World-leading sport experts in the area of digital media, social media, fan development and fan engagement will be among the presenters at the 2010 AFL Industry Conference, to be held on the Gold Coast this week.

The AFL Industry Conference, which runs from November 17-19, will also be addressed by Queensland Premier, the Honourable Anna Bligh, MP, and is highlighted by the 2010 NAB AFL Draft on Thursday November 18 at the Gold Coast Convention Centre, representing the first time in the draft's 25-year history that it has been held in the northern states and only the second time ever outside of Victoria.

AFL Chief Executive Officer Andrew Demetriou said the Industry Conference would bring together AFL Commissioners and Executive staff, club Presidents, CEOs, Board members and senior club staff working throughout the football industry across commercial operations, football operations, membership, finance and game development.

"AFL Football is in the extremely fortunate position to be the third-highest attended sporting competition in the world,  behind only the NFL in America and the German Bundesliga," Mr Demetriou said.

"The challenge for our administration and our clubs is to take the next step and continue to build closer and better relationships with our fans and their communities."

Mr Demetriou said the AFL was delighted to have been able to secure a number of outstanding presenters for the Industry Conference, including Sir Rod Eddington (Chairman of Infrastructure Australia), Bernard Salt (KPMG), Pat Coyle (President of Coyle Media and formerly with the Indianapolis Colts in the NFL), Byran Perez (General Manager, NBA Digital), Frank Hawkins (Scalar Media and former head of strategic planning for the NFL) and Bernard Mullin (The Aspire Group, and former CEO of the Atlanta Hawks).

"The range of presenters, and their backgrounds across so many areas, will provide a valuable insight to our competition and provide us with the tools to develop our thinking in this crucial period as our competition expands from 16 to 18 teams with the introduction of the Gold Coast Suns in 2011 and Team GWS, based in Western Sydney, for the 2012 season," he said.

"The AFL has secured a number of guest speakers from major US sports, and leading experts from the Australian economic and political scene. The conference will include a mix of plenary sessions for all delegates and break-out, cohort sessions for smaller groups working closely with our international experts.

"In addition to the Conference and Draft, there will be a number of other events running concurrently, including the AFL Broadcast & Corporate Partners Summit, an Industry Dinner on the Wednesday night, and various other AFL meetings," he said.

A copy of the full conference agenda is available at www.afl.com.au/ic2010, which will see Premier Bligh address all delegates on the morning of Thursday November 18, before the 2010 NAB AFL Draft is held that night at the Gold Coast Convention Centre. The 2010 Draft is being televised live by Fox Sports, and will see a total of 112 selections for new players to come on to AFL senior lists to the AFL competition for the 2011 season.

Mr Demetriou said a presentation by Gold Coast Tourism early in the year convinced the AFL that the Gold Coast was the best place to stage both the NAB AFL Draft and the AFL Industry Conference. The Gold Coast is not only regarded as Australia’s favourite holiday destination, but it hosts 80 per cent of all major sporting events in Queensland and 50 per cent of the state’s business events.

Mr Demetriou also thanked the Bligh Government for its support, not only of this conference, but also for the investment in the re-development of stadia in recent years from the Gabba to Gold Coast Stadium and, most recently, Cazaly’s Stadium in Cairns.

"The arrival of the Gold Coast Suns represents a historic moment for our competition and Thursday's draft will be a major step in the construction of their first-ever squad, before their opening match against Carlton in round two next year," he said.

The Suns will have first round selections at picks one, two, three, seven, nine, 10, 11 and 13 and the redeveloped Gold Coast Stadium at Carrara will be ready to host its first Suns' home game in round 10, when they play the Geelong Cats.

Mr Demetriou said the entire football industry was committed to further building on these record levels, and the aim of the conference was for all clubs to be able to understand the current leading strategies being used in sport and industry overseas.