The AFL will appoint an executive general manager (EGM) of football in the coming weeks and the job is Brendon Gale’s if he wants it.
If he rejects it, the league will then look to a raft of other club CEOs, such as Simon Garlick (Fremantle), Tom Harley (Sydney), and Ameet Bains (Western Bulldogs) to fill the void.
It’s understood second round interviews are being conducted this week with an AFL commissioner involved in each of them.
The EGM of football will be incoming CEO Andrew Dillon’s right-hand person and carry more responsibilities than the traditional footy boss role, which Brad Scott held in 2022.
It will encompass not just football, but also fixturing, concussion, broadcast, Tasmania, and other key responsibilities currently spread across Dillon, Travis Auld and Laura Kane.
The delay in hiring a club CEO to this role, which has frustrated clubs, is for a variety of reasons.
One, Auld – who is the AFL’s chief financial officer and manager of broadcasting, clubs, and fixtures - is currently tied up thrashing out a new pay deal with the AFL Players’ Association.
He is wanted by the Australian Grand Prix Corporation and sources expect him to accept the CEO job there, but not before the next collective bargaining agreement is finalised.
Two, with Auld still at the AFL, the league cannot give complete certainty over what areas of his portfolio will be transferred to the new EGM, or someone else at AFL HQ.
And three, none of the league’s first choice candidates – Gale, Harley, Garlick and Bains, plus some footy bosses – would leave their clubs for anything less than the senior EGM job.
As one senior club official said this week: “Gale is not leaving Richmond to take a step backwards into a footy operational role.”
Gale has also made it clear his immediate focus is on appointing a full-time successor to Damien Hardwick.
In recent times, Dillon has canvassed the views of presidents and club officials on what the EGM role should look like.
The transition period between AFL CEOs has been used to work out the best structure of a new-look AFL in the post-McLachlan/Auld era.
The conclusion? The incoming EGM will ideally be a current club CEO – with Gale at the top of the list – supported by a general manager of footy in the Brad Scott mould, plus another position assisting with administration and day to day operations.
The GM of footy role, which the AFL would like to fill with a footy person (as opposed to a CEO-type) that can connect with clubs, will not be finalised until the AFL has an EGM.
Clubs believe Dillon is keen to appoint someone who has a strong profile and confident media presence to complement his skillset to the GM role.
Candidates floated for this position have included Josh Mahoney, Jimmy Bartel, Dan Richardson, and current interim footy boss Laura Kane.
Sources are hopeful Kane, who is highly regarded, will stay in a footy operations role even if she misses out on the GM of football position.
There has been a private acknowledgement from the AFL that under this new and improved structure, the EGM will focus on high level matters in conjunction with Dillon.
Meanwhile the GM of footy and position that accompanies it will have a portfolio that essentially keeps the game running.
It will be a heavily front-facing role, dealing with key issues in the game such as match review controversies and working with clubs to clarify concerns.
One of the main gripes clubs have since Scott left is there is nobody in this position to explain important matters.
Local football, umpiring, laws of the game, MRO, Tasmania, NSW and Queensland footy, pathways for girls and boys and game development will be some of the areas that require close attention and a more cohesive staffing approach.
The league understands the current structure – where a variety of silos report into an acting GM of football – is not sustainable or practicle long-term.
Dillon is said to be keen to streamline the organisational structure and in a bid to get it right, has been in no rush to settle on which people should fill the three key roles.
The AFL is also on the lookout for a football director for the commission. Matthew Pavlich and Leigh Matthews are two names which have been mentioned.
LIKELY POST-MCLACHLAN/AULD STRUCTURE
Chief executive officer: Andrew Dillon
Executive general manager: Likely Brendan Gale. If not, Ameet Bains, Tom Harley or Simon Garlick
General manager: Jimmy Bartel, Josh Mahoney, Dan Richardson or Laura Kane
Football operations manager: Laura Kane (if she's not GM)