Oceania Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===Sport=== {{See also|Sport in Oceania}} [[File:Fiji vs Wales CG Melbourne 2006.jpg|thumb|Fiji playing [[Wales national rugby sevens team|Wales]] at [[Rugby sevens|seven-a-side rugby]]|left]] [[Rugby union]] is one of the region's most prominent sports,<ref name="ocerugb" /> and is the national sport of New Zealand, Samoa, Fiji and Tonga. The most popular overall sport in Australia is [[cricket]], with their [[Australia national cricket team|national team]] having won the [[Cricket World Cup]] a record five times.<ref>{{cite web |date=26 October 2021 |title=ICC Cricket World Cup facts with list of winners and host countries |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/gk-current-affairs/story/icc-cricket-world-cup-facts-with-list-of-winners-and-host-countries-1869701-2021-10-26 |publisher=Indiatoday.in |access-date=26 July 2022 |archive-date=26 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220726040915/https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/gk-current-affairs/story/icc-cricket-world-cup-facts-with-list-of-winners-and-host-countries-1869701-2021-10-26 |url-status=live }}</ref> The most popular sport among Australian women is [[netball]], while [[Australian rules football]] garners the highest spectatorship numbers and television ratings.<ref name="ausrulebrit" /><ref name="aust54" /><ref name="planetsp85" /><ref name="aust101" /> Rugby union is the most popular sport among New Zealanders,<ref name="newzea76" /> and they are tied with [[South Africa]] for the most [[Rugby World Cup]] titles, having won the tournament three times.<ref>{{cite web |date=3 November 2019 |title=Rugby World Cup final: South Africa break records and beat All Blacks to milestones |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/rugby-world-cup/rwc-2019-japan/117131319/rugby-world-cup-final-south-africa-break-records-and-beat-all-blacks-to-milestones |website=Stuff |access-date=30 July 2022 |archive-date=3 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200103115213/https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/rugby-world-cup/rwc-2019-japan/117131319/rugby-world-cup-final-south-africa-break-records-and-beat-all-blacks-to-milestones |url-status=live }}</ref> Australia's team [[Australia national rugby union team|the Wallabies]] have also managed to win the World Cup twice, despite Rugby union being less popular among Australians.<ref>{{cite web |last=Price |first=Graham |date=3 November 2019 |title=Warren Gatland failed to learn lessons of 2015 {{pipe}} Graham Price |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/warren-gatland-six-nations-hit-17190027 |website=WalesOnline |access-date=30 July 2022 |archive-date=30 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730065406/https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/warren-gatland-failed-learn-lessons-17190027 |url-status=live }}</ref> In Papua New Guinea, the most popular sport is [[Rugby league]].<ref name="rl" /><ref name="rugby66" /> [[Fiji national rugby sevens team|Fiji's sevens team]] is one of the most successful in the world, as is [[New Zealand national rugby sevens team|New Zealand's]].<ref name="southemiclass" /> Australian rules football is the national sport in [[Australian rules football in Nauru|Nauru]].<ref name="naurafl" /> It has a large following in Papua New Guinea, where it is the second most popular sport after Rugby League.<ref name="miningpapua" /><ref name="msnclosure" /><ref name="footinaus" /> Additionally, it attracts significant attention across New Zealand and the [[Pacific Islands]]. The highest level of the sport is the [[Australian Football League]] (AFL), which was the fourth best attended sporting league in the world during the 2010s.<ref>{{cite web |date=20 May 2015 |title=AFL still fourth-best attended sporting competition in the world |url=https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/afl-still-fourthbest-attended-sporting-competition-in-the-world-20150520-gh5oya.html |publisher=Theage.com.au |access-date=18 January 2022 |archive-date=18 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220118183052/https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/afl-still-fourthbest-attended-sporting-competition-in-the-world-20150520-gh5oya.html |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Football in Vanuatu|Vanuatu]] is the only country in Oceania to call [[association football]] its national sport. However, it is also the most popular sport in [[Football in Kiribati|Kiribati]], [[Football in Solomon Islands|Solomon Islands]] and [[Football in Tuvalu|Tuvalu]], and has a significant (and growing) popularity in [[Soccer in Australia|Australia]]. In 2006 Australia left the [[Oceania Football Confederation]] (OFC) for the [[Asian Football Confederation]] (AFC), and their men's team [[Australia men's national soccer team|the Socceroos]] have qualified for every subsequent [[FIFA World Cup]] as an Asian entrant.