‘Everybody looks better in black and white’: Meet ‘Swoop Luke’, an online favourite for Magpies fans

It was the soul-crushing five-point loss to West Coast in the 2018 grand final that led Collingwood fan Luke Caruana to create his social media fan account, “Swoop Luke”.

Caruana, who has 13,000 followers on Instagram (one of the largest AFL footy fan accounts), also uploads weekly videos on his YouTube page providing commentary on matches and predictions, including for AFLW and netball.

Pies supporter Luke Caruana, aka ‘Swoop Luke’, has one of the most followed footy fan accounts on Instagram.Credit:Simon Schluter

The 30-year-old content creator has even got the nod of approval from the Pies themselves, featuring interviews with Collingwood vice president Paul Licuria and star midfielder Taylor Adams on his YouTube page last year.

“The 2018 grand final we [Collingwood] lost with pretty much the last kick of the game to West Coast and that really sent me. It got to a point where my family said, ‘You need a bit of an outlet’,” he says.

“The social media accounts are just a love letter to Collingwood really, and a way for me to document that.”

Caruana, a Legends member at the club, has attended every Magpies match played in Melbourne this season, and Pies fans regularly approach him for photos.

The Pies lost the 2018 grand final by five points to West Coast.Credit:Eddie Jim

“Mum loves it when they [Collingwood fans] come up and want a photo with me. She gets very excited,” he says.

Despite his loyalty to Collingwood FC, Caruana doesn’t come from a family of Collingwood supporters; in fact, his family have become fans because of him.

“I wasn’t born into a footballing family,” he says. “My grandparents came from Malta. Dad growing up in the ’70s and ’80s kind of tried getting into it [AFL], but with non-English-speaking parents, he couldn’t really go to games,” he says.

“I started getting into it [AFL] in primary school and more in high school. Now, my parents and grandparents are all Collingwood supporters.”

As for why Collingwood became his team of choice, Caruana jokes: “Because everyone looks better in black and white.

“We’re a very open and inclusive fan base. We have Joe Blow down the street who has been a Collingwood supporter for 80 years, and his great-great-grandfather used to play for the club, or someone that’s only been a Collingwood supporter for five years. It’s a great mix,” he says.

While Caruana has made a name for himself online he credits English Premier League fan accounts for paving the way.

“No one was really doing it [AFL fan accounts] and I follow a lot of the EPL and there’s always fan accounts for them,” he says. “When I was starting out, I reached out to Esteemed Kompany [a Manchester City fan account] and asked him for some tips.”

Esteemed Kompany founder Steve McInerney, who created a popular Manchester City fan account, appears on Sky Sports UK.Credit:Youtube

Currently, there are only a handful of dedicated AFL fan accounts, including Carlton account @blueabroadofficial and Port Adelaide FC fan account @portpear.

However, overseas the market is much bigger and established with accounts like the long-running AFTV (formerly Arsenal Fan Televison) and Esteemed Kompany gaining popularity with EPL fans. AFTV boasts close to 1.5 million subscribers and Esteemed Kompany has 60,000.

The popularity of these accounts has even led to real-world gigs for their founders, Steve McInerney and Robbie Lyle, who have both appeared as guest commentators on mainstream television including the BBC and SkySports, something Caruana says Australian media should get behind.

“I think that the Australian media can really harness the power of these fan accounts and social media to include the fans [in commentary],” he says.

“ I think it can really propel the game because young people don’t really know [commentators like] Gerard Healy, they don’t really know what he’s going on, but they want to still feel a part of the conversation.”

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