Global Tiger Day 2025

Happy Global Tiger Day!

Celebrated annually, today is a day that has the aim of raising awareness for Tiger Conservation and the urgent need to protect tigers and their habitats.

We’re lucky to have the majestic tiger as our mascot and hopefully the work we are doing in this space is something that gives you another reason to be proud of our Club.

Wild tiger snapshot:

• Since Richmond Football Club was founded in 1885, over 90% of the worlds wild tiger population has disappeared, with 3 of the 9 subspecies of tigers already extinct
• The main threats facing wild tigers include poaching, the illegal wildlife trade (trading in tiger body parts), human wildlife conflict and habitat loss
• Currently there are approx. only 5,574 tigers left in the wild
• Whilst globally tiger numbers have increased in the last 5 years, tiger numbers in Southeast Asia continue to decline overall

How does Richmond support Tiger Conservation:

• Richmond first partnered with WWF Australia in 2018, with a goal of raising awareness on the plight of tigers in the wild
• In 2018 and 2019 players Nick Vlastuin, Jack Graham and Toby Nankervis travelled to Sumatra and India to learn about the challenges facing tigers and what is needed to help them survive
• In 2021 the Club created a tiger conservation membership, where $50 of the $65 membership goes towards funding staff for a tiger patrol unit in the Belum-Temengor Forest in Malaysia, whose job it is to remove poachers’ snares, disrupt poachers activity and monitor tiger numbers. With only around 150 individual Malayan tigers left, they are considered critically endangered
• In 2021 some of our amazing coterie members put together to fund Tiger Patrol Units over a 3-year period in Malaysia
• The tiger patrol units have proven to be effective, and from April to June this year, they patrolled 4,327 km by foot, motorbike, car and boat. The long-term employment of these units is critical, to prevent staff from becoming unemployed and being tempted to poach tigers in order to support their families.

What you can do to help:

• Sign up as a tiger conservation member, please visit Richmond FC | TIGER CONSERVATION
• Purchase forest-friendly products, like FSC-certified paper and wood products, certified sustainable palm oil and sustainable coffee
• Don’t purchase anything containing tiger parts when travelling overseas
• Don’t partake in photos with tigers or experiences where you can interact with tigers

Hear from Nick Vlastuin and Toby Nankervis as they discuss how YOU can help!