ONE OF world sport's most respected administrators has urged the League not to be swayed off expansion by the global financial crisis.

Former American National Football League (NFL) commissioner Paul Tagliabue said the AFL's plans to strengthen its north-eastern presence made sense, provided any new clubs would grow the sport's fan base regardless of the economic climate.

The AFL has earmarked a 17th team on the Gold Coast in 2011, followed by a club based in western Sydney in 2012.

However, confirmation of Gold Coast's entry into the competition was shelved last week as commissioners pondered the current climate.

A decision won't be made until next month's Commission hearing.

Tagliabue, who has been a guest at this week's forum on the future of Australian Football, said the AFL was on the right track with its expansion plans.

He held a two-hour meeting with chief executive Andrew Demetriou with topics including the NFL's experience with the issue.

"The worst things is to do it prematurely and fail," said Tagliabue, who saw the NFL grow from 28 teams to 32 during his 17-year tenure.

"I think here in Australia, expansion makes sense.

"From what I've read here, your economy is expected to avoid a recessionary period, though your economy's growth may not be as robust as in the past.

"I think the most important thing is the growth of the fan base and that can be done with the existing amount of teams or it can be done with an expanded number of teams."

Tagliabue has a long association with the AFL, which has adopted several practices common in the US sport's administration, and encourages it to continue the path of constant growth and development.

"I think the priority is to do many of the things that the AFL is already doing, but to be very much open to a balance between tradition – on the one hand, which is fantastic – with a constant quest for improvement which includes innovation and change," he said.

"I used to use a phrase which I repeated to the guests here today: 'If it ain't broke, fix it anyway', because you can always make things better. Don't just be satisfied with the status quo, and I think that's the attitude of the League."

Demetriou reiterated the AFL's commitment to expanding into New South Wales and Queensland.

"We know in New South Wales and Queensland we've got huge challenges, but we've got two teams (Brisbane Lions and Sydney Swans) that have done particularly well," he said.

"They need some support. They need another team to create rivalry, another team to help the two clubs that have done all the heavy lifting."