Expansion 20th AFL team location

[Purple Suit]

You make good points, but you’re also suggesting the possibility of ACT, WA3, SA3, and maybe NT, NSW and QLD 3.

As you said, you’d have to merge two VIC clubs to cover all of that. That would make it 24. Supposing NZ is a bad idea, if you think NT is one day viable, why not NQ? There’s good growth potential in Cairns and Mackay. Or is NQ where you’d put a third QLD side if the Lions and Suns become strong off field?

I'm not sure NT is viable unless they end up with a population of 500K in Darwin and they get funding for an indoor stadium. That'll be 40-50 years on current growth rates.

WA3 - Now

ACT, SA3 - 15 years

NSW3, QLD3 - Once GC & GWS are financially independent because the league has figured out how to convert rugby fans to AFL and the sport has taken over the entire country.

NZ - Never unless the program above works in NZ.

I'd be aiming for 22 teams max so it can be 21 games play each other once and 2 rivalry rounds for the SA/WA teams. Big 4 in Vic would need to rotate their double ups across two seasons.

 

[Coolangatta]

I'm not sure NT is viable unless they end up with a population of 500K in Darwin and they get funding for an indoor stadium. That'll be 40-50 years on current growth rates.

WA3 - Now

ACT, SA3 - 15 years

NSW3, QLD3 - Once GC & GWS are financially independent because the league has figured out how to convert rugby fans to AFL and the sport has taken over the entire country.

NZ - Never unless the program above works in NZ.

I'd be aiming for 22 teams max so it can be 21 games play each other once and 2 rivalry rounds for the SA/WA teams. Big 4 in Vic would need to rotate their double ups across two seasons.

You’d have to relocate a couple of VIC clubs for NSW3 and QLD3 then.

 

[peetoo]

Put a team on the moon by the end of the decade.

No,atmosphere boom tish. You were seeding that response right.

 

[Canberra Pear]

ACT is still too early. It's basically like Tasmania without the state government backing it. You can't start another two drains on the comp while the last two drains are still there. It's next after WA3 and probably the same time as SA3 so there are 22 teams. Either that or time to merge two vic teams when ACT comes in 2040.

Why's the ACT too early? What numbers do we have to reach?

Gil mentioned a five or six year period of odd teams. That'd bring in Team 20 in 2033/34. Not far off 2040 by that point anyway.

 

[Cubs2Lions]

Why's the ACT too early? What numbers do we have to reach?

Gil mentioned a five or six year period of odd teams. That'd bring in Team 20 in 2033/34. Not far off 2040 by that point anyway.

The 20th team “probably” won’t enter the AFL until after the 2032 Olympics, so as you mentioned to, it’ll most likely be between that 2033-2035 mark unless the AFL want to rush expansion (which is highly possible).

 

[Canberra Pear]

The 20th team “probably” won’t enter the AFL until after the 2032 Olympics, so as @CanberraPear mentioned to, it’ll most likely be between that 2033-2035 mark unless the AFL want to rush expansion (which is highly possible).

I hadn't even considered the Olympics, but that's a good point. Especially as they'll probably be on during the AFL season.

Would be a shame for Team 20 to compete with the Olympics for buzz in its first year.

 

[Engimal v3]

North Melbourne 2

 

[austinnn]

International team, home game at a different city each round

 

[Walshawk]

The reality is that it would end up purely indigenous players who they are able to retain, which would be an interesting novelty at the start but I doubt they would ever be able to build a side good enough to compete.

Only a minority of Indigenous players actually come from NT, and very few from Darwin. The vast majority come from WA, SA and Victoria. Not sure they would want to live in Darwin either. Also, AFL people think that Darwin is 99% AFL like Adelaide, Melbourne or Tassie. The reality is that NRL is also big there. NRL games in Darwin draw comparable crowds, and there is actually a greater % of indigenous players than the AFL. A NT team is simply not even close to being viable.

 

[99cents]

Put a team on the moon by the end of the decade.

'We do these things not because they are easy...'

 

[99cents]

North Melbourne 2

'The Boneshiners' sounds pretty deadly

 

[Walshawk]

We don't need a bye to have 19 teams.

Please explain.

 

[Remboy]

Please explain.

One team plays two games each weekend. Simple.

 

[Walshawk]

One team plays two games each weekend. Simple.

Genius

 

[peetoo]

One team plays two games each weekend. Simple.

Especially if they are both home games
Would work for gather round

 

[btdg]

Please explain.

Stop thinking in 'rounds' and just schedule matches across the 26 or 27 weeks.

As an example, you could have started 2023 with (including imaginary Tassie)

• monday night (pre Australia day public holiday) = GF replay
• all other teams play
• one of the GF teams plays Sunday for the second time.

Just use the odd Monday (even Tuesday) game and 10 day breaks to give teams a rolling fixture across the year. Some teams will have a weekend where they don't play - for example jumping from Monday to the following Thursday and I guess that is technically a 'bye', but you could start to plan around those a bit more. 10 day breaks after travelling to/from Perth, for example, shorter breaks when staying home.

