A Legislative Council committee's final report on its investigation of AFL in Tasmania has found a state team in the league would cost $45 million to establish.
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The report, released on Thursday, found that the team would require an annual dividend of between $15 million and $17 million from the AFL to survive and up to $8 million each year from the state government.
The committee estimated the economic benefit of a Tasmanian AFL team would be about $110 million each year to the state's economy and create more than 300 jobs.
The report said a Tasmanian AFL team had the potential to attract high-value local, national and international sponsors.
It said there could be potential synergies between sponsors and the Tasmanian Brand.
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The committee found upgrades to UTAS stadium in Launceston and Bellerive Oval would be a more valuable future investment than the establishment of a new venue, such as a stadium at Hobart's Macquarie Point.
The committee said a Tasmanian AFL team would be ideally based in Hobart for logistical reasons. It said game attendance and player interest in the game in Tasmania was likely to continue to decline if a state AFL team was not established.
The committee suggested the optimal time for Tasmania to establish an AFL team was 2025 in line with negotiations for new television broadcasting rights.
Last year's AFL Licence Taskforce Business Plan, prepared for the state government, indicated the potential membership of a Tasmanian AFL team could reach more than 64,000 members.
Tasmanian Football Board chairman Jim Wilkinson was involved in the making of the business plan and said he believed the state could sustain a side financially and with community support.
He said despite the state's small economy, sponsorship would not be difficult to obtain.
"There would be other sponsors, especially now after the coronavirus, that I reckon would be looking to get some airplay so I think the time would be right to be introduced into the national league," Mr Wilkinson said.
"When you listen to the experts on TV that are talking about it, they say it's got to be a national competition.
"They are speaking about that when they are talking about the Gold Coast Suns, but if they are true to their word, Tasmania's got to be there as well."
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