St Kilda legend Nick Riewoldt has condemned several radical fixture proposals discussed during Monday's meeting between AFL executives and club CEOs on the Gold Coast. The league is preparing for Tasmania's entry as the 19th team in 2028, which will force a major restructuring of the season.
Current Fixture Structure Under Scrutiny
With an odd number of teams, at least one team will have a bye each week, and the total number of rounds must change from the current 25. Among the options presented to club bosses were reducing the season to 20 games with a separate three-week tournament potentially featuring a 20th team of state league stars. Another proposal involved every team playing 20 games, then splitting the competition into four groups to determine the top 10. A 24-game season with six double-ups and two neutral rounds (including Gather Round) was also floated.
Tom Morris reported on The Agenda Setters: “There’s some wacky suggestions being put forward for when Tasmania comes in.”
Riewoldt's Strong Criticism
Riewoldt supported the idea of a 20-game season but dismissed the in-season tournament concept. “A 20-game season makes sense to me. An in-play tournament, garbage,” he said. “A team of state league stars. I mean, who’s going to support that?”
The fixture is already a contentious issue, with debates over which teams play twice and the timing of matches often sparking controversy.
Coaches Weigh In
Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell chose to stay out of the future debate but noted that playing everyone once before double-ups made the most “sense.” He also highlighted the financial implications of shortening the season. “Playing everyone once and then having something after that makes a lot of sense to me for the fairness,” Mitchell said on The Agenda Setters. “But I think every person at this panel gets paid because of the revenue that comes into the game and that’s because of the people that watch it on TV and if you make the season shorter it makes every one of us take a pay cut.”
Looking Ahead
The AFL will continue consultations before finalising the fixture structure for 2028. The league must balance competitive fairness with financial viability as it expands to 19 teams.
