The AFL rich list: There are now more millionaires playing footy than ever, as new figures reveal top stars are benefitting from a salary explosion

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It's been a record year for the AFL, who have posted accounts to its member clubs showing that 2024 was one of the most profitable seasons for the league on record.

That too has been translated into how much some of the game's biggest and best stars are being paid.

Salaries have quickly been on the rise in recent years but in 2024 there was a jump in the number of players earning more than $1million-per-season from their salaries.

In a report published by the AFL on Monday ahead of its Annual General Meeting next month, the league revealed that six new stars have entered the AFL's millionaire's club, meaning that a record 25 players now earn $1m or more.

That figure had sat at 19 in 2023, while the average salary for a footballer who played at least one AFL match in 2024 sat at $493,592 - a $20,000 hike on the previous year's figures.

There have also been changes at the top of the pay structure, with 10 players now earning $1.2m in 2024. Only eight players had received the same remuneration in 2023, while three players entered the $1m to 1.1m bracket.

The AFL has posted some huge accounting returns for last year, with multiple stars earning over $1million 

Six more players joined the league's top earners to earn over $1m, with 25 stars now included in the millionaire club 

Meanwhile, the AFL has also posted huge financial returns for the season and has increased its funding to several areas, including the AFLW and the AFLPA  

With player salaries now just touching the $500,000 mark, the AFL has seen a rise in a player's average income of 103 per cent since 2010.

During that year, only four players earned over $900,000.

It is believed, according to journalist Callum Twomey, that the likes of Christian Petracca, retired Tigers legend Dustin Martin and his former team-mate Tom Lynch were all believed to be in the top payment rung.

Demons star Clayton Oliver and Patrick Cripps of Carlton were others to be some of the league's highest earners.

The rise in player pay is set to continue to shoot up, with clubs forking out $15.8m each last season - a staggering rise of $800,000 from 2023.

The AFL is also banking big earnings, with the league reporting an underlying operating surplus of $45.4m in 2024 - a rise of $17.7m from the previous year.

The AFL had last announced such figures back in 2018, when profits boomed to $50.4m but the effect of the pandemic had 'exhausted' their funds.

And after such a healthy financial year, the league has announced moves to fund a number of key areas including the AFLW.

'As a business, we will continue to look closely at our long-term planning for our competition structure, support for our elite clubs, attracting talented athletes to be part of our AFLW and AFL competitions and investing into facilities for our fans and our grassroots clubs as well as continuing to support the 200,000 volunteers who make our game possible to so many,' AFL Commision chair Richard Goyder said.

The AFL revealed that last year it gave $63.7m to running the AFLW, a rise from $57.2m the previous year, while it has also given $49.9m to the AFLPA in a bid to help injured players, player development and their retirement fund.