AFL boss Gillon McLachlan has come out in support of the AFL's push into China, saying the end result will be more money into grassroots footy.



The comments come after the game was criticised for failing to be a sellout, with only 9,412 attending Port Adelaide's 10-goal win over St Kilda in Round 10.









Speaking on 3AW, McLachlan defended the game, saying the commercial opportunities that come with playing in China are too good to ignore.



MORE: David Teague feels he's already got the Carlton playing group

“Port Adelaide and St Kilda are both making nearly a million dollars. It’s not costing anything. It breaks even for the AFL and the clubs are making money," McLachlan said.



“A clear part of why we are there is because China is a very important market for Australia – our biggest trading partner – and we think we can make money in the end.

“Why are we doing that? So we can invest in community programs, in women’s football and all the places we do.

“It’s a huge commercial opportunity.”



He said the AFL would continue to play games in China.



He also defended the crowd, saying there were contributing factors to why it looked so small.



The game had been billed as a "sell-out" in the lead-up, but there were plenty of empty seats come gameday.

“There’s a challenge with the way the catering and service works that you need to be in a marquee,” he explained.

“There are a lot of people in tents and they need to be allocated a seat.



“Everyone there had a good time – there was a good energy."



McLachlan also commented on the score review system, saying that the AFL can improve when it comes to dealing with the issue.

“We need to do better,” he said.

“(If there is) mistakes, we need to take responsibility for them.

“We think the bunker concept works, and Steve Hocking is well progressed on that.

“That will, I think, make the system more efficient and have hopefully less errors.”

McLachlan's comments come after a six-figure re-design of the AFL logo was announced, which Collingwood legend Tony Shaw described as a "deadset joke."