Well, we have 9. Geelong gets most of it's support from the Geelong area.
9 teams is not too many, each Melbourne clubs helps to generate a significant amount of income for the other clubs, Collingwood doesn't need 50k members because the interest in games by supporters of both home and away teams means that usually you get a good crowd for Melbourne games.
You can say our membership base is low at around 25k, but in 05 we averaged over 40k attendances for games in Melbourne, a reasonable year on-field.
Interstate teams need a high level of support because little is coming from the away supporters. There is little difference between a club that has 40k members to one that averages 40k for home games.
The main advantage interstate clubs have is the availability of low maintenance stadiums to play games at. AFL recognise that is a major issue in Victoria and one that is mostly responsible for creating a significant difference in profitability.
What does Sydney or even Brisbane bring to the table that a Melbourne club does not?
Of the $1.4 billion generated by the AFL over the next 5 years you want to take a stab at how much of that revenue is generated in Victoria compared to anywhere else?
Sydney and Brisbane have been receiving $10 million every year in game development grants which are in effect free promotion work for those club, Swans are on the SDF after all these years of support, TV stations are forced to play games there, tell me what it adds to the competition as a whole other than just another team playing somewhere else?
North never tried to establish Canberra as a new home so I am not sure what you are getting at. Our games there were a good opportunity for Canberra to show that they wanted to see more footall and wanted their own team in the future. They let themselves down really because as time went on it was becoming less and less feasible to play games there.
The advantage we get at the Gold Coast are lights so the ability to play on Saturday Nights. That is better promotion, they have greater corporate and promotional opportunities there and they have a larger population.
Gold Coast had their own team, it went broke, as did all major sporting clubs there. Us playing games there gives them the opportunity to build up football, build better facilities and grow the support for the game. But it is a pipe dream that they will be able to support a club there in the near future.
If they do not embrace clubs wishing to help them develop the sport there then they definitely do not deserve a team of their own there.