Australian Football Multicultural Cup
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The Australian Football Multicultural Cup is an amateur Australian rules football competition featuring teams drawn from melbourne's migrant communities. The tournament is coordinated by Aussie Rules International (formerly International Australian Football Council).
It has been held twice (2004 and 2005) in Melbourne around National Harmony Day, and will be played in 2008 under the new name of Harmony Cup, although now postponed until later in the year.
[edit] Background
Australian Football is also known for a high participation rate amongst migrants, particularly amongst Europeans. Many such players reach the highest levels and some like Ron Barassi, Stephen Silvagni, Robert DiPierdomenico and Alex Jesaulenko are legends of the game. Some Australian Football League clubs, such as Carlton are renowned for the high number of players of mediterranean origin.
The Multicultural Cup has included teams representing the migrant communities from Croatia, Israel, Lebanon, Greece, Italy, Samoa, Tonga, Vietnam and Turkey. A side drawn from the Melbourne Aboriginal community also competed at both Multicultural Cups. At the 2004 event, a side drawn from numerous backgrounds competed under the name "United Nations".
[edit] History
The first Multicultural Cup was held at Skinner Reserve, Braybrook in 2004, with Israel 8.9 (57) defeating Samoa 1.0 (6) in the Grand Final.
The 2005 Multicultural Cup was won by Greece 5.5 (35) over Turkey 3.3 (21) in front of a crowd of 2,300 at Optus Oval in Carlton, Melbourne.
The event was not held in 2006 or 2007 although it may return under the name "Harmony Cup" in 2008.
