"League of Legends is something that has a lot of engagement in that 13 to 39 year old market, especially 13-24 year olds, who are very loyal to and to the brand that support it. So we can see the opportunities there, both in terms of what we can learn from Riot Games in a digital space and also commercial opportunities."

The AFL has had its own video game for a more than two decades, but the lack of worldwide interest in its sport means it can't necessarily go down the path of other codes like tennis and soccer.

Football Federation Australia, for example, held a E-League tournament this year that saw players representing the 10 A-League teams play each other in the popular FIFA game. E-League games averaged about 130,000 viewers on the streaming platform Twitch each week, double expectations, and 12.5 million social mention impressions, while more than 100,000 people visited the A-League website via the E-League.

Birch wants the crossover between the AFL and its League of Legends foray to have a similar effect, at least from a branding point of view, and for other clubs to follow the lead of Adelaide and Essendon.

Adelaide Crows eSports team in action Sarah Cooper

"I think you can't just be looking at a traditional football offering if you want to keep expanding your audience. We've done research that shows 22 per cent of AFL fans are also interested in e-sports, so there is a connection there. And I can see a time when our clubs having e-sports teams is just as common as having an AFLW team, a men's side or a netball team as some already do. The barriers to entry to having an e-sports team are low in comparison to doing other things."

Daniel Ringland, Head of Oceanic e-sports for Riot Games, welcomes the AFL joint venture, which could lead to a purpose built e-sports studio in Melbourne that may be part of the upcoming $200 million revamp of Etihad Stadium.

Yet he is cautious about a big increase in the local Oceanic League of Legends, stressing the same points as those in traditional sports do when considering expansion. "We want to make sure we don't dilute the competition we already have, and we want to keep growing the strength of our secondary competition so when expansion comes it makes sense.


"But what the AFL do well is run competitions, put on events that you can make good money from and they are very good on the integrity side of things. That's what we want to do even better at Riot Games as well."

Birch can also see commercialisation opportunities for the upcoming League of Legends state of origin tournament, in which player will represent the state or territory where they attend high school.

That could including finding a naming rights sponsor for the tournament itself, apparel partners for the players and also sponsors for the individual teams.

"We've also got the chance to introduce our existing commercial partners to e-sports and the digital side of things, which is increasingly important for everyone. We are really excited about this, and it is really just leveraging our existing expertise."