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Tasmania Football Club

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"Tasmania Devils" redirects here. For the Talent League team, see Tasmania Devils (under-18s team). For other uses, see Tasmanian Devil (disambiguation).
Tasmania Football Club
Names
Full nameTFC AFL Limited[1]
Nickname(s)Devils, Tassie
Club details
Founded2 May 2023; 18 months ago (2023-05-02)
Colours
  •   Myrtle green
  •   Primrose yellow
  •   Rose red[2]
Competition
  • AFL: Senior men
  • AFLW: Senior women
  • VFL: Reserves men
  • VFLW: Reserves women
ChairmanGrant O'Brien[3]
CEOBrendon Gale (2025)[4]
Ground(s)Bellerive Oval
York Park
Macquarie Point Stadium
Uniforms
Home
Other information
Official websitehttps://tasmaniafc.com/

The Tasmania Football Club, nicknamed the Devils, is a professional Australian rules football club expected to compete in the Australian Football League (AFL) from the 2028 season and the AFL Women's (AFLW) from an unspecified date.[5][6] The club will be based in Tasmania, with matches to be played across the state. Both York Park in Launceston and Bellerive Oval in Hobart will host games initially, with the southern matches moving to the future Macquarie Point Stadium upon its construction.[7]

In May 2023, Tasmania secured an AFL licence following a unanimous vote of AFL club presidents.[7] The club will first compete in the Victorian Football League (VFL), starting in 2026.[8][9] The club may also enter the VFL Women's (VFLW) competition in either 2025 or 2026.[10][11]

History

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Main article: History of the Tasmanian AFL bid
Tasmania has been a stronghold of Australian rules football since the 1860s. Pictured is the 1911 Tasmanian state side from the Adelaide carnival where they beat the Western Australian state team on Adelaide Oval.

Australian rules football in Tasmania has long been the most popular spectator sport. A 2018 study of Internet traffic showed 79% of Tasmanians (424,459) were interested in it, the highest rate in the country,[12] which was, according to Roy Morgan, a figure higher than the number of supporters of around half of existing AFL clubs.[13]

The idea of a Tasmanian AFL team had been suggested, and in some cases formally proposed, many times since the 1980s.[14] The successful bid was the result of an organisation known as the Tasmanian AFL Licence Taskforce assembled in 2019, chaired by Brett Godfrey, with backing from the Tasmanian Government.[15] Grant O'Brien, former CEO of Woolworths and chair of Tourism Tasmania, was appointed the new club's first chairman in July 2023 by the Tasmanian AFL Licence Taskforce.[16] In September, a board chaired by O'Brien was announced, including Kath McCann, James Henderson (AFL talent manager), Alastair Lynch, Alicia Leis, Roger Curtis, Laura McBain, Graeme Gardner and Kathy Schaefer.[17] Former Richmond player Jack Riewoldt was appointed club culture manager.[17]

On 18 March 2024, the club was officially launched with the name Tasmania Devils, using myrtle green, rose red and primrose yellow as their club colours; the colours and guernsey were based on those of the historical Tasmanian interstate representative team, featuring a red "T" on a yellow map of Tasmania.[18][19] Devils was the club's chosen nickname, based on the local Tasmanian devil marsupial; the nickname had previously been used by the state's VFL and Talent League clubs. The nickname was confirmed only after negotiations with Warner Bros., whose cartoon character Tasmanian Devil meant that it held a trademark on the name.[20][21]

Richmond Football Club CEO Brendon Gale became Tasmania's inaugural CEO in 2025.[22]

Corporate

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During the 2024 launch, the club commenced selling foundation membership packs for between A$10 and $15 with an initial target of 40,000 by October (one of the original conditions of entry set by the AFL). The club exceeded this target within 2 hours and had sold over 121,000 memberships just two days after launch,[23] giving it the highest on-paper membership of any club in the AFL and taking just 24 hours to break the league's all-time membership record.[24] In September 2024, the club passed 200,000 members, raising a total of more than $2 million in membership revenue[25] and making it the 5th largest sports club in the world by total membership.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Terms and Conditions". Tasmania Football Club. 21 March 2024.
  2. ^ AFL [@AFL] (18 March 2024). "Presenting the @FC_Tasmania colours!" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 23 July 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024 – via Twitter.
  3. ^ Ex-Woolies boss lands AFL job from The Mercury 5 July 2023
  4. ^ https://www.afl.com.au/news/1125841 10 May 2024
  5. ^ "Full statement: Tasmania awarded 19th AFL licence". AFL.com.au. 3 May 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  6. ^ "Prime Minister Anthony Albanese pledges $240 million for Hobart stadium at Macquarie Point". ABC News. 29 April 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  7. ^ a b "AFL presidents approve Tasmania for 19th team licence after decades of campaigning". ABC News. 2 May 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  8. ^ Partridge, Josh (29 June 2024). "AFL Tasmania 'still finalising' 2025 elite plan but 'fulfilling' news ahead". The Examiner. Archived from the original on 23 November 2024. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  9. ^ Tuxworth, Jon (25 October 2024). "VFL: The northern talents who could wear 'The Map' in 2026". The Mercury. Archived from the original on 23 November 2024. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  10. ^ "AFL Tasmania Statement – TSL license agreements". Tasmanian State League. 5 May 2023. Archived from the original on 29 May 2024. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  11. ^ "AFL Tasmania Euthanases State League Football". Tasmanian Times. 5 May 2023. Archived from the original on 17 May 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  12. ^ Devils in the detail: an economist argues the case for a Tasmanian AFL team – and new stadium by Tim Harcourt for the Conversation 1 May 2023
  13. ^ AFL supporter bases Roy Morgen August 17, 2018
  14. ^ "Tasmania's current push for an AFL licence isn't its first, but it may well be the last". ABC News. 2 September 2022. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  15. ^ "Inside the rise of Tassie: Locals thought Gillon McLachlan wanted to move Roos, but now 19th team a reality". Herald Sun. 30 April 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  16. ^ Ex-Woolies boss lands AFL job from The Mercury 5 July 2023
  17. ^ a b Board to lead Tasmania's AFL club announced, along with culture lead Jack Riewoldt by Chris Rowbottom for ABC News 13 September 2023
  18. ^ "Celebration as new Tassie logo, jumper and colours revealed". AFL. 18 March 2024.
  19. ^ "Tasmania granted 19th AFL team licence with 2028 slated for men's start date". The Guardian. 3 May 2023. Archived from the original on 17 August 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  20. ^ "AFL's new Tasmania side to be called the Tasmanian Devils". Herald Sun.
  21. ^ "Tasmania Devils AFL club launched with name, colours, logo and guernsey concept revealed". ABC News.
  22. ^ https://www.afl.com.au/news/1125841 10 May 2024
  23. ^ ‘Overwhelming’ take-up of Tasmania Devils AFL memberships passes 120,000 by Jack Snape 20 March 2024
  24. ^ ‘Blow your mind’: Tasmania Devils break AFL membership record in 24 hours by Matthew Sullivan from News.com.au 20 March 2024
  25. ^ Devils AFL club joins exclusive list of clubs that have 200,000 members By Brian Allen for The Advocate 3 September 2024
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