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Queensland Footy History
Qld
Footy History Overview
19th Century
1903 to 1914
1915 to 1926
1927 to 1940
1941 to 1958
1959 to 1971
1972 to 1986
1987 to 1999
2000 to 2010
2011 to present
Qld Footy Hall of Fame
Qld Players in VFL/AFL
Brisbane Lions History
Gold Coast Suns History
The AFL Competition - Overview and History
Gold Coast Suns History
In
April 2008, a group headed by Gold Coast businessman John Witheriff and
including former Brisbane Lions chairman Graeme Downie, officially applied
for the 17th club licence in the AFL. The group, dubbed ‘GC17’,
was given six months to fulfil a range of criteria set down by the AFL, with
a view to the new club entering the AFL competition in 2011.
The criteria, which included the acquisition of 20,000 committed supports
and 111 sponsors, were all met by the group, and at the conclusion of the
six months, on 13th October 2008, the group formally submitted its proposal to
the AFL for consideration.
In the years leading up to the birth of the Suns, the AFL had expressed a strong desire to have
a team based on the Gold Coast by 2011, and a provisional licence was
awarded to the club in March 2009. Initially the AFL had
made an offer to the North Melbourne club to relocate to the Coast, although
the Kangaroos ultimately rejected the proposal. From a Gold Coast
perspective, it may indeed be preferable to have a completely new team, one
which has been born and developed locally, and which has more of a Gold Coast
character about it as a result.
The team's original name, Gold Coast FC, and colours, red, gold and blue, were
launched in early September 2008 at a gala function at the Southport Sharks
club.
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