AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon briefly tuned in to watch the NRL’s season opener in Las Vegas on Sunday and was impressed by what he saw, but he remains focused on his code’s growth in Australia.
Speaking in Sydney ahead of Thursday’s scheduled season opener between Brisbane and Geelong, Dillon said the AFL’s previous international fixtures had provided lessons on putting the game’s fans first.
“We’ve had games in New Zealand, we’ve had games in China,” Dillon said.
“To take a game outside of Australia, we want to make sure that it’s part of a broad strategy that is actually fan-first … we’ve got so much work to do and so much opportunity all around Australia, and that’s really the key focus for us.
“At the moment, we want to grow our crowds to over 10 million. We want to grow our participation from 600,000 to a million by 2033, so we’ve got a lot of work to do, and so much opportunity here in Australia.”
Andrew Dillon in Sydney ahead of the start of the AFL season.Credit: Getty Images
Collingwood’s US-born ruckman Mason Cox was also in Sydney and said he was impressed with the NRL’s attempts to crack the vast sporting market in his home country and hoped the AFL could follow suit in the future.
“It’s great to see Australian sport on the international stage and what they’re doing over there,” Cox said.
“Allegiant Stadium is big press for the NRL over there and for rugby [league] in the US, and you can definitely see the benefits of it … rugby [league] is going really well, being able to reach that international market, and hopefully AFL can invest in it to be able to do the same.”
A key part of the AFL’s strategy to achieve its ambitious goals for fans and participants is expanding its reach in the northern markets of Queensland and NSW.
If Cox was enthusiastic about the AFL’s potential visits to the United States, he trod a more diplomatic path when asked about how he and his teammates felt about travelling to play their opening round clash in western Sydney.
“Yeah, it’s good,” Cox said smiling and then taking a brief pause. “I think you’ll understand that by the look. It’s great to come up here. I love Sydney, it’s a beautiful place.”
When asked about Victorian fans missing out on early AFL action in favour of NSW and Queensland, Dillon pointed out that round one broke attendance records last year despite following the “opening round” fixtures, which were played in the northern states.
“Round one last year was the highest attended round that we’ve ever had in the history of the game,” Dillon said. “Over 410,000 people attended [last year].
“The week after [opening round] we’ve got Richmond and Carlton on the Thursday night, we’ve got Hawthorn and Essendon on the Friday, we’ve got Collingwood playing Port Adelaide, we’ve got Melbourne playing the Giants … so there’s going to be plenty of footy for people in Melbourne.”
AFL boss Andrew Dillon poses for a photo with Mitch Lewis of the Hawks, Will Hayward of the Swans, Jesse Hogan of the Giants and Mason Cox of the Magpies during the 2025 AFL opening round launch in Sydney.Credit: Getty Images
Dillon also said State of Origin could return as early as next year after receiving backing from the AFL’s club captains.
“We had an opening conversation with the club captains a couple of weeks back, and there was real excitement from the club captains,” Dillon said
“We saw it with the All Stars game, when the players and the clubs buy into the concept, well then everything goes and that’s how you end up with nearly 40,000 people watching that game and hundreds of thousands watching it on Foxtel and Kayo across the country.
“So if the clubs and the players get behind it, I think we absolutely could see it next year.”
Meanwhile, Sydney Swans forward Will Hayward says star midfielder Errol Gulden is recovering well from surgery on a fractured ankle sustained in a pre-season game against the Gold Coast Suns on Friday.
“He’s good, he’s out of surgery,” Hayward said. “I think once that’s all done, it’s all sunk in now, and he’s in touch with reality.
“He’s super professional. He’s already turning his mind to what he can do to get back and help the team.
“He’s a great leader about the football club as well, so he’ll be having an impact without stepping on the field.”
