Hawthorn president Jeff Kennett says the stranglehold the AFL's richest clubs have on success is the code's "big sleeper" issue.

Kennett said there was no obvious solution, because as well as winning more often, the powerhouse clubs tend to receive broader television exposure and more blockbuster games.

That brought more revenue, enabling more off-field resources, which helped deliver further on-field success, in a self-propagating cycle.

Kennett said within the next two or three years, 10 of the league's 18 clubs would be receiving special financial assistance from the AFL, an imbalance that countered the equalisation effect of the draft and salary cap.

"The big sleeper is how we are going to be able to offer consistently a fair competition between those clubs that make up the AFL," Kennett said at a pre-match function before the Hawks played Geelong on Tuesday.

"There is no simple answer, but it's not of much value if some clubs are never really going to be given the opportunity to climb the ladder.

"Even with the draft, if a club isn't financially strong, it has very little chance, I think, of getting into the top four."

Kennett said the AFL was currently occupied with three big issues - a new media rights deal, which could be finalised this week, a new agreement with players and firmly establishing expansion clubs Gold Coast and Greater Western Sydney.

But he said the financial divide needed to be their next key agenda item.

Kennett cited Collingwood and Essendon's annual Anzac Day game, which drew almost 90,000 fans on Monday, and the Hawks' stand-alone MCG clash with the Cats, as examples of the valuable exposure provided for clubs that needed it least.

"The clubs that really need the opportunity to have an audience are never given the opportunity to do so," he said.

Kennett opposed the notion of a cap on off-field spending, saying the weak clubs needed to be strengthened, not the strong clubs weakened.

He said the fact that the Hawks, Geelong and Collingwood had all emerged from dire financial situations not too long ago, to become strong should give hope to current strugglers.

But he said the current divide was so entrenched, the AFL needed to help fix it.

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP