Soccer is played by 1.7 million Australians. Why is no one watching?

On any winter Sunday morning the Brunswick Zebras squeeze three matches an hour onto a single pitch as the young players navigate holes dug up by local dogs and sometimes large puddles. Despite the challenges, the Zebras – and the sport of soccer – are booming.

“We are full, and we are going to squeeze people in where we can,” said Zebras president and former local Labor state MP Carlo Carli.

In the past decade, the number of junior and senior teams at the Zebras has nearly doubled to 34 as they play across four sites in Melbourne’s inner north. Managing space and having adequate facilities is a significant challenge.

It is a similar story across the country. Soccer has more than 1.7 million participants through clubs or venues, according to AusPlay statistics – a net increase of nearly 250,000 players since 2016. It is…