Copa

No. Nobody involved in the NRL can gamble on anything connected to the NRL.

You’re correct. It’s appalling here… Slowly, very slowly, changes are coming. It’s my understanding (i can’t remember where I heard it ) that some current AFL and NRL contracts will be allowed to run out before it’s stopped. https://www.pm.gov.au/media/strong-action-tackle-gambling-harms The reforms will minimise children’s exposure to gambling harm by stopping the deluge of advertisements through: Restricting gambling advertising on broadcast television to no more than three ads each hour between 6am and 8.30pm, with a complete ban during live sport broadcasts within those hours Banning gambling ads on the radio during school drop off and pick up times (8am to 9am and 3pm to 4pm) Banning gambling ads through online platforms, unless people have a logged in account, are over 18 and have the option to opt-out of gambling advertising Banning the use of celebrities and sports players in gambling ads, along with odds-style ads targeting sports fans Banning gambling ads in sports venues and on players’ and officials’ uniforms.

You still get far worse anti-indigenous attitudes though. i wonder if it has less impact when many migrants are white South Africans with established bad attitudes to non-whites, white Brits or New Zealanders. Sydney is well over 40% foreign born and they’re from far more diverse backgrounds.

The sports dominate different part of Australia. In NRL land, rural and regional Queensland has the worse reputation for race relations. In AFL land, Western Australia makes Queensland look like the global hotspot of racial harmony. Some of my wife’s English family visited Perth before coming to Canberra and by the time they arrived in Canberra they were already using an extremely offensive term for indigenous Australians that I have not heard for 20 years. My kids don’t even know the word. My wife’s family used it as they thought it was a regular non offensive term because they heard it being used in Perth. They were horrified when I told them how bad it was. Also, in AFL land, WA and SA (and Tasmania) get very few migrants compared to the big east coast cities so they have less exposure to people who are different. So, while it does occur in NRL land, it’s far worse in AFL. The private school domination of AFL doesn’t help either.

I wonder if 1st and 2nd generation Samoans in Australia who still go to church a lot in Australia lose touch with the fa'afafine and fa'afatama part of Samoan culture. If you’re interested in something similar look up genders within Bugis culture in Indonesia. 5 genders and they’re predominantly Muslim.

Here in Canberra there are obvious male couples in cafes, at the shops, walking together in town, at gigs… however I don’t often see two men who present as a couple in the crowd at NRL matches. Given that people are often raised on rugby league here I suspect they are in the crowd but hide it. I’ve seen quite a few lesbian couples in the crowd though.

Historically Samoan society has recognised 4 genders. Male, female and then something akin to trans male and trans female (fa'afafine and fa'afatama). A male or female having intimate relations with the same gender is another kettle of fish though. Fa'afafine and fa'afatama still exist in Samoan society. I sometimes wonder how Christianity or if an “Americanisation of homosexuality” has had an impact.

This might be a revelation to you, but people raised in an environment where they’re told they are rubbish, frequently grow up to feel they are rubbish.

Yes. Plenty of young gay people still self harm because the world they experience on a day to day basis makes them feel horrible and worthless. Kane coming out gives them a story of hope they can relate to.

This thread prompted me to google the soccer World Cup. I had no idea it started so soon. I guess that’s what happens when I have a 24/7 rugby league channel as my go to sports channel.

I was absolutely mesmerised by it. It’s a hefty book with over 1000 pages and I’m a busy person yet i finished it within a week. I even found myself getting up much earlier in the morning so i could squeeze in more reading.

Just finished The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. It’s not the sort of novel I usually read but i really enjoyed the 12th century setting in England and the cast of characters and stories within the novel.

Kayo. I still go the every Raiders home game though plus some matches in the Canberra Raiders Cup.

There are rugby union pathways wherever rugby union is played in the world.