Geelong issued with $77,500 fine over multiple third-party payment breachesAn extensive audit from the AFL over a six-year period has found a series of serious infringements.
By Mitch Cleary
7news
8 Oct 2025Geelong have been hit with a $77,500 fine for a series of administrative breaches centred around third-party payments after an AFL audit spanning six seasons.
The Cats will have $40,000 of the fine suspended pending further breaches, however will be forced to undergo tighter restrictions over the next two-year period.
As part of a general audit in 2024, the AFL identified potential compliance issues surrounding the Cats, prompting further investigation to assess the 2019-2024 seasons.
The AFL discovered multiple examples of non-disclosures and late disclosures of deals between Cats personnel and third parties across the AFL and AFLW programs.
They include failure to highlight deals with players’ personal sponsors that sit outside the club’s salary cap and soft cap.
However, Geelong were found not to have breached the AFL’s total player payments limit or any player movement rules, simply that arrangements hadn’t been disclosed in a timely manner or, in some cases, at all.
As part of the stricter enforcements over the next two years, the Cats will be subject to expanded procedures with the AFL around compliance on all third-party dealings.
The Cats have also committed to more concrete internal governance protocols between club employees and third parties.
It’s understood Cats superstar Bailey Smith’s high-profile deal with personal and club sponsor Cotton On was not a major subject of the audit given his arrival at the Cats was ahead of the 2025 season.
His move was ticked off as protocol at the time by the league, but future arrangements with Smith and Cotton On will be subject to the Cats’ tighter restrictions around third-party deals.
The AFL says it undertook the process with assistance from EY Australia.
It was led internally by AFL general counsel Stephen Meade, GM of clubs and scheduling David Grossman, and head of salary cap and soft cap Jennifer Macmillan.
The AFL said its GM of clubs — finance, performance and growth, and former Cats employee, Simon Kelleher, had no involvement in the investigation.
Kelleher joined the AFL in early 2025 after more than six-and-a-half years with the Cats.
In a statement on Wednesday, the AFL said: “The AFL acknowledges the club’s cooperation in voluntarily agreeing to the conduct of the extended audit process and the manner of its participation in that process.
“The AFL also foreshadows that, on account of learnings arising from the conduct of the extended audit, improvements will be introduced across all clubs in due course to education with respect to both AFL and AFLW TPP limit and soft cap limit rules, the application of those rules to club associates and third parties, and with respect to the AFL’s compliance and audit activities on those rules.”
Geelong CEO Steve Hocking responded soon after.
“The club and its personnel have fully cooperated throughout the audit process and worked closely with the AFL and EY to transparently provide access, documentation and information as required,” he said.
“We acknowledge the outcome of the audit has confirmed the club has not breached AFL TPP limits nor the AFL player movement rules.
“We also acknowledge the audit identified a number of non-disclosure items over the six-year period. We accept the AFL’s sanctions for these errors and will strengthen our education and governance processes moving forward.
https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/geelong-issued-with-77500-fine-over-multiple-third-party-payment-breaches-c-20276178
