Players Sign Off on Pay Deal

AFL players sign off on $1.84 billion six-year pay deal

Michael Warner, Herald Sun
24 minutes ago

THE AFL’s 850 players have officially agreed to a bumper $1.84 billion, six-year pay deal.

Players’ union chief executive Paul Marsh signed off on the 2017-22 salaries agreement at around 2pm this afternoon after a vote of players from all 18 clubs.

SCROLL DOWN TO SEE THE WAGE BREAKDOWN

The deal will see the average player wage climb to $371,000 and the salary cap from $10.37 million to $12.45 million, plus marketing allowances of more than $1 million a club.

The monster payday equates to 28 per cent of total AFL industry revenues but could be even greater if club and league revenues rise above forecast projections.

The payrise is effective immediately, meaning a player earning around $850,000 will now earn in excess of $1 million a season.

The AFL was desperate to announce the deal today ahead of tonight’s Hall of Fame function in Adelaide.

An overwhelming 99.2 per cent of players approved of the AFL’s increased offer amid threats of industrial action.

Players, led by AFLPA board members Patrick Dangerfield, Rory Sloane, Scott Pendlebury, Leigh Montagna and Easton Wood, had refused to budge on a push for a cut of unforecast cash.

The deal will guarantee players 11.2 per cent of all unbudgeted club revenues and a fixed 28 per cent slice of all unbudgeted AFL moneys.

AFL revenues alone since 2009 have come in more than $246 million above budget.

The six-year pay bonanza includes a wage increase of 20 per cent this year, 1.2 per cent in 2018, 1.3 per cent in 2019 and rises of 2 per cent in 2020, 2021 and 2022.

Additional AFL funding for retirement, hardship, welfare and player development schemes is also included.

A majority of AFL players have a provision in their contract that automatically entitles them to this year’s 20 per cent pay rise.

Players failed in their push for a share of fixed percentages during the last salaries stand-off with former AFL boss Andrew Demetriou five years ago.

####MONEY BALL
How the six-year AFL player pay deal works:

— Heavily front-ended six-year increase — 20 per cent in 2017, followed by 1.2 per cent in 2018, 1.3 per cent in 2019 and rises of 2 per cent in 2020, 2021 and 2022.

— Average wage (not including rookies) rises from $309,000 to $371,000 this season, hitting $403,00 by 2022

— Club salary cap jumps from $10.37m to $12.4m this year and hits $13.54m by 2022

— Players guaranteed 28 per cent of unbudgeted AFL revenues and 11.2 per cent of unforecast club revenues (to be paid into retirement funds)

— Gradual increase in $1.022m club promotional and marketing allowances (Additional Service Agreements)

— Improved travel and accommodation conditions

— Veteran’s allowance scrapped

— Bolstered welfare, player development, hardship and injury schemes

Total Player Payments/Average wage

2016: $10.37m, $309,000

2017: $12.45m, $371,000

2018: $12.6m, $375,000

2019: $12.76m, $380,000

2020: $13.02m, $388,000

2021: $13.28m, $396,000

2022: $13.54m, $403,000

Note: Wages exclude rookie players

How much of the $1.84b goes to Josh Kelly?

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$403K average wage??? That is ludicrous when you think an average player can be persisted with factoring in injuries etc for anything up to 6 to 8 years. Maybe my thoughts go to this as our club has held onto plodders for far too long recently…

Do you think they will lower ticket prices for fans?

Should’ve signed longer. Reckon the bottom will fall out of the TV rights soon enough.

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How would X Richards be feeling seeing that?

There is no way the average jobber is getting that money. It’s just gonna be bigger paydays for the best in the comp.

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inb4, thats not how it works.

At least they made the big bump happen automatically this year. Imagine the chaos if the 20% bump had come next year, and been manual, so all clubs could go nuts poaching!

I bet Buddy is one of the ones noted who don’t get the automatic pay bump. My heart bleeds for him.

EDIT: per updates… let’s go nuts poaching!

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…in further news…tickets to AFL matches set to rise as of next week.

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Why the ■■■■ hasn’t Daniher signed yet?!?

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Fair enough. They bring in the dollars, they can earn them.

I’m guessing nothing changed in terms of Free Agency qualification?

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I’m happy for them.

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Shoulds weird to me.

The article suggests that guys on existing contracts get an increase! So Tom Boyd goes up 20% ? Just does not seem correct.

If it increases rookies/low earning players more money I’m all for it, but I don’t give a f*ck about the middle to higher end groups.

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Apparently everyone but west coast and adelaide took automatic bumpers or something, which raises everyones contract by the %? idk tho haven’t followed this.

I’ve been saying this for ages, but no one seems to get it.

So they didn’t get rid of the ridiculous rookie system whereby blokes in their mid twenties have to potentially uproot their lives, put on hold their current job and move to the other side of the country and do all the same training as other elite athletes for a fractional chance at a footy career which they’d have to grab by hurdling arbitrary restrictions on their ability to even play for all of 60k p year with zero job security?

I know people will joke that it’s me saying this but that’s a joke.

Forgive me if the CBA negotiations is not the time that the rookie system would be overhauled

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Joe Dan be like

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Pfft so now players can leave as an unrestricted FA earlier? What do clubs get to compensate this? Nothing. Just a “thanks for investing 100 of thousands into my development… see ya”

What a croc of ■■■■■ contracts are… loyalty is gone and clubs lose out while players can demand a trade to a single club of their choice with a year left to go while the club has to accept whatever is offered to get any form of solid currency unless they want to lose them for next to nothing the year after.

I’ve always said to make FA available earlier, but a club can also trade a player to any other team regardless of the players choice as long as his contract conditions are met

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