Australian Football League side Brisbane Lions CEO Greg Swann said that the club "would continue to investigate the practicalities of having a live lion at home games despite a howl of protest from animal welfare and activist groups," according to Phil Lutton of THE AGE. Swann, who has "only been in Brisbane for seven weeks, said on Wednesday he had sent a team to investigate the practicalities of featuring a lion at the Gabba" as part of an AFL-wide bid to revitalize the fan experience. It did not "take long until the kick-back began, with protest group Generation Alpha the first out of the blocks to register their disapproval, saying they would start an urgent campaign to stop the club 'parading a drugged and caged lion around the Gabba.'" Animal rights group PETA "was also on the case, writing directly to Swann and warning of 'massive public uproar' if it ploughed ahead with the 'ludicrous plan'" (THE AGE, 9/11). The AAP reported a "huge social-media response forced Brisbane to clarify its leaked plans on Thursday." Swann: "There
has been a fair amount of hysteria today around the idea of having a
real lion at our home games next season. Let me be clear in saying it is an idea and only that." Swann insisted the lion "would be presented at the Gabba in an enclosure if they went ahead with the bold idea." He added, "Given the reaction today, we are mindful that people have strong views
and we will take that into consideration as we continue to plan for next
season" (AAP, 9/11).
PUSHING THE ENVELOPE: In London, Oliver Milman reported AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan said that the idea was "pushing the envelope." McLachlan: "It's a provocative idea that has lots of different angles. But I love the fact that lots of different clubs are thinking like
this about what their experience is." Brisbane Lions GM of Communications Steele Tallon tweeted that the idea was "just a discussion point at the moment." He added, "In
relation to animal rights, we would never do anything to harm a lion.
Australia Zoo is one of our partners & match day sponsor this year." Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Queensland spokesperson Michael Beatty said, "I really hope that this is a PR stunt. If they are considering
it in any form, we would be very much against it and do everything in
our power to stop it" (GUARDIAN, 9/10).
'BEASTLY IDEA': In Sydney, Patrick Smith commented McLachlan turned from CEO of the AFL to "master of the circus." Brisbane was "going to parade a lion before its home games at the Gabba." Dear "God, send in the clowns." Whether Swann was "only three-quarters serious the idea is still offensive." The AFL, "home to tanking, peptide abuse and salary-cap rorting, was now contemplating ritual animal abuse in the name of entertainment." In "fairness, Swann's idea was born in the demand from McLachlan that
clubs must become entertainers and not just football sides." He has
"spoken fervently to club chief executives about using their brand to
sell not just the club but football itself" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 9/12). In Melbourne, Stathi Paxinos wrote "ladies and gentlemen, let's stand and applaud the winner of this
year's most ill-conceived marketing ploy -- Greg Swann and the Brisbane
Lions for spruiking their proposal to parade a caged lion around the
Gabba before games in Brisbane." The concept is "not only dubious and, quite frankly, unlikely,
but also smacks of a mere publicity stunt to give the AFL some
desperately needed oxygen in a market fixated on other football codes." Let's for a moment "assume that the suggestion is genuine -- what does it
say about how out of touch sporting clubs and administrators can be with
the rest of society." What's next, "walking a chained gorilla around the
ground as a nod to the Fitzroy mascot of 1938 to 1956?" If it is "just a publicity stunt, it could come back to bite the Lions."
No one "likes being taken for a fool, although at the moment, the only
ones who look foolish are the Lions and the AFL" (THE AGE, 9/11).
