Barassi Line

The Barassi Line is an imaginary line in Australia which approximately divides areas where Australian rules football is the most popular football code from those where rugby is more widely followed, particularly rugby league but also rugby union. On either side of the line, crowd figures, media coverage, and participation rates tend to favour the locally dominant code.

While the term was coined by historian Ian Turner in his 1978 Ron Barassi Memorial Lecture, the divide emerged much earlier, in the 1880s, and became firmly established by the early 20th century. Roughly speaking, the line follows Queensland's western border, drops southeast through western New South Wales, and ends at Cape Howe on the New South Wales–Victoria border. As a result, Queensland and New South Wales' eastern population centres fall on the rugby side, while Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia, the Northern Territory, and New South Wales' Riverina, Murray, and Far West regions fall on the Australian rules side. The line also runs through the Australian Capital Territory, where Australian rules and rugby enjoy comparable levels of grassroots support, although only elite rugby competitions have established representative teams there. The line splits the population roughly in half, owing to the concentration of Australians on the east coast.

In the 1980s, state leagues and competitions began expanding beyond the Barassi Line, with varying levels of success and financial support. Four clubs in the Australian Football League (AFL), the elite Australian rules competition, currently compete beyond the line: Sydney Swans (relocated 1982), Brisbane Lions (formed 1996), Gold Coast Suns (2009), and Greater Western Sydney Giants (2010). The Brisbane Bears (1987–1995) also competed in the league before merging to form the Lions. In rugby league, the only current National Rugby League (NRL) club based beyond the line is the Melbourne Storm (formed 1997). Defunct rugby league teams include the WA Reds (1995–1997) and Adelaide Rams (1997–1998). The Super Rugby club Western Force (formed 2005) is currently the only professional rugby union team beyond the line, following the dissolution of the Melbourne Rebels (2009–2024). Active expansion bids include Cairns (AFL) and Perth (NRL).

The Barassi Line is regarded as globally unique and arguably Australia's "strongest sociogeographic dividing characteristic". Most other sports are unaffected by the divide; for example, cricket has maintained broad national popularity, while soccer is also popular throughout Australia.