It would mean some Monday games but by the time you factor in public holidays there's already quite a few. But otherwise not a huge amount changes, just a bit more flexibility and openness (particularly in giving someone two games in 'round 1').

 

[Walshawk]

Stop thinking in 'rounds' and just schedule matches across the 26 or 27 weeks.

As an example, you could have started 2023 with (including imaginary Tassie)

• monday night (pre Australia day public holiday) = GF replay
• all other teams play
• one of the GF teams plays Sunday for the second time.

Just use the odd Monday (even Tuesday) game and 10 day breaks to give teams a rolling fixture across the year. Some teams will have a weekend where they don't play - for example jumping from Monday to the following Thursday and I guess that is technically a 'bye', but you could start to plan around those a bit more. 10 day breaks after travelling to/from Perth, for example, shorter breaks when staying home.

It would mean some Monday games but by the time you factor in public holidays there's already quite a few. But otherwise not a huge amount changes, just a bit more flexibility and openness (particularly in giving someone two games in 'round 1').

So, you still have byes, you just don’t call them byes. I don’t see why byes are a problem anyway - we already have them. Agree to spread them out, but you want ‘rounds’ for other seasons as well - footy tips, fantasy, Rising Star, goal/mark of the week, etc.

 

[Blackhawk42]

Canberra/Riverina is actually intriguing as a concept considering the population catchment, the NSW representation and the fact it's already set up in popularity being below the Barassi line.

However, could a tri-city team (Canberra with games in Wagga and Albury) actually work from the perspective of creating a rusted on home-town fanbase?

Maybe better to revisit this one in 25 years time.

 

[Canberra Pear]

Canberra/Riverina is actually intriguing as a concept considering the population catchment, the NSW representation and the fact it's already set up in popularity being below the Barassi line.

However, could a tri-city team (Canberra with games in Wagga and Albury) actually work from the perspective of creating a rusted on home-town fanbase?

Maybe better to revisit this one in 25 years time.

If it's one we revisit in 25 years time, you can't guarantee the Barassi Line will be in the same place.

The Giants have to do a lot of heavy lifting with three games. The Raiders play full-time in Canberra, and have recently started playing an annual game in Wagga (with good crowds).

The best time to put in a Canberra team was forty years ago (and subsequent attempts since). The next best time is Team 20.

 

[lionshine]

Former AFL boss Demetriou backs Northern Territory club

https://nit.com.au/10-05-2023/5912/nt-afl

 

[Cubs2Lions]

Former AFL boss Demetriou backs Northern Territory club

https://nit.com.au/10-05-2023/5912/nt-afl

Remember everyone, this is the same guy that allowed Gold Coast and Western Sydney entry into the AFL competition before Tasmania or even Canberra (to a smaller extent).

 

[Remboy]

Collingwood will ask for a second team so they can play themselves at the G every week.

 

[whiskeytown]

Team 20:

Perth Sharks wearing royal blue with a black sash… reverse for the away/clash jumper

training out at Joondalup and playing out of Perth Stadium

All the infrastructure is there… stadium, talent pathways, training base etc

AFL could have this all up and running quicker than they could a Tassie team

 

[JohnZ]

Team 20:

Perth Sharks wearing royal blue with a black sash… reverse for the away/clash jumper

training out at Joondalup and playing out of Perth Stadium

All the infrastructure is there… stadium, talent pathways, training base etc

AFL could have this all up and running quicker than they could a Tassie team

Perth is a no brainer for a 3rd team.

From a broadcast perspective alone, it makes scheduling Friday double headers (2nd game at 7pm Perth/9pm East) and Sunday night games (5pm Perth/7pm East) much easier week in week out, which could both be Ch7 games if they wanted it. You would only need to play one of those timeslots each week, so 22 total. Minus 3-4 Sunday nights in interstate for PH eves (like Easter Sunday, Anzac Eve, KB eve), that's ~18/3 = ~6 per team, which still gives them 5 at other times like Saturday Arvo for example.

The talent and stadium are set. Just need to spend $20m on a training facility. Could enter the comp same year as Tassie which would eliminate the awkwardness of a team having a bye during gather round. Plus I'm sure the AFL has a clause in their contract with 7/fox to get extra money if a 10th game is introduced (which needs 2 new teams). That return on the $50m startup costs would be paid back in a year.

edit: Having two friday games also makes it easier to schedule Thursday games, as it gives you a pool of 6 teams on 6/7 day breaks for the next week. The AFLPA currently only allows one 5 day break per club which is what is limiting the scheduling of Thursday games.

 

[Coolangatta]

In no particular order:

Canberra Cobras, Perth Sharks, Southern Panthers, Northern Crocs (playing 3-4 extra away games at the Top End), New Zealand Rams; maybe South Sydney Saints and North Brisbane Kangaroos relocations, too.

24 teams, 23 rounds; that'd be my long-term goal.