AFL to expand to 18 clubs

[mightytiges]

So the AFL are going to find 60,000 new club members from scratch in development states within 4 years. Dreaming  .

[Hellenic Tiger]

They have to be joking MT. In Northern States like Qld membership has dropped off b/c Brisbane are not winning premierships and the teams performances have been on the wane in the last 2-3 years. Same will happen in NSW if the Swans have a couple of years of toil for little reward outside the top 8. That's the problem with QLD NSW once success has gone people jump off the bandwagon and will continue to follow the primary sport there eg Union and League.
Same with us here if the Storm were like the Bears and won 5 games a season crowds here would be mediocre at best. Another Vladimir, Anderson pipedream to waste money resources and time at the expense of the Victorian footy fan.

[mightytiges]

Another Vladimir, Anderson pipedream to waste money resources and time at the expense of the Victorian footy fan.

Yep twiddledee and twiddledum have no idea HT74. Like the AFL wanting to take control of all levels of Victorian football (hence the stupid name change to "AFL Victoria") and run football in Victoria like they do in NSW/QLD. So now the way to run a sport according to these idiots is to use the same strategies you use in development states to run and overrule football in the 150 year old heartland. It's a freaking joke.

[mightytiges]

Demetriou is in dreamland if he thinks finding and adding 88 new players will only have a small minimal effect on the player pool.

Although he said 2012 was only when they would offer new licences and not introduce the two teams I still hope the RFC will watch carefully to have our best kids signed up.

On the positive side, the contribution slice we get from the new licence fees should wipe out any debts we have. IIRC Port payed $5-6m in 1997. The new fees should be daylight bigger than that figure in 4 years time going by the increases in other areas such as the tv rights, sponsorships, memberships, etc.

[one-eyed]

The next TV Rights deal with 18 clubs would be worth $1 billion.

http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/afl-1-billion-from-new-competition/2008/02/18/1203190740414.html

[one-eyed]

Our Prez's view on expanding to 18 clubs

Richmond president Gary March said he was troubled by "the significant lack of data about the sustainability of AFL sides in either of those markets".

http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/clubs-draw-battle-lines-on-afl/2008/02/19/1203190824811.html

[bushranger]

I think that if these dopes are serious about making it a national competition.
they should be looking at placing or making a team in Tasmania first of and then the NT. and this would make it a national comp.
I would love to see a team arise from both these places. Even if we moved over there we could be called the Tasmanian Tigers.
Just a real thought I had.

[mightytiges]

This expansion is not though about making the comp a truly national league in terms of having teams in every state/territory. This is more about increasing exposure in new markets whether that be crowds, tv ratings, etc to attract more and larger sponsorships and more $$$ for the sport to keep growing and maintain its No 1 position. Tassie is already a Aussie Rules following state even without its own team in the AFL so the grow potential is limited in the eyes of the AFL.

[bushranger]

Thank MT. But I would love to see a team from Tassie in the comp. I really think that it would be viable over there. But I do understand what you have said.

[one-eyed]

Here's an article from the Age today bushranger putting forward Tassie's case for their own team

The forgotten state
Peter Hanlon | February 23, 2008

http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/the-forgotten-state/2008/02/22/1203467388110.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1

[mightytiges]

Thank MT. But I would love to see a team from Tassie in the comp. I really think that it would be viable over there. But I do understand what you have said.

I would love them to have a team too and I agree with Tim Lane that the AFL's reasons for choosing West Sydney over Tassie is taking Tassie for granted and a state the AFL can fall back on.

I guess the concerns about a Tassie team is the North-South divide and modernising the infrastructure. The team would need to play out of the more populated Hobart (would Launcestonians accept that and travel down to Hobart?). Tassie would also have to build a new ground which may even have to be a Dome with a roof given the cold wintery weather as someone mentioned on 3aw today. If Tassie can solve those issues then say if you have a Vic team relocate then you'd think with say 10k Vic members and 25k Tassie members plus sponsorships from the Tassie Government (they put $16m into the Hawks over 5 years so why not a Tassie side) and maybe a brewery like Cascade the money would be there to sustain an AFL club. It can be done but it would need the support of all parties (AFL, Tassie government, putting local rivalries aside) involved and right now the AFL themselves aren't interested and the Tassie Government are in bed with Hawthorn until 2012.

[one-eyed]

It's doesn't say what the concern is but Richmond has put a question to the AFL about the league expansion....

All club presidents are invited to view a "sealed section" of the AFL's expansion blueprint at the league's Docklands headquarters at 1.30pm tomorrow. This is believed to contain commercially sensitive broadcast and revenue projections.

A meeting between the presidents and AFL hierarchy is scheduled to follow at 2.30pm, with the itinerary devoted almost entirely to national expansion.

At the meeting, McGuire will present questions to the AFL on behalf of the clubs. The list is understood to include questions from Collingwood, Melbourne, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide, Sydney and Richmond and Brisbane.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23359479-5012432,00.html

[one-eyed]

The news says the existing clubs have given the go ahead for 2 new clubs.

Ch 10 said there's already a Gold Coast consortium based around Southport Football Club.

[one-eyed]

Clubs back plan to create new teams in Gold Coast and Sydney
March 13, 2008 06:27pm

AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick says plans to create new teams in NSW and on the Gold Coast have won the unanimous support of the 16 clubs.

AFL bosses met with presidents of the 16 clubs today to set out the league's case for the two expansion clubs, on what Fitzpatrick said was an "historic day" for the competition.

"The clear message from the 16 clubs was to get going ... don't waste any time, do it," Fitzpatrick said.

He said there was also a strong push by the clubs to have both new teams introduced at the same time rather than have a temporary period as a 17-team competition.

He said the AFL had put forward 2012 as the timetable for the two new clubs to come into the AFL but the clubs had urged the league to move more quickly.

"We had quite a debate abo ut that," Fitzpatrick said.

"I think the view from the meeting was we might not be aggressive enough.

"We've suggested 2012 and I don't think we'd move away from that but there was a feeling in the room we could be more aggressive."

AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou also revealed that the league was already well advanced in discussions with a Gold Coast-based consortium, who he said included local club the Southport Sharks.

He said the AFL would be dealing exclusively with that group for the next few months.

Demetriou said the AFL had been able to convince the clubs that the cost to the competition of not moving into the proposed areas would be greater than the cost of setting up the new teams.

He said the way the new teams would sign their players was yet to be worked out, but the AFL had put forward some proposals involving draft selections and priority access to players.

Geelong president Frank Costa said the clubs had backed the plan because they realised a national competition needed new teams in those states and they could not afford to lose ground to other football codes.

"If we want to truly be national, which we do in the AFL ... then we have got to have two clubs in NSW and Queensland and play football every weekend in those states," Costa said.

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,23369475-19742,00.html

[mightytiges]

I still reckon it's a pipedream without relocating Melbourne-based clubs north. Where are the 30,000 supporters/members going to come from especially in Sydney?! The AFL will have to use $25-30m out of the tv rights to prop up each new club. I can see another Bears-Fitzroy merger down the track when one or two of the Melbourne-based clubs falls over without AFL assistance.