.afl

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Status:	Delgated
country:	Australia, International
Manager:	Australian Football League
Registry Provider:	ARI Registry Services
Date Implemented:	28 March 2015
Type:	Brand TLD
Priority #:	1419 - Australian Football League

.afl is a Brand TLD delegated in ICANN's new gTLD program. Australian Football League manages the TLD and is its Registry. The proposed application succeeded and was delegated to the Root Zone on 28 March, 2015. which has partnered with Melbourne IT as an application consultant and ARI Registry Services as the back-end technical provider. Australian rules football is different than both American football and international fútbol (soccer).

Application Details

The following is excerpted from the applicant's response to question #18:

"THE MISSION AND PURPOSE OF THE NEW RESTRICTED .AFL gTLD IS TO BENEFIT INTERNET USERS BY ENSURING INCREASED TRUST AND CONFIDENCE THROUGH THE ELIMINATION OF USER CONFUSION AND ASSURANCE OF BRAND AUTHENTICITY.

The new .afl will operate as a restricted registry, in which the Australian Football League (AFL) can protect, create and control domain spaces that promote its brand identity and authenticity. .afl will provide the official and authoritative internet space for the AFL, clubs, players and corporate partners that are associated with the AFL brand to provide information, services and resources regarding the game to fans, participants and consumers in a way that promotes trust, confidence and utility. Domain names in .afl will be utilised for communication and marketing purposes with internet users assured of brand authenticity.

The AFL is the administrator, operator and promoter of the elite national league of Australian Football. Australian Football is one of the most popular sports in Australia in terms of match attendances, broadcast audiences and participation rates. In 2011, 7.14 million people attended AFL matches, the national weekly television audience was approximately 4.7 million and there were nearly 800,000 registered participants in Australia and 45,000 overseas. Beginning as a state football league in 1896, the AFL commenced in 1989 as the league expanded into a national competition. The AFL now has 18 clubs located in five States and holds matches across Australia. The AFL generates significant revenue for itself and participating clubs through licensing media and broadcasting rights, club memberships, match attendance, corporate sponsorships and hospitality, events and merchandising. The AFL reached revenue in 2011 of AUD234 million and sold the licence to television broadcasting rights for the 2012-2016 period for an Australian record AUD1.253 billion. The AFL is a brand leader in the Australian sport industry and in the utilisation of its online and digital media content. .afl will strengthen the AFL brand and allow the AFL to lead the way in brand reputation, consumer trust and continuous innovation as well as the development of its online, mobile and digital media, resulting in a greater engagement from its participants, partners and fans."