport on Sunday was banned in most country outside South Australia. During the 1930s, rugby league, which had gone professional, began to overtake rugby union in popularity in Queensland, with the league being the dominant spectator code by 1937. The Bodyline cricket series between Australia and England took place in 1932–1933. The English side were"
"World of Sport (Australian TV program) World of Sport was an Australian sports program that was broadcast live by HSV-7 in Melbourne from 1959 to 1987 on Sundays between 11am and 2pm. By the end of its run, the show was claimed as the world's longest running sports program. A unique combination of talk, banter, highly informed commentary, invented and real sports, the program held a unique place in the sports-obsessed culture of Melbourne and made stars out of a number of ex-sportsman, particularly Australian rules footballers. The show premiered on Saturday 16 May 1959, less than three years after"
"not emerge until the late twentieth century. These competitions have usually involved franchises rather than club or representative teams, and have focused on gaining a larger profile for the sport, as well as attracting greater sponsorship, investment and media coverage. The Commonwealth Bank Trophy (CBT) was the first elite domestic competition in Australia, starting in 1997. It succeeded the Mobil League, which was still a state-representative club-based competition. The Commonwealth Bank Trophy was televised on ABC Sport, although coverage was usually limited to a few live games and a weekly highlights series. The competition lasted for eleven years, playing its"
"Sportsworld (Australian TV series) Sportsworld was an Australian sports information program shown on Seven Network. The program was broadcast from 9.00am - 11.00am following ""Weekend Sunrise"" on Sunday mornings, from Seven's Martin Place streetfront studios in Sydney. Prior to its final format, Sportsworld had usually been shown on Sunday mornings since its debut in the 1990s. Its host then was Bruce McAvaney. It was then revamped to a sport panel show in which Johanna Griggs hosted alongside Paul Salmon out of Seven Melbourne. In 2004, it was revamped into a chat style show with Johanna Griggs and Sandy Roberts. Matthew"