More than 160 years after the game arrived in the state, Tasmania appears destined to become part of the Australian Football League.
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Neither the AFL nor AFL Tasmania officially released statements on Tuesday, however, it is understood that presidents of the league's 18 clubs swiftly and unanimously endorsed Tasmania's arrival into the competition.
The AFL Commission also met and were expected to endorse the decision with chief executive Gillon McLachlan likely to announce it on a visit to Hobart on Wednesday.
Such an outcome would end a saga dating back to 1987 since when eight formal proposals have been made for the state to join the competition, supported by numerous reports, steering committees and taskforces.
Having rejected the first seven of these proposals, the AFL decreed that the latest would be provisional on a new stadium being built in Hobart and the end goal was finally lined up last week when the last piece of the funding puzzle appeared to be locked in.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's announcement of $240 million in federal funding towards the $715 million 23,000-seater stadium at Macquarie Point followed pledges of $375 million from the state government and $15 million from the AFL with the remaining $85 million to come from assets.
In the absence of a Tasmanian team, Hawthorn have played 76 home games at UTAS Stadium since 2001 and North Melbourne 31 games at Bellerive Oval since 2012. St Kilda also played eight matches in Launceston between 2003-06.
In 2021 UTAS Stadium also staged two elimination final derbies with Western Bulldogs defeating Essendon and GWS edging out Sydney by a point.
Although more than 300 Tasmanians have played VFL/AFL with the state producing four Hall of Fame legends in Darrel Baldock, Peter Hudson, Ian Stewart and Royce Hart, Tasmania remains the only state not represented in the AFL.
If confirmed, the state's team is expected to enter the AFL in 2027 with games played at UTAS and Bellerive until the Macquarie Point Stadium is completed.
The AFL, Hawthorn and Cricket Tasmania all welcomed the completion of funding for the Tasmanian stadium this week.
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