Sport is an important part of the culture of Western Australia.
Australian Rules Football
Along with cricket, Australian Rules Football is one of the main sports. Western Australia has two teams in the Australian Football League (AFL): the West Coast Eagles and the Fremantle Football Club (the "Fremantle Dockers"). The "home" of Australian rules football in Perth is Subiaco Oval. There is also a local West Australian Football League (WAFL) with nine clubs representing metropolitan regions. Australian rules football is the most popular football code in Western Australia.
Baseball
Baseball is becoming increasingly popular in Western Australia. Baseball WA is the governing body of baseball in Western Australia and oversees the organization of the sport in the area. The highest level of play in Australia is the Australian Baseball League (ABL) and has a team in Western Australia, the Perth Heat. The Heat won the inaugural championship during the 2010 - 2011 season. The team plays at the Barbagallo Ballpark.
Basketball
Western Australia has a team in the National Basketball League, the Perth Wildcats, who are one of the most successful teams in the league's history.
Cricket
Cricket is one of the main sports in Western Australia. Western Australia has a state cricket team, the Western Warriors, based at the WACA Ground. They play in the Sheffield Shield, the Ford Ranger One Day Cup and the Twenty20 Big Bash domestic competitions. The WACA also hosts international Test and One Day International cricket matches. The Western Fury represent WA in the Women's National Cricket League.
Horse Racing
Horse racing is very popular with a metropolitan race meeting every Saturday, fortnightly mid week meetings and weekly meetings at one of the major country centres. The Perth Cup is the state's premier race held each New Years Day at Ascot Racecourse. The metropolitan tracks are Ascot for the Spring and Summer months and Belmont Park during the wetter Autumn and Winter months.
Harness racing is held all year round at Gloucester Park, with additional meeting in country areas. Greyhound racing is held at Cannington Raceway,Mandurah and Northam.
Many country towns have a racecourse and a major race day each year. These meetings are often the centrepiece of the communities activities, coinciding with other local events.
Rugby League
Western Australia's first rugby league team to play in a national competition were the Western Reds, who played in the 1995 and 1996 seasons of the Australian Rugby League. In 1997 they changed their name to the Perth Reds and joined the Super League as inaugural members.
Despite showing some promise (particularly in the underage competitions) the Reds were not invited to join the National Rugby League in 1998 as part of the agreement to end the Super League war. In 2006 the Western Australia Rugby League resurrected the team as the WA Reds to compete in the Jim Beam Cup from 2008, with a view to entering the National Rugby League competition in 2012.[3] Their home ground is Members Equity Stadium.
Soccer
Perth Glory competes in the national A-League. In the previous National Soccer League, Perth Glory was a relatively successful team by winning the last titles of the NSL (2002-03 & 2003-04). Perth Glory's home games are played at Members Equity Stadium, although they have played finals at Subiaco Oval.
