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Kelli Louise Underwood OAM (born 1977) is an Australian radio and television sports journalist and sportscaster specialising in Australian rules football, netball and tennis.She was the first woman to call an Australian Football League match on television and radio.
Underwood was a host of ABC's Offsiders and a regular panellist on the Fox Sports program The Back Page. She also calls AFL and AFLW football on Fox Footy and ABC Grandstand.
Underwood is part of the ABC Radio Grandstand team, calling AFL games mainly on Friday nights.
Underwood made history by becoming the first woman to call an AFL match on television, joining Tim Lane in commentary of the 2009 NAB Cup game between Geelong and the Adelaide Crows. She called her first AFL premiership season match on 18 July 2009—the Round 16 match between Geelong and Melbourne at Kardinia Park with Anthony Hudson. Underwood commentated for matches for Network Ten throughout 2009–10, both in the commentary box and at ground level through until the end of 2011.
Underwood was a host and commentator of ANZ Championship Netball from 2008 until 2016, calling for Network Ten and later Fox Sports.
In 2013, Underwood joined the revamped Fox Sports panel show The Back Page, which she continues to appear alongside host Tony Squires. Her work on The Back Page and her interview program Breaking Ground earned her two ASTRA Awards, including the 2015 award for Most Outstanding Female Presenter.
In 2017, she called the AFLW on Fox Footy; being the station head caller for the competition, her role expanded in 2020 when she returned calling AFL men's football on television.
In February 2018, Underwood replaced Gerard Whateley as host of Offsiders after he resigned from the ABC. In November 2024, Underwood announced her resignation from the show with her last show on 1 December.
Throughout her career, especially early on, Underwood has been subject to a large amount of criticism from viewers, which has been described as "disproportionate" and "gendered".
Categories: 1977 Births, Australian Rules Football Commentators, Australian Women Radio Presenters, Australian Television Presenters, Australian Women Television Presenters, Australian Women Journalists, Living People, Australian Lgbtq Broadcasters, Australian Lgbtq Journalists, Australian Netball Commentators, Recipients Of The Medal Of The Order Of Australia
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