Aussie fast bowling great Mitchell Johnson warns that soccer is on track to replace cricket as the country’s national sport: ‘The game has been put on notice’
Australian fast bowling great Mitchell Johnson warns football is on track to replace cricket as the country’s national sport: ‘The game has been notified’
- The Matildas have captured the hearts and minds of Australia
- The Women’s World Cup attracted a large TV audience Down Under
- Johnson believes football could take over cricket in the Australian sporting landscape
Cricket great Mitchell Johnson has warned that football could replace cricket as Australia’s national sport following Matildas’ thrilling World Cup run.
While Tony Gustavsson’s players fell short of the trophy on home soil, their fourth-place finish was Australia’s best ever finish at a FIFA World Cup in both men’s and women’s football.
More importantly, the Matildas have captured the hearts and minds of the nation, with huge TV audiences and sold-out crowds.
And Johnson warned that football’s newfound popularity will lead to more money being sent to the sport, which in turn will only accelerate its growth.
‘Has cricket been notified? I believe so. The next decade in the Australian sporting landscape will be very interesting,” the former fast bowler wrote in his column The Western Australia.
Mitchell Johnson has warned that football could replace cricket as Australia’s national sport
The Matildas have captured the hearts and minds of the country, with huge TV audiences and sold-out crowds at the recent Women’s World Cup.
“Football already has huge numbers of participants across the country, but what the sport has long complained about is that taxpayers are not receiving funding commensurate with those numbers.
“Now the home World Cup is already starting to release more money.”
The semi-final against England peaked at 11.1 million viewers and recorded an average audience of 7.13 million according to OzTam ratings and Channel Seven.
Viewership far exceeded that of any State of Origin, NRL and AFL Grand Finals, dwarfed even by the viewership of the 2003 Rugby World Cup Men’s Final, which had an average audience of about four million drew.
The massive TV audience was mirrored in sold-out stadiums and live venues across the country.
And Johnson believes the availability of different sports on TV and online means younger generations are less likely to be as interested in cricket as those who grew up in the 1980s and 1990s.
“Despite one of the most compelling Ashes series in history, the Australian men’s cricket team’s power to unite the nation as the Matildas did is waning in 2023,” he wrote.
“As cricket evolves from an international sport to franchised T20 leagues, the sport in Australia is ceding a space it once owned to teams like the Matildas, Socceroos and Boomers.”
Johnson felt that the men’s cricket team did not unite the nation the way the Matidas did
The rising popularity in football is accompanied by huge participation numbers across the country
Johnson, who took 313 wickets in 73 Tests for Australia, also admitted that the rise of franchise-based cricket and declining interest in the Test format were all factors that could lead to cricket losing its place in the Australian sporting landscape.
“The future of Test cricket is very important in all of this and I’m not sure what that future holds,” he added.
“Test cricket is now mainly about the big three of India, England and Australia playing against each other – while the rest have little desire or financial incentive to participate in the longest form.”