AFL Expects China Game To Attract Biggest TV Audience In History

Gold Coast and Port Adelaide played a game in Shanghai last year in front of a crowd of 10,000.GETTY IMAGES

AFL GM for China & India David Stevenson said that this weekend's Gold Coast vs. Port Adelaide game in Shanghai "will be the most-watched game in AFL history" because it will be broadcast in three major centers on free-to-air TV, according to Jake Niall of THE AGE. The AFL also expects that "about half of the crowd" at the Suns-Power game will be local Chinese, compared to the estimated 30% locals who attended the game last year. Stevenson said these estimates are "based on ticket sales." He added that this year's game will be broadcast on China's main sports channel in the major population centers of Shanghai, Shandong and Guangzhou. Last year, the game was broadcast on only two of those channels (in Shanghai and Guangzhou) and a digital national channel. Stevenson said of the broadcast audience, "I'm confident it will be a big number" (THE AGE, 5/16).