Legends Alert: Here Are The First Eight Teams In The AFL's Inaugural National Women's League

Eight, apparently, is enough.

The eight teams kicking-off the inaugural season for the AFL's national women’s league were announced at the MCG today, and it’s good news for some and just okay news for others.

According to the Herald Sun, Adelaide-North Territory, Brisbane Lions, Carlton, Collingwood, Fremantle, Greater Western Sydney, Melbourne and Western Bulldogs will all get a Guernsey in the 2017 season.

Geelong, North Melbourne, Richmond, St. Kilda and West Coast, sadly, were unsuccessful in their bids. (Geelong, North Melbourne, Richmond and St. Kilda, however, were granted provisional licences for future seasons, perhaps as early as 2018).

Each successful squad will wear the same jumpers and share the same anthems as their male counterparts.

Interestingly, the onus will not be on the clubs themselves to pay the players. Rather, the AFL will pony up salaries, ranging from $10,000 to $25,000 (for the top tier players).

During the announcement, AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick noted that “our game will never be the same.”

“The number of women and girls playing club football has doubled over the past five years, as record growth year-on-year has seen female participation reach 25 per cent of the total number of Australians playing our indigenous game.

“The establishment of a national women’s league will provide a platform to inspire young girls to reach for the stars and provide another avenue for fans of Australian football to enjoy.”

The women’s league is expected to run for two months in early 2017. It’ll be comprised of seven home-and-away rounds plus finals, which will take place in February and March.

Get excited. This is happening.

Photo: Twitter.