JUSTIN Leppitsch has pitched the Brisbane Lions' case for a slice of the lucrative new TV rights deal, saying it was crucial to level up the playing field.

Leppitsch said the continued growth of the game in the northern states was central to the $2.508 billion deal, and long-term success of the Lions and Suns was critical.

The Lions coach said he hoped by the end of the deal in 2022, the Lions and Gold Coast were self sufficient and could stand on their own two feet.

In the meantime however, he said the Lions needed financial help, and this deal could provide the injection they needed.

He said it was crucial to even up what the clubs could provide off the field.

The Lions spend $2 million less than the soft off-field salary cap.

They are also in negotiations with the Queensland government to secure a new training and administration base, and believe extra AFL money would strengthen their claim for funding.

The club is down to two sites – the old QE2 stadium and a site near the airport.

"There's some things we need to get off the field that money buys," Leppitsch said.

"There's things that money can't buy that we can fix ourselves, but there's things that money can only fix that we need here as well.

"There's some things in the background hopefully the industry understands that needs to be evened up so the playing field gets evened up as well."

Leppitsch said it was important to keep the game strong across the entire country, including further growth in rugby league-dominated Queensland.

He said although "wiser heads than me" could figure out where it was best spent, sinking money into youth was important as the code fights against league, rugby and soccer for junior numbers.

"It does fluctuate in Queensland and NSW so we need to make sure it's solid and strong and all the teams up here are solid and strong," he said.

"It should be the goal by the end of this deal, the Brisbane Lions, the Suns are all self-sufficient up here in Queensland. That would be nice."