North Melbourne lock in deal for 'home' games in WA

North Melbourne have trumpeted securing their financial future after finalising a deal to play two ‘home’ fixtures in Western Australia for each of the next three years.

The Kangaroos will host one match at Optus Stadium in Perth and one at Bunbury’s Hands Oval against WA clubs Fremantle and West Coast from 2025-2027.

The deal is part of North’s strategy to exit Tasmania, where they have played at least two home matches each year since 2012.

North’s men’s team will not play any more home games in Tasmania after next year, having played four per year at Hobart’s Blundstone Arena in recent seasons.

Two of those home matches will return to Victoria from 2026 onwards, with the other two to be played in WA.

Kangaroos chief executive Jennifer Watt said the agreement with the AFL, WA government and Tourism WA would provide significant benefits to the club.

“This is a great outcome for the club in that we are able to bring two games back to our Melbourne heartland supporters while securing our financial future,” Watt said in a statement on Wednesday.

“The club began planning for our post-Tasmania future once Tasmania was granted an AFL licence.

“Having explored a number of options, this three-year agreement stood alone in delivering multiple benefits to the club, our members and supporters.”

Watt is adamant the new deal will help to ensure the Arden Street precinct remains North Melbourne’s “forever home”.

“Enhancing our facilities and expanding our footprint within the Arden Precinct will always be at the heart of our long-term strategy,” Watt said.

“From a financial perspective, this opportunity in Western Australia will go a long way to ensuring we can continue to do that alongside fully funded football departments.

“Underpinning the club’s finances also enables us to refocus and invest in talent identification and fan development in our Next Generation Academies.

“We are a club with a long, proud history of challenging the status quo and we see this opportunity as another significant moment in our history.”

In 2025, North Melbourne will host games in WA on successive weekends in June.

The Kangaroos will take on West Coast at Hands Oval in round 13 before tackling Fremantle at Optus Stadium in round 14.

North Melbourne have enjoyed some recent success in WA, winning three of their past five games at Optus Stadium.

Kangaroos football boss Todd Viney highlighted Hawthorn as an example of a team that had great success while playing some games in a secondary market.

The Hawks won four premierships under current North coach Alastair Clarkson while playing a portion of home games in Launceston.

“Clarko’s great Hawthorn era was built while playing four games in Tasmania, so we see no reason why we can’t do the same here at North Melbourne,” Viney said.

“We have always said that we want to be a team that can win games anywhere, any time and we have shown in the recent past that playing in Perth is a trip we embrace with two wins from our last three visits to Optus Stadium.”