Declaring the eighth AFLW season the “best ever”, league boss Nicole Livingstone has announced she will be stepping down after Sunday’s grand final.
The former Olympic swimmer said the “the time feels right” and she left with the game in a different and better place than when she started.
Livingstone joined the AFL in November 2017 after the inaugural AFLW season and has overseen the significant growth of the AFLW competition form its original eight teams to 10 in 2019, then 14 in 2020, before expanding to all 18 clubs being represented in the national competition in the seventh season last year.
“When I sat with (former chief executive) Gill (McLachlan) and Steve Hocking and Andrew Dillon in 2017 before taking on this role, we spoke about aspirations for AFLW,” Livingstone said.
“We wanted a league that was pride of place in the Australian sporting landscape and was respected for what was being created.
“We wanted to create an opportunity for every one of our 18 clubs to experience what having an AFLW program would bring to their club; athletically, culturally and commercially. Most importantly, I wanted opportunities for girls and women to play, coach, umpire, administer and even broadcast our game.
“Australian football looks different from when I started. Women involved in all areas of our game is now normal and no longer a pleasant surprise.
“My support and advocacy for AFLW won’t change, and I’m looking forward to what the future of the competition brings. Thank you to Dills, Laura (Kane), everyone at the AFL for the opportunity to play a role in a sport that means so much to so many people.”
Livingstone gave special praise to the players whose numbers have swelled during her time in charge.
“The ones before my time, the ones during, and the ones yet to come, your drive, your passion, your relentless push to make our competition the best it can be is something I have admired and respected. You are an inspiration to everyone,” she said.
AFL boss Dillon said Livingstone had left the AFL “in the strongest position it has ever been”.
“When Nicole first joined the AFL, we had just completed one season with eight teams, a seven-game season and only one final. We had a groundswell of support and Nic turned that energy into a growing, sustainable and successful national women’s competition that we see today,” he said.
“Women and girls’ participation in Australian football has surged since the inception of AFLW. We now have more girls playing, coaching, umpiring and administrating our game and Nic has played a big part in that growth.
“On behalf of everyone at the AFL, we thank Nic for her leadership and her passionate advocacy for our AFLW competition and more broadly women’s footy. Nic leaves our code having made a lasting impact. We wish her all the best and we look forward to seeing what she does next.”
