AFLX project manager David Stevenson has labelled the first public taste of the concept a “great success”, suggesting that crowds slightly exceeded the league’s expectations.

While Stevenson noted there had been mixed views from clubs about the three carnivals held in recent days, he insisted AFLX had a strong future, even if some tinkering to the format is likely.

The three tournaments drew a combined crowd of 42,730 across Thursday night, Friday night and Saturday. More than 22,500 attended the Melbourne event, featuring six Victorian clubs, at Etihad Stadium on Friday night, with just over 10,253 coming through the gates at Adelaide’s Hindmarsh Stadium on Thursday night, and 9,892 counted for Saturday’s staging at Sydney’s Allianz Stadium.

The Brisbane Lions won the final AFLX grand final on Saturday. Credit:AAP

Television ratings were similarly modest by AFL standards, with the three events drawing an average five-city metro audience of 122,333 on Channel Seven’s secondary channels, up against the Winter Olympics on Channel Seven itself, and an average of 75,667 on Fox Footy.