The introduction of a mid-season tournament was among a group of options to change the structure of the AFL fixture presented to club bosses on Monday.

At the first day of a two-day summit for the competition’s chief executives on the Gold Coast on Monday, the league presented four different alternative structures for the competition, which would come alongside the forthcoming entry of Tasmania in 2028.

The most revolutionary of the concepts is for the home-and-away season to be reduced to 20 games to accommodate the introduction of a separate mid-season tournament, which would last for three weeks.

Clubs would be split into four groups of five, with the 20th spot to be taken by a side comprised of the best players from around the country’s State leagues.

Another option which would dramatically shift the shape of the season is for the competition’s top 16 sides split into four groups of four in the final final three weeks of the season, with results from the ‘group stage’ games to help determine placings inside the top 10.

The other options were for the home and away season to be reduced to 22 games and for Gather Round to be scrapped, or an expansion to 24 games, which would be accompanied by the introduction of a second neutral round.

An in-season tournament being introduced would mark another major change to the AFL after the top eight was expanded to a top 10 and the Wildcard Finals Round was introduced ahead of this season.

But the idea reportedly failed to garner much interest from club bosses, with the 24-game home and away season or the ‘group stage’ option considered the early leading contenders.

The NBA introduced an in-season tournament in 2023 and global soccer competitions also incorporate cups alongside a league season.