How Tasmania's sporting community is following the codes — and the campaign for a Tasmanian AFL team.
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Tasmania's relationship with AFL is one of Australian sport's most poignant stories. The island state is one of Australia's most passionate football communities without having a team of its own in the top competition. The campaign for a Tasmanian AFL team — finally approved for entry in 2028 — means 2026 winter is part of the countdown to the island having its own club.
The Tasmanian Devil — the approved name for Tasmania's AFL expansion team — is scheduled to enter the competition in 2028. The club is in the process of building its administration, recruiting talent and engaging with the Tasmanian community. The announcement generated extraordinary excitement across the state and gives the 2026 football season a different quality — every match a partial preparation for what is coming.
The Tasmanian State League (TSL) is the state's primary football competition, operating with clubs from Hobart, Launceston, North West and other regional centres. The competition produces the talent that has historically gone to mainland AFL clubs. Under the new club structure, that talent pathway will increasingly go through the Tasmanian Devil's VFL alignment.
North Melbourne has historically played a small number of games each year at Blundstone Arena in Hobart as part of the Tasmania agreement. These games have been community events of significance, drawing some of the strongest crowds in Tasmania's sporting history. The final years of this arrangement before the Tasmanian club begins play are emotionally loaded for the football community.
Soccer, rugby union and rugby league all operate in Tasmania. The winter codes provide community structure for participants who may not be AFL footballers but still want the community and competition of organised winter sport.
This article was compiled by AI from the sources linked above and screened before publishing. See our editorial standards.
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Published by The Daily Tasmania
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