Background

The Australian Football League (AFL), which organises Australia’s top professional Australian rules competition, is constantly seeking new methods for engaging fans at big events. During the 2026 Footy Fest, the fan area outside the stadium attracted large numbers of both football supporters and music fans, since Kylie Minogue’s homecoming show was the main attraction. In order to celebrate her return to Melbourne, the event organisers established Team Kylie, a pop-up shop offering exclusive clothing and official merchandise throughout the weekend.

The store required a structure that could be seen from the festival entrances. The organisers wanted a massive inflatable football made to the exact proportions of an official Sherrin and finished in the iridescent pink characteristic of the Kylie product line. It was to be used as a photo backdrop for fans, content creators and TV crews, and should combine the spirit of footy with the energy of a pop concert in a single item. The AFL Marketing Team asked Giant Inflatables to design and fabricate it.

Design and fabrication

The most difficult aspect was the final stage; it is hard to achieve a metallic finish on an inflated surface and the colour had to match the Team Kylie range according to the specific PMS references. For this reason the fabrication team selected a special type of metallic leather which stretches sufficiently to allow clean inflation while still maintaining a high-gloss surface.

The digital patterning applied to each panel ensured that the tension was evenly distributed throughout the envelope, which in turn kept the surface smooth and free from wrinkles and positioned the Sherrin and Team Kylie graphics precisely where they needed to be.

The completed ball was 8 metres tall and had a weight of 95 kg; its pink surface captured light coming in from all directions, changing from a soft rose colour to bright metallic reflections as the day progressed, and at the same time mirrored the crowds and the shifting sky which surrounded it.

Following the event, the skin designed for the event can be taken off and the inflatable bladder can then be used again in future sports marketing campaigns. When on site the team got the ball up quickly and fastened it with heavy-duty ground anchors.

Result

The football was made the focal point of the Team Kylie store and became a significant feature for the entire area. It retained its shiny appearance in the full sunlight and soon enough became the preferred background for fan photographs, content created by creators and news reports. The main results were:

• a highly visible landmark across the festival grounds
• a smooth metallic finish with no wrinkles or distortion
• stable inflation and structure for the full event
• an exact match to official brand colours and merchandise graphics

The correct material coupled with careful design turned the item of footy equipment into the festival’s most recognizable feature.