Sports Resources > Latest sports news > January 2009 > 18/01/2009 - Major Sports Support New Alcohol Code

18/01/2009 - Major sports support new alcohol code

The Minister for Sport Kate Ellis today announced that six of Australia’s largest sporting organisations have signed up to a National Alcohol Code of Conduct to help tackle binge drinking,.

“Today’s announcement represents an important step in the partnership between the Australian Government and national sporting organisations to help promote responsible attitudes and practices to alcohol through leadership and support” said Ms Ellis.

“We recognise that binge drinking is a broad, community-wide problem and we believe that sport can be an important part of the solution”, Ms Ellis added.

The code outlines responsibilities for both organisations and individuals and expects those covered by the Code should consume alcohol in a safe and responsible manner and promote responsible drinking.

The code also establishes a set of principles for the responsible service and consumption of alcohol, including the promotion of sensible drinking to the broader community by national sporting organisations and sports people.

The six sports signing up to the code are:

* rugby league (represented by the National Rugby League and the Australian Rugby League)
* Australian rules football (represented by Australian Football League)
* netball (represented by Netball Australia)
* football (represented by the Football Federation Australia)
* rugby union (represented by the Australian Rugby Union)
* cricket (represented by Cricket Australia).


Alcohol is responsible for more than 3,000 deaths a year and around 72,000 hospitalisations, many of which are related to binge drinking.

The National Alcohol Code of Conduct forms part of the Australian Government’s $53.5 million National Binge Drinking Strategy.

The strategy includes:

* $20 million for a national advertising campaign that confronts young people with the costs and consequences of binge drinking, including television and radio advertising
* $14.4 million in community-level initiatives to confront the culture of binge drinking
* $19.1 million for early interventions to assist young people to assume personal responsibility for their drinking and its consequences.


The code follows the $5.2 million invested in the significant expansion of the Good Sports initiative of the Australian Drug Foundation (ADF) which supports local sporting clubs to build a culture of responsible drinking. At the community level.

The code will also be complemented by the $2 million Club Champions program which will provide education and support within clubs to promote the principles of the code.

The Australian Government is determined to fight binge drinking, and is very pleased that so many of the nation’s peak sporting bodies are also making a stand.

Following their leadership, we encourage other sporting organisations to sign up to the Code of Conduct and support sport being part of the solution to this complex community problem.

Media Contact: Jimmy Sullivan 0423 290 646