Australian Football League reserves affiliations
The AFL is the top level of Australian rules football in Australia. There has never been a national reserves competition since 1999, so AFL-listed players who aren’t in the senior team play in state leagues instead—primarily the VFL in Victoria, the SANFL in South Australia, and the WAFL in Western Australia. How players are allocated to these leagues has varied over time and from state to state. By 2026, the 18 AFL clubs use a mix of stand‑alone reserves teams and state‑league affiliations.
In Victoria, most AFL-listed players not in the senior team compete in the VFL. Eleven AFL clubs run reserves teams in the VFL, while others are tied to traditional affiliations with VFL clubs. The old 12–10 rule (which limited AFL players in mixed matches) was removed in 2011.
In South Australia, Adelaide has run a stand‑alone SANFL reserves team since 2014. Port Adelaide withdrew its SANFL Reserves involvement in 2018, so the SANFL now mainly serves as the reserve competition for the AFL clubs not fielding stand‑alone teams.
In Western Australia, Fremantle and West Coast have moved through different arrangements with the WAFL. West Coast began fielding a stand‑alone WAFL reserves team in 2019, while Fremantle continues to use Peel Thunder as its WAFL host club under a long‑standing arrangement.
In New South Wales and Queensland, AFL clubs field stand‑alone reserves teams in the VFL rather than being tied to a WAFL/SANFL club.
The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 paused AFL‑listed players’ participation in state leagues, with all affiliations temporarily suspended for that season.
AFLW developments are separate but related. The AFLW started in 2017 with eight teams and expanded to 14 by 2021, with four additional clubs joining in 2022. All clubs now field AFLW teams. The ongoing arrangements for AFLW-listed players who aren’t selected for their senior team follow the AFLW competition’s season and club policies.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 02:31 (CET).