The AFL is now certain to expand to 18 clubs by as early as 2012 after the league's bid to put new teams in western Sydney and the Gold Coast won the unanimous backing of the 16 club presidents in Melbourne on Thursday.
Some club presidents - particularly Hawthorn's Jeff Kennett and Collingwood's Eddie McGuire - had been sceptical about the league's expansion plans prior to Thursday's meeting but had their concerns quelled as the AFL outlined its vision for two teams in both New South Wales and Queensland.
It is a major step forward for the AFL, knowing that the addition of any new teams have to be approved by at least 12 of the current 16 clubs.
And the identity of the new Gold Coast club could be known by the end of the year with AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou revealing the league was already negotiating with its preferred tenderer for any new Gold Coast licence.
AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick said the league was thrilled with receiving the go-ahead for its boldest expansion plans since first going national with the admission of West Coast and Brisbane back in 1987.
The two new teams, which are likely to be admitted to the competition at the same time given the presidents told the league on Thursday they preferred an 18 team competition rather than 17 (which would mean the re-introduction of the bye), will be the first to join the AFL since Fremantle in 1995 and Port Adelaide in 1996.
"Today is an historic day in the history of the AFL," Fitzpatrick said.
"It's a day when the presidents have shared our excitement for the business case for expansion (of the competition)."
"They were excited by the future and they expressed their unanimous support."
Fitzpatrick said the costs of setting up the new teams would be more than offset by the increased value an 18 team competition would bring in terms of television rights with 2012 the likely start-up date for the expanded AFL given that will be the first year of its next broadcast agreement.
With the current five-year deal expiring in 2011 worth $780 million - up from $500 million from 2002-06 - the new deal, in which nine games will be shown a week instead of eight, could be worth more than $1 billion.
"Speaking to the (television) networks and prospect of a ninth game (each week) it (the cost of setting up two new teams) would pay for itself," Fitzpatrick said.
Following the cash-strapped North Melbourne football club's decision to reject a move to the Gold Coast and remain a Melbourne-based club, Demetriou said the league was now on the verge of finalising its bidding process for a new Gold Coast team.
"That process will be completed by the end of the year and once that is done then part of that strategy is that group - the successful group - will then start appointing key personnel such as a board, a CEO and a coach," Demetriou said.
Demetriou did not reveal the identity of the AFL's preferred bidder to run the new Gold Coast team but did say he expected the powerful Southport Sharks football team to be involved in some way.
"At the moment we have got a preferred group on the Gold Coast that we are dealing with exclusively for the coming months," he said.
The successful bidders