Brendon Gale to be inaugural CEO of new Tasmania team after announcing departure from Tigers

Richmond boss Brendon Gale has informed club members he will depart the Tigers, with the new Tasmania team announcing him as their inaugural CEO.

Richmond chief executive and one of the key architects behind the club’s triple premiership success Brendon Gale has announced his departure from the club.

Gale will on Friday afternoon be announced as the Tasmanian chief executive and start in the new role next year.

The Devils are set to announce Gale ahead of an afternoon press conference in what shapes as the perfect appointment given his AFL nous and Tasmanian roots.

Gale can set the vision for the club alongside its board and try to broker a deal for the Macquarie Point stadium, with former Tigers spearhead Jack Riewoldt also working on the soul and culture of the AFL’s 19th franchise.

Tasmanian chairman Grant O’Brien said it was a watershed day for the new club.

“Not only have we got a highly successful and proven AFL Club CEO, we have also tempted home a proud son of Tasmania,” he said.

“Brendon grew up on the North West Coast of Tasmania, and before his incredible 244-game career at AFL level, he played his early football for Burnie Hawks and represented Tasmanian four times.

“This is an enormous vote of confidence in our Club.

“Brendon is fully committed to focussing on completing his role at the Richmond Football Club in the same professional manner that has been a feature of his leadership at the Club, and while we are excited, we respect the fact that he has a big job to complete before we can welcome him home to Tasmanian football.”

Brendon Gale (L) with the 2019 premiership cup. (AAP Image/Michael Dodge)

In a move that has been flagged for several months, Gale told Tigers members on Friday morning that 2024 would be his last year at the helm.

“I have spent half my life at this club as an administrator and player. It is time for me to embark on a new challenge, and for the club to write the next chapter,” Gale said.

“I’ll remain absolutely focused on the job at hand for the coming months. It is an exciting and challenging period for us on and off the field.

“The breadth and depth of our leadership is a real feature of our club, and we are all getting on with the job at hand and that is where my energies will be focused.”

It will end 15 years in the role as he helped to transform the club from perennial cellar dweller to creating a dynasty that broke a 37-year premiership drought in 2017, followed by flags in 2019 and 2020.

He also helped to turn the Tigers into a financial powerhouse.

Gale also played 244 games with Richmond over 12 years between 1990 and 2001, before taking over as CEO in late 2009.

Richmond president John O’Rourke said: “Brendon has been an outstanding leader of our football club and will continue to play that role in the coming months.”

“He has kept the board informed as he has worked through this decision, wanting to ensure a smooth transition.

“There will be a time and a place for all of us to get together and properly pay tribute to the remarkable contribution Brendon has made to this Club.”

Originally published as Brendon Gale to be inaugural CEO of new Tasmania team after announcing departure from Tigers