Australian rapper Briggs has taken another dig at the Melbourne Storm after the club made the controversial decision to dial back on Welcome to Country ceremonies in 2025, according to reports.
The Daily Telegraph claims that the NRL side could instead acknowledge the diversity of its players next season by paying a nod to their international cultures and backgrounds.
Storm looked to clarify reports on Sunday afternoon claiming that they were ‘ditching’ the ceremony by releasing a statement insisting the footy club would not be scrapping Welcome to Country ceremonies entirely.
‘Melbourne Storm is not “ditching” its Welcome to Country or Acknowledgments as suggested by recent media,’ the statement read. ‘We will continue these acknowledgements at culturally significant celebrations.’
‘The strength and success of our Club is built on many cultures and communities, and our engagement with them has helped us to reflect the differing views on how we best support and represent each group.’
This year’s minor premiers added: ‘We will continue to talk to these communities and seek their input to find the most appropriate and respectful way to acknowledge and celebrate culture, including how we best acknowledge First Nations people.
Australian rapper Briggs has taken a dig at Melbourne Storm after they made the call to dial back on Welcome to Country ceremonies
Storm have clarified online that they will not be scrapping Welcome to Country and will honour the ceremony at certain culturally significant events
The prominent footy club will continue with the ceremony for the NRL’s Indigenous round
‘The Club will continue to support First Nations community groups and organisations, as it has done for many years, delivering programs and initiatives that promote positive health, welfare and education outcomes.’
It is understood that the club will still hold Welcome to Country ceremonies during culturally significant events, including the NRL’s Indigenous round.
But the news has attracted plenty of discussion online, with Australian rapper Briggs hitting out at Storm both on Twitter and on Facebook.
The 38-year-old rapper first wrote on X: ‘See, the cost of living means cultural recognition is just not viable in this economy. There’s a price for cultural inclusion. Storm could do it if they wanted; if anyone knows how to work a salary cap – it’s them.’
He’d later follow up with another post on Facebook.
‘Unsurprising & underwhelming,’ Briggs wrote. ‘What’s your identity @Storm? I could care less about pageantry but the thin veil of respect is finally gone.
‘We revealed a part owner $175,000 donated to the NO campaign. What’s a welcome worth when these are the people who are behind the decisions & identity of the club?’
Other social media users sided with Briggs’ comments, writing: ‘Another reason not to renew my Storm membership.’
Briggs took to both X and Facebook to publish two separate comments on the news
Brendan Kerin, a cultural educator with Sydney ‘s Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council, gave a blunt Welcome to Country at the AFL which he said was not for white people
Welcome to Country and Acknowledgement of Country ceremonies have been a hot topic for councils around the country
But in recent times, some have been left divided over the ceremony.
Last week, the Juru People of North Queensland voted to ban Welcome to Country ceremonies on their land.
‘The elders have had enough,’ Randall Ross, a spokesperson said on 4BC Mornings with Bill McDonald.
‘It is being abused and they want to put a stop to it.’
Aboriginal elder Uncle Brendan Kerin also sparked renewed attention in September for his comments ahead of the Giants and Lions AFL semifinal in Sydney, in which he claimed the ceremonies were ‘not to cater there to cater for white people’.
‘A Welcome to Country is not a welcome to Australia (but) a welcome to the lands you’ve gathered on. It is not a ceremony we’ve invented to cater for white people. It’s a ceremony we’ve been doing for 250,000 years – plus BC. And the BC stands for Before Cook,’ he said.
That has prompted some to give their verdict on the matter, with former Geelong star, Matthew Stokes, stating: ‘Welcome to Country should be a beautiful, respectful ceremony that unites us all as we reflect on Australia’s extraordinary history which stretches long before white settlement.
‘Instead, it’s becoming divisive and, to be honest, I can understand why many people are confused by its purpose, as the AFL finals coverage broadcasts the ceremonies to millions of football fans.’
