Port were a founding member of the South Australian Football Association (SAFA) in 1877, wearing an all-pink jersey before moving to the infamous 'prison bar' black and white in 1902.
They won a record-setting 36 SAFA/SANFL Premierships between 1884 and 1999, losing three of the competition's last 12 Grand Finals during their more recent hunt for an elusive drought-breaking flag.
The Power SANFL side are bottom of the ladder in 2026 with 14 losses from 17 matches, and with their AFL side fourth from the bottom following six consecutive defeats.
For a club that has won only one AFL finals match in the last five seasons, 2026 inclusive, something had to give.
Despite the Power not winning a SANFL Premiership for 27 years, club CEO Matthew Richardson has come to the conclusion that the SANFL is of too low a standard for their fringe and development players compared with the VFL, which has all 14 of the AFL's east coast clubs fielding reserve teams (soon to be 15 when Tasmania enters the AFL in 2028).
The Power have long been of the opinion that an AFL Reserves competition will be mutually beneficial for all 18 clubs, a view understandably opposed by both the SANFL and the WAFL who face a significant player talent drain should it arise.
By announcing their exit from the SANFL at the end of 2028, Port Adelaide have laid their cards down on the table.
Whilst their preference is for a national reserves competition, Port Adelaide have left the door open to join the VFL, which would leave crosstown rivals Adelaide Crows with little choice but to join them or be left behind.
"If you look at all the other AFL teams that are operating in other competitions, the quality of the players that they've got around their young players is a very different level to what we're able to do," Richardson said of the SANFL-VFL disparity.
"Port Adelaide has always been about what's next and we have to look at what's going to give us the best chance of winning at AFL and AFLW level.
"There is a sadness to it, but we'll still play footy at Alberton Oval. It's just that we're playing in a different competition."
Adelaide have not recently commented on their short-term future as far as the SANFL is concerned, but have also expressed interest in a national reserves league.
The AFL Reserves competition was in operation from 1919 to 1999 until its merger with the VFL, which has since had an eclectic mixture of AFL reserves teams, affiliates and standalone sides.
Footscray (Western Bulldogs) are the reigning premiers but will not be a part of the finals this year, with Geelong warm favourites to take out the title.
The move comes at a difficult juncture for the SANFL who are facing the prospect of industrial action from players over a significant drop in remuneration.
A survey of more than 200 players in 2025 found the average pre-tax earnings to be just $5000 - equating to about $8 an hour if accounting for 16 hours a week, 39 weeks per year - more than $13,000 less than the average player should have earned at the previous minimum wage of $24.95 per hour.
Some players have met to discuss the potential of a collective bargaining agreement under the Fair Work Act at the same time that the SANFL reported cash earnings of $2.2m in 2025 after accounting for revenue handed to clubs and investment in a newly built high performance centre at the Football Park precinct in West Lakes.
Aaron Murphy has been with Flashscore since 2018 and, as the founding editor of the Australian newsdesk, has reported on-site at several major events in Melbourne including the Australian Open, State of Origin, A-League, NBL and international cricket. You can read his pieces here and contact him on X or LinkedIn.
