AFL tells Sportsbet to pull AI videos of stars
The AFL has told its official betting partner Sportsbet to stop putting players in AI-generated videos without their permission — and to take the clips down.
The order covers a run of age-restricted videos posted to social media. In them, AFL stars appeared to deliver lines from films, TV shows and famous speeches, recut to react to real footy moments. Sportsbet designed the clips to lift engagement and reach new audiences and customers, according to Guardian Australia.
Two examples stood out. One showed Lachie Neale, a Brisbane Lions premiership player now at Collingwood, accepting an award in a video manipulated to copy Snoop Dogg’s 2018 Hollywood Walk of Fame speech. Another showed Brisbane Lions midfielder Will Ashcroft screaming a line from the TV drama Ozark: “If you want to stop me you’re going to have to fucking kill me.”
Ashcroft is a dual Norm Smith medallist, meaning he has twice been judged best on ground in a Grand Final. Sportsbet framed that clip as a response to Fremantle playing its “Wharfie Time” song during the final quarter of the 2026 AFL Grand Final.
The videos were not limited to players. Sportsbet also made AI content using the likeness of Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell and former North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson.
The pushback came from the players’ union. The AFL Players’ Association wrote to the AFL late last week to argue the videos breached the collective bargaining agreement — the league-wide pay and conditions deal that also sets strict limits on how partners can use player images.
Alex Taverner, the association’s general manager of legal affairs, said AI-generated player imagery is not allowed without the players’ approval. The association said the AFL will now work with Sportsbet to remove the content.
The clips disappeared from Sportsbet’s Instagram page on Tuesday afternoon, 13 October, after Guardian Australia contacted the company.
An AFL spokesperson said the league would keep working closely with partners on the use of AI as the technology evolves. A Sportsbet spokesperson said the company listens to partners’ feedback, responds accordingly, and is continuing to work with the AFL on the evolving use of AI in its content.
What makes this stand out is the rulebook has not caught up. The 2023-2027 bargaining agreement lets Sportsbet use player images and vision without permission only in certain circumstances, and with restrictions. It makes no mention of AI.
For fans, this means the debate is bigger than a few deleted posts. Australia’s federal government has already legislated to ban athletes from appearing in gambling ads, with those rules to take effect next year.
