AFL HEADQUARTERS could be relocated to the shadows of Melbourne's Bolte Bridge under a plan to link Etihad Stadium to the Docklands waterfront.
The Victorian Government is set to provide land for a new AFL House in addition to the $225 million in funding for the Docklands redevelopment that includes an overhaul of the stadium and its surrounds.
The AFL's grand plan for the Docklands precinct – home to the stadium it now owns – is to open it up across Harbour Esplanade to the waterfront.
One concept includes a luxury hotel, with a ballroom that could potentially host the Brownlow Medal and other major events, overlooking Victoria Harbour.
The location for the League's new offices at the western end of Docklands Drive will reportedly have a lease that ends in 2057, coinciding with the end of the AFL's agreement to keep the Grand Final at the MCG.
The space is on the opposite side of the road to Ron Barassi Snr Park, which is home to a public AFL-size community oval.
The proposed location of a relocated AFL House building. Picture: Google Maps
The deal also includes Channel Seven relocating from its Harbour Esplanade building, which is also part of the broader stadium complex in its present configuration.
"[The AFL] will be able to access a facility, a piece of land, for AFL headquarters," Victorian treasurer Tim Pallas told the audience at a post-budget function on Wednesday.
The AFL confirmed discussions with the Victorian Government about opening up the western side of the stadium to the water were ongoing.
"That would involve, down the track, the movement of AFL House, but as to the timeline of number of years of that, that’s not known,” a League spokesperson told AFL.com.au.
The entire scenario still has to go through a planning and approval process.
The League moved to Docklands at the turn of the millennium, having previously been based in office space within the MCG's Great Southern Stand.