HALF of the McClelland Trophy's $1 million prize pool is set to be divvied up among players from the winning club.
The League announced earlier this year that the McClelland Trophy would now be awarded to the best-performed club across both men's and women's competitions, with the champion club awarded $1 million in prize money.
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Since the League's March announcement, it has been unclear how the money would be distributed. However, per the most recent Collective Bargaining Agreement, it's understood that half of that money will be split evenly among all men's and women's players from the champion club.
It means that $250,000 will be shared among men's players from the successful club, while a further $250,000 will be split between players within the women's program.
That money, which tallies at $500,000, will not be counted under the winning club's salary cap and will instead be distributed to players outside the cap in a similar manner to a premiership bonus.
It's understood the remaining $500,000 will go into club revenue. However, unlike the payments going to players, it will count against the AFL's soft cap restrictions, meaning it cannot be entirely distributed among football department staff.
The McClelland Trophy standings are decided by the results of each club's AFL and AFLW teams in a single calendar year, with four points awarded for a men's home-and-away victory and eight awarded for a women's home-and-away win.
Melbourne currently leads the McClelland Trophy standings for this season with two matches remaining in the AFLW campaign with 120 points, while Brisbane (116 points) and Collingwood (112 points) are also still in the running.