<ref name="fifa2010" /> The sole Micronesian country with membership in the OFC is Kiribati, although they are not recognised by [[FIFA]] like the other OFC members. [[Federated States of Micronesia national football team|Federated States of Micronesia]], Marshall Islands, Nauru and [[Palau national football team|Palau]] all have no presence, primarily due to lack of infrastructure and logistical difficulties related to Micronesia's remoteness.<ref>{{cite web |title=Meet Pohnpei: the Pacific islanders battling to become FIFA's 212th member |date=3 September 2017 |url=https://thesefootballtimes.co/2017/09/04/meet-pohnpei-the-pacific-islanders-battling-to-become-fifas-212th-member/ |publisher=Thesefootballtimes.co |access-date=18 January 2022 |archive-date=18 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220118182659/https://thesefootballtimes.co/2017/09/04/meet-pohnpei-the-pacific-islanders-battling-to-become-fifas-212th-member/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Associate Members of OFC">{{cite web |last=DΓΌerkop |first=Sascha |title=The Associate Members of OFC β 0:3 for football |date=5 January 2020 |url=https://footballoceania.com/2020/01/05/the-associate-members-of-ofc-03-for-football/ |access-date=30 July 2021 |publisher=Football in Oceania |archive-date=21 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210621161916/https://footballoceania.com/2020/01/05/the-associate-members-of-ofc-03-for-football/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=13 November 2021 |title=The Marshall Islands: The last country on Earth without a football team|url=https://theathletic.com/2935126/2021/11/13/the-marshall-islands-the-last-country-on-earth-without-a-football-team/ |publisher=Theathletic.com |access-date=18 January 2022 |archive-date=18 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220118183005/https://theathletic.com/2935126/2021/11/13/the-marshall-islands-the-last-country-on-earth-without-a-football-team/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Like Australia, the Micronesian dependent territories of [[Guam national football team|Guam]] and [[Northern Mariana Islands national football team|Northern Mariana Islands]] currently compete in the AFC instead of the OFC.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://guamfa.com/contact-us/history-of-gfa/|title=Guam Football Association {{pipe}} History of GFA|website=Guamfa.com|access-date=19 July 2022|archive-date=15 April 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220415204416/https://guamfa.com/contact-us/history-of-gfa/|url-status=live}}</ref> The OFC was dominated by Australia for many years, and became known for one-sided results.<ref name="wsc">{{cite web |last=Hall |first=Matthew |title=Australia β World Cup is a long way away |url=https://www.wsc.co.uk/the-archive/18-letter-from/2421-australia--world-cup-is-a-long-way-away |website=When Saturday Comes |access-date=2022-07-30 |archive-date=2022-07-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220714234044/https://www.wsc.co.uk/the-archive/18-letter-from/2421-australia--world-cup-is-a-long-way-away |url-status=live }}</ref> These included a [[Australia 31β0 American Samoa|31β0 defeat]] of [[American Samoa national football team|American Samoa]] by Australia in 2001, which remains the biggest international victory in the history of the sport.<ref>{{cite web |title=American Samoa finally get 17-year monkey off their back |url=https://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/american-samoa-finally-get-17-year-monkey-off-their-back-26795800.html |website=independent |date=26 November 2011 |access-date=2022-07-30 |archive-date=2022-05-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220511110002/https://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/american-samoa-finally-get-17-year-monkey-off-their-back-26795800.html |url-status=live }}</ref> It broke the previous record set two days earlier when Australia [[Tonga 0β22 Australia|defeated Tonga 22β0]].