Why are AFL Goal Posts White?

Most people would be familiar with the Americans' iconic yellow NFL goal posts, however almost all goal posts across the football codes in Australia are white. It begs the question - why are AFL goal posts white?

Unlike soccer where FIFA stipulates that goal posts must be white, the AFL has no such written specification. In South Australia, behind posts used to be (and in some places still are) red, however this tradition is disappearing as the AFL insists every scoring post be white.

For a brief period during an MCG grandstand construction in 2003, the top 2m of the goal posts were coloured "VIP red" to improve visibility against the cranes and light towers. But blink and you missed this anomaly and now the home of the AFL Grand Final boasts PILA's gloss white UV stabilised powdercoated goal posts.

Ultimately, white offers the best contrast against most backgrounds making the goal posts easier to see. For elements that need to blend into the background like barrier netting or sightscreens, black is used. This makes sense as black absorbs light while white reflects it. When shadowing occurs due to overcast weather or artificial lighting, dark objects are camouflaged.

White has traditionally been a readily accessible colour, is colour-matched easily, it does not fade, and it reflects light making it highly visible and hence the perfect colour for AFL goal posts.