THE AFL is yet to decide whether prizemoney will be offered to the premiers of its new elite women's competition.
With the historic opening game of the inaugural NAB AFL Women's season just a fortnight away, AFL.com.au understands talks are continuing on how best to reward the winning club and its players.
"The AFL is currently working on an appropriate reward for the players who are part of the AFLW premiership team and we look forward to announcing those details in the near future," a League spokesman told AFL.com.au.
Prizemoney for the men's competition has remained the same for at least the past six years, with the premiers pocketing $1.21 million.
The prizemoney is split between the club itself and individual players.
The total prize pool for the men's competition is $2.893 million, which is divided among the finalists depending on their finishing order.
A decision on the right amount of prizemoney for AFLW is complicated, with the League funding most of the competing clubs' operating costs.
It's understood part of the consideration is that the reward should concentrate on the winning players as opposed to the club itself.
Despite the monetary windfall for clubs and players that comes with winning a flag – or indeed finishing in the top eight – prizemoney is rarely talked about in the broader football industry.
From time to time there have been proposals to change things up, including a recent suggestion that a financial prize could be awarded to the minor premiers after the home-and-away season.
And in 2010, Collingwood received a total of $1.95 million and St Kilda $1.45 million, thanks to the windfall from the last drawn Grand Final and subsequent replay.
The AFLW season begins with Collingwood hosting Carlton at Olympic Park on Friday, February 5.