City of Launceston Mayor Matthew Garwood has condemned the AFL's decision to end Hawthorn home games in Launceston from 2028, warning the move risked stripping Northern Tasmania of proven economic activity without any guaranteed replacement and without a credible transition plan.
Mayor Garwood said the decision had been made without any engagement from the AFL or the State Government to understand its impact.
"After more than 25 years of partnership, contribution and community building, the very least our region deserved was meaningful engagement. We sought it. We were denied it."
The AFL has confirmed Hawthorn will be required stop playing home matches in Tasmania after 2027 to provide "clear ownership" for the Tasmania Devils from 2028.
Mayor Garwood said that outcome may suit a neat narrative, but it does not reflect the realities of risk, timing and economic activity in Northern Tasmania.
"The City of Launceston has collated data showing Hawthorn games generated about $80 million in economic benefit for Northern Tasmania between 2022 and 2025, with interstate visitors spending significantly more than locals and delivering crucial winter trade for accommodation, hospitality, retail and transport.
"This is real money. This is real investment. This is the reason a transition period is critical.
"You do not recklessly gamble tens of millions of dollars in local economic activity without guarantees, without a plan, and without even the basic respect of sitting down with the host community to work through a practical pathway."
Mayor Garwood said the City had written formally to the AFL and to the Premier, setting out Launceston's position and offering constructive, professional dialogue. Neither has responded.
"We wrote to the AFL twice seeking respectful engagement. We received silence," Mayor Garwood said. "That is not leadership, and it is not good faith."
The Mayor also pointed to the Premier's public election commitment that Northern Tasmania would receive more AFL content and that there would be a planned transition, commitments widely reported at the time.
"On the campaign trail, the Premier gave the region confidence that transition and content would be protected. The public record is clear.
"What we have seen since is the opposite: no engagement, no certainty, and a decision that removes content first and asks questions later."
Mayor Garwood said the risk was compounded by the uncertainty that still exists around future arrangements.
"The AFL decision assumes a seamless transition into the Devils era, yet key dependencies – such as the construction of a stadium in Hobart - remain unresolved and beyond the Launceston's control.
"Macquarie Point has already been delayed until at least 2031 and even this seems far from a done deal. Accordingly, the broader conditions that underpin Tasmania's entry are still evolving.
"If major elements change, if timelines shift, or if commitments are altered, this could leave Tasmania with reduced AFL content overall, and Northern Tasmania would wear the immediate loss."
Mayor Garwood said the City's position had always been responsible, balanced and supportive of Tasmania's future.
"We support the Tasmania Devils. They are Tasmania's team, and the only team that should call Tasmania home. But supporting the Devils does not require Northern Tasmania to be sacrificed or disadvantaged. A transition is not a mere courtesy; it is an economic and community necessity."
Mayor Garwood reiterated that the City had put forward a practical compromise to protect the region while enabling orderly change, which included a limited number of Hawthorn games as transition content, aligned to periods when the Devils were playing away, so an AFL presence remained and supporter transition could occur.
"There is no need to rip content out of Northern Tasmania overnight.
"We are calling on the AFL to urgently reconsider, to come to Launceston, sit down with the host community and work through a proper transition, a proper timeline, and proper guarantees. Our businesses, our supporters, and our young people deserve respect."
Mayor Garwood said the message from the City was simple: Northern Tasmania has helped carry AFL in this state for a generation, and it will not accept being dictated to, ignored, or disadvantaged.
"We will not allow our community to be worse off because a corporate decision of the AFL has been made without us, and because a government has chosen not to engage. A transition must be delivered, and respect must be shown."
