AFL legend Luke Hodge has stood down from the All-Australian selection panel over concerns about a conflict of interest with his relationship with betting agency TAB. The announcement comes just one week after fellow selector and Agenda Setters colleague Kane Cornes made a similar decision, stepping away from the committee due to his ties with Sportsbet.
Hodge revealed he was initially shocked by the conflict of interest issue when it emerged last week, admitting he wasn’t aware there was a problem or that people could bet on All-Australian selections.
“I was a bit shocked last week with the move that Kane did, because I didn’t know there was a conflict,” Hodge said on Channel 7’s The Agenda Setters. “Since then, I’ve done the same as what Kane has done, and I’ve stood down from the committee.”
Hodge only joined the All-Australian panel this year, which also votes on the Rising Star award. He said he made the decision to protect the integrity of the selection process, particularly as he hadn’t yet attended a single committee meeting.
“You just, because you don’t want the integrity questioned of anything like that,” Hodge said. “So I’ve had a longstanding relationship with TAB. I haven’t even joined a meeting yet with the All-Australian committee, so I thought it was the best thing after speaking to the AFL today that I’ll stand down and let the panel go ahead.”
“Just so the integrity of the side when it gets picked, there’s no questions over it.”
The AFL has accepted Hodge’s decision, with the league expressing understanding about his concerns following the controversy that emerged last week.
“They totally understood. Obviously, with what Kane went through last week, and I said I was shocked with it, didn’t realise there was a conflict,” Hodge said. “When it comes down to the integrity of something as serious as the All-Australian team, yeah, they accepted it and they said no problems at all.”
Sportsbet recently made a rule that people on their books could not hold official AFL roles. That decision was made after AFL umpire Nick Foot was thrust into the spotlight in Round 5 following his report of Port Adelaide star Zak Butters. Foot was, but is no longer, a horse racing analyst with the betting giant.
After Sportsbet made its policy change, Cornes later said he had no option but to stand down from the All-Australian selection panel. Cornes had been on the All-Australian selection panel since 2022.
He said he “could have walked away” from his partnership with Sportsbet but wanted to honour his far-reaching deal with the company. “I would have been breaking a contract that I’ve got that’s in place,” Cornes said. “Clearly don’t have the same contract at the AFL ... Sportsbet are a major partner of everything I do. So every show that I’m on, Sportsbet are a major partner.”
Cornes reiterated it was Sportsbet’s choice and the AFL had no complaints about its officials being linked to betting companies. Foot, who remains an AFL umpire, was also continually backed by the league to continue working with Sportsbet as a horse racing analyst.
