SYDNEY - Nine Australian Rules fans have been slapped with lifetime bans for racially abusing players under tough new rules intended to stamp out the scourge, the game’s governing body said on Saturday.

Australia’s most popular spectator sport, similar to Ireland’s Gaelic football, has a long history of racist incidents targeting Aboriginal and other Indigenous players.

The issue reared its head again in recent weeks, with multiple players calling out abuse both on social media and among crowds in stadiums.

The Australian Football League (AFL) said nine lifetime bans – men aged between 18 and 72 – had been handed out so far this season, with five more cases being investigated.

Those sanctioned can apply for an official review, but only after a minimum of five years.

Before this season, anyone found guilty of racist behaviour faced only a three-year ban.

AFL executive general manager for inclusion and social policy Tanya Hosch said the more severe punishment was appropriate.

“We have been clear, there is absolutely no place for this behaviour in our sport and in society in general and we want people to know that if they behave in this way, they are not welcome at the footy again,” she said in a statement.

Hosch added that a full-time employee would be appointed specifically to investigate racism and vilification at both the elite and community levels of the game.

“The work will not stop in this space and having a full-time resource committed to investigating incidents is going to assist greatly in our response at all levels of the game,” she said.

The AFL began proactively tackling racism in the 1990s, adopting a policy that made it an offence for players or officials to insult someone because of their race, religion, ethnicity, colour, nationality or background.

But problems among fans and in the online space persist. AFP