<ref>{{cite web |date=12 April 2001 |title=Samoans lose 31-0 - or was it 32-0? |url=http://www.theguardian.com/football/2001/apr/12/newsstory.sport3 |website=The Guardian |access-date=30 July 2022 |archive-date=11 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220411104243/https://www.theguardian.com/football/2001/apr/12/newsstory.sport3 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Australia set world record with 22-0 win over Tonga |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/australia-set-world-record-with-22-0-win-over-tonga-1.300185 |newspaper=The Irish Times |access-date=2022-07-30 |archive-date=2017-07-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170704101251/http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/australia-set-world-record-with-22-0-win-over-tonga-1.300185 |url-status=live }}</ref> Australians view sport as an important part of their cultural identity, and the country performs well on the international stage, despite having a relatively small population.<ref>{{cite web |title=National Sporting Agenda Announcement {{pipe}} Commonwealth Games Australia |date=31 July 2018 |url=https://commonwealthgames.com.au/national-sporting-agenda-announcement/ |publisher=Commonwealthgames.com.au |access-date=17 January 2022 |archive-date=12 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220112172302/https://commonwealthgames.com.au/national-sporting-agenda-announcement/ |url-status=live }}</ref> They have hosted two Summer Olympics: [[1956 Summer Olympics|Melbourne 1956]] and [[2000 Summer Olympics|Sydney 2000]], and the city of Brisbane is also set to host the [[2032 Summer Olympics|2032 edition]].<ref>{{cite web |date=21 July 2021 |title=Brisbane2032 {{pipe}} About Queensland and its government {{pipe}} Queensland Government |url=https://www.qld.gov.au/about/Brisbane2032 |publisher=Qld.gov.au |access-date=17 January 2022 |archive-date=11 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220111154204/https://www.qld.gov.au/about/Brisbane2032 |url-status=live }}</ref> Australia (and New Zealand) were among the small handful of non-[[communism|communist]] countries who decided to participate at [[1980 Summer Olympics|Moscow 1980]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Taonga |first=New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu |title=Olympic politics and boycotts |url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/olympic-and-commonwealth-games/page-4 |website=teara.govt.nz |access-date=2022-07-30 |archive-date=2022-05-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220503105957/https://teara.govt.nz/en/olympic-and-commonwealth-games/page-4 |url-status=live }}</ref> Additionally, Australia has hosted five editions of the [[Commonwealth Games]] ([[1938 British Empire Games|Sydney 1938]], [[1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games|Perth 1962]], [[1982 Commonwealth Games|Brisbane 1982]], [[2006 Commonwealth Games|Melbourne 2006]], [[2018 Commonwealth Games|Gold Coast 2018]]). Meanwhile, New Zealand has hosted the Commonwealth Games three times: [[1950 British Empire Games|Auckland 1950]], [[1974 British Commonwealth Games|Christchurch 1974]] and [[1990 Commonwealth Games|Auckland 1990]]. The [[Pacific Games]] (formerly known as the South Pacific Games) is a multi-sport event, much like the Olympics on a much smaller scale, with participation exclusively from countries around the Pacific. It is held every four years and began in 1963. Australia and New Zealand competed in the games for the first time in 2015.<ref name="abc20140703" /> Melbourne hosts the [[Australian Open]] every year, considered one of the four major [[Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam]] tournaments in [[tennis]]. It was held for the first time in 1905.<ref>{{cite web |title=Australian Open {{pipe}} tennis tournament {{pipe}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/sports/Australian-Open |website=Britannica.com |access-date=2022-07-30 |archive-date=2022-07-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220712125009/https://www.britannica.com/sports/Australian-Open |url-status=live }}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page