The AFL announced that Laura Kane will lead the NAB AFLW competition under a strengthened structure as it approaches its eleventh season.
The new structure follows a thorough review of the AFLW competition's resourcing and introduces dedicated executive-level ownership as well as increased investment across growth and operations.
Kane will lead the AFLW competition into the 2026 season and beyond as Executive General Manager of AFLW, Health and Football Operations.
Under her leadership, the AFLW team will be bolstered across two key high-impact streams – growth and operations by providing an advocate for the women's game.
Appointed Executive General Manager of Football in 2023, her role was streamlined to focus purely on football operations last year, before her switch to head up the AFLW competition.
Under her leadership, the league announced the introduction of an AFLW salary cap from 2027 onwards, a change from the current tiered payment model.
Meanwhile, Emma Moore will lead the growth stream as General Manager of AFLW, while Trish Squires will lead the operations stream as Head of AFLW Operations. Both roles will report directly to Kane.
Five additional roles across AFLW partnerships, fan development, internal and external stakeholder engagement and operations will also be created to support Moore and Squires.
AFL CEO Andrew Dillon said the changes reflect the league's ongoing commitment to the growth and success of AFLW.
"AFLW has evolved significantly over its first 10 seasons. The game is improving, women and girls' participation is strong and the infrastructure continues to build. The competition both on and off the field is stronger than ever before, but there is still work to be done," Dillon said.
"We want everyone to love and connect with Australia's game, specifically, we want AFLW to become Australia's leading women's sport so we are investing in the right areas to support our clubs, our players and fans, as we continue to build a strong and sustainable future.
"This new leadership structure, alongside increased investment in Growth and Operations, will see the competition better positioned than ever to have more people engaged in AFLW."
