Richmond, Carlton commit to 10-year gate-share agreementafl.com.au
2 March 2018History of the season opener The history of the season opener between rivals Richmond and Carlton.
Richmond and Carlton Football Clubs have re-introduced their gate-share agreement for the next 10 years, as a commitment to continue building the traditional season-opener match as a major event on the AFL calendar.
Since 2007, the clubs have faced off 10 times in the AFL season-opener blockbuster, with the average crowd for the match just under 75,000.
“Both Richmond and Carlton have invested heavily in building this game into a major event, and this announcement further underlines that joint commitment and investment for the future,” said Richmond CEO Brendon Gale.
“Both clubs love playing in the marquee match, and we know our members and fans love it, too.”
“This traditional season-opener has been an enormous success, and we’re looking forward to working closely with Carlton to continue to grow it further.”
Carlton CEO Cain Liddle welcomed the new decade-long agreement between both clubs.
“It’s a great privilege for Carlton and Richmond to be given the opportunity to open the AFL season each year, and we are excited to formalise our shared commitment to growing what is one of the AFL’s greatest rivalries,” Liddle said.
In the event that the clubs play each other only once in an AFL season, as is the case this year, the clubs have agreed on a fixed-fee return for the away team.
http://www.afl.com.au/news/2018-03-02/tigers-blues-to-split-the-gate-again