It's more pop concert than sporting event – think enormous screens, elaborate lighting and hanging LED displays – but it could be the secret weapon to help the AFL lure millennials into its orbit.Professional video gaming, known as eSports, is already a $1.2 billion global industry with an annual audience of 239 million people mostly in the elusive 14-to-34-year age group.

Now the AFL is preparing to enter the burgeoning field in a bold bid to broaden the exposure of its brand and boost sponsorship revenue.

The league is keen on running an eSports tournament at Etihad Stadium, which it assumed ownership of last October, and wants AFL clubs to sponsor or create their own eSports teams, as some have with AFL Women's and Super Netball.

Forget about crepe paper banners, kitsch theme songs and athletes covered in oil.