AFL will not be returning to Wellington next year after crowds at this year's game between St Kilda and Carlton were deemed not big enough to justify the expense.

The man who helped bring AFL to Wellington says he is "deeply disappointed" the city council has given it the boot.

After three years of treating the capital as a second home, the Melbourne AFL club St Kilda will not be returning to Wellington next year.

The Wellington City Council and the club were unable to reach a deal to keep the Anzac day test fixture alive.

The council is understood to have spent more than $1 million on the three-year deal to bring St Kilda to Westpac Stadium. But after a strong crowd in 2013, interest in Aussie Rules has waned in Wellington and the council started questioning its worth as game crowds diminished.

Former Wellington city councillor John Morrison was deeply involved in stitching the AFL deal together.

On Monday he said dropping the only AFL test outside of Australia was a "lost opportunity" for Wellington. The games were a unique opportunity to attract Australian dollars to the capital and forge closer business ties with Melbourne, he said.

"It is pretty disappointing because we did a lot of work to get it down here."

Morrison said AFL had made a strong start but there had been a lack of commitment to making it work long term after he had left council.

"There is more interest in cycleways to nowhere in Island Bay than in AFL."

But Deputy Mayor Justin Lester said while the fixture had brought some economic benefits, it was not enough to justify continued financial support.

"I think the disappointing aspect was Wellingtonians didn't really buy into it and we want to be supporting events that Wellingtonians will attend."

Also influencing the decision was a "very full" event calendar for 2016, including AC/DC and Elton John, international Rugby fixtures and World of Wearable Arts.

Wellington City councillor Jo Coughlan, who chairs the economic development committee, said in the past two years the Anzac weekend AFL test had simply not attracted enough people. About 22,000 people attended the game in 2013 but this dropped to 13,285 and then 12,125 in the past two years.

"We want to thank St Kilda and the AFL for giving us the opportunity to stage the matches. It's important that we give these opportunities a go to see if they are sustainable and attractive propositions."

But with the door closed for now in Wellington, St Kilda are pushing on to find a new beachhead in New Zealand.

In a statement, club chief executive Matt Finnis said the club wanted to stay in New Zealand and was talking to several cities. It has been reported that Christchurch was possibly in talks with the club.

Despite the deal coming to an end, Finnis said the club's stint in Wellington had been a success, with more than 8500 Australians travelling to the matches in Wellington, generating more than $15 million in economic activity.

"It's a great city and we have appreciated this partnership."