THE AFL and the AFL Players’ Association have reached an in-principle agreement on a revised Illicit Drugs Policy (IDP), representing a significant step forward in strengthening the game’s response to illicit drug use across both the AFL and AFLW competitions.
The revised policy will be the most comprehensive health-led illicit drugs policy in Australian sport, over and above the compulsory WADA in-competition testing for performance enhancing drugs.
Based on expert medical advice, the revised policy is clinically informed and focused on player health and wellbeing and has the clear aim of improving health outcomes including through enhanced care, governance, and increased levels of accountability.
Under the new policy, all AFL and AFLW players will undergo compulsory drug education, which has been enhanced under the revised model and twice-yearly hair testing.
In the event of a first positive hair test, a player will undergo significant health assessments and interventions to enact behaviour change and be subject to increased levels of accountability with escalating consequences.
A stepped process will be introduced under the new policy following annual education and routine hair testing:
- A Behaviour Change Program (BCP) and individualised assessment will follow a positive hair test; this may include healthcare interventions for players from the outset.
- If there is a second-consecutive positive test a player will progress to an individual Management Plan overseen by an AFL IDP Manager. A Management Plan includes ongoing clinical assessments, treatment and routine testing with a co-funding model in place ($5000 for AFL and $900 for AFLW).
- If a player continues to use and all attempts to engage them in the IDP framework have failed, they will be referred at this point to a Fitness to Play assessment by an independent panel, at which point the club President, CEO, and GM of Football (amongst others) are informed.
- As a result of a Fitness to Play Assessment, a player is determined to be fit to play, fit to play or train on stipulated terms, or unfit to play or train for a specified period and supported with intensive treatment.
- A player will progress from the framework when they have fully and successfully participated in their Management Plan.
Players who are unable to play as a result of the policy will now be declared unavailable for selection.
Under the in-principle agreement, the revised policy will introduce a number of further significant measures, including:
- Support for players for up to two years after retirement or delisting.
- A newly established Joint IDP Committee, comprising representatives from the AFL, AFLPA, AFL Doctors’ Association and experts in addiction and drug policy to oversee implementation of the revised policy.
- A dedicated Illicit Drugs Policy Manager at the AFL, jointly appointed by the AFLPA to support the operation of the framework.
- A suspension range of two to four matches for AFL players for public use of illicit drugs once the revised policy takes effect (pro rata for AFLW players).
Confidentiality obligations will continue, including a sanction of up to $250,000 on a club and individual de-registration if these are found to have been breached.
The revised policy will now be documented and finalised in the coming months, along with an accompanying Clinical Protocol and related arrangements and it will, for the first time, apply to both AFL and AFLW players.
AFL players will transition to the revised policy once the relevant documents have been approved with a view to becoming operational later this year.
AFLW players will receive education on the revised policy and any testing agreed to by the AFL and AFLPA for AFLW players in 2026 will be tested for statistical purposes only and then come under the revised policy from the training start date for the 2027 AFLW pre-season training period and then the 2027 AFLW Season.
AFL Chief Executive Officer Andrew Dillon said:
“The revised IDP will be the most stringent illicit drugs policy in Australian sport, while also remaining clinically informed, and focused on player health and wellbeing.
“The reality is illicit drug use is not an issue unique to sport - it is a broader societal challenge, and our players are not immune from the issues and pressures that exist in the community.
“This revised policy is stronger, more comprehensive and more rigorous. It combines mandatory education, universal hair testing, treatment, monitoring and ongoing support across both AFL and AFLW.
“The policy is an important step forward for our game and reflects the shared commitment of the AFL and the AFLPA.
“I want to thank AFLPA CEO James Gallagher and President Darcy Moore, AFLPA and all players across the AFL and AFLW competitions for the way they have engaged with this work and for supporting this revised policy.”
AFLPA Chief Executive Officer James Gallagher said:
“The AFLPA has worked hard to ensure this revised model protects player welfare, respects appropriate medical confidentiality and gives players access to the support and treatment they need, while also meeting the expectations of the industry and the wider community.
“Through this new policy, we have adopted contemporary expert advice on both the support of players who use illicit substances but is also the most effective way to change behaviour.
“I’d like to thank Andrew, and his team, for their collaborative approach in achieving a policy the industry can be proud of."
AFLPA President Darcy Moore said:
"We are pleased to sign up to a policy that supports players through education, health care, treatment and appropriate safeguards.
“AFL players have signed up to an illicit drug policy for many years with an expectation that it will come with the best care and support available in world sport.”
"Now our AFLW members will also come under the same policy, reinforcing the commitment of all players to a health and wellbeing model."
AFL Executive GM Football Operations Laura Kane said:
“The new IDP recognises the complexity of illicit drug use and the importance of having a clinically robust framework in place for both AFL and AFLW players.
“Our responsibility is to have a policy that does everything it can to help prevent drug use through strong education, deterrence and early intervention, while also ensuring players have access to the right support and treatment if they need it.”
AFL Clubs and the AFL Doctors Association have been consulted on the intended structure and substance of the new IDP and are supportive of it, noting that there remain several more operational matters to be addressed in the long-form IDP and the Clinical Protocol that will support the policy’s operation day-to-day. Sport Integrity Australia has been briefed on the Illicit Drugs Policy.
The revised policy will remain an AFL policy agreed to by the AFLPA and will, in its newly agreed form operate until the end of 2029, when it will be reviewed with a view to introduce any further revised policy in 2030.
The AFL and AFLPA will continue to work together in the coming months to finalise the long-form revised Illicit Drugs Policy and related arrangements.