The AFL has reportedly ruled out the introduction of the smart-ball technology in the 2025 men's season, with CEO Andrew Dillon flagging the need for more improvements.
The league welcomed the ball-tracking score review system to the AFLW, which was able to determine whether a ball had crossed the goal line, hit the post or was touched in flight, providing Score Assist Officials (SAO) with real-time alerts indicating what has occurred.
However, the system ran into a roadblock during a clash between Collingwood and Gold Coast, resulting in the AFL admitting a costly error during the score review process.
The new ball-tracking technology had wrongly overturned a crucial goal from Suns star Jamie Stanton, with the mistake ultimately gifting the Pies a three-point victory.
The review incorrectly recorded that the ball had been touched by a Collingwood player.
AFL spokespersons confirmed that human error was at fault, admitting the protocols for overturning the goal were not fully followed.
"The ball-tracking technology incorrectly recorded that the ball was touched after the kick. The official intervened based on one angle of vision, which supported the ball tracking data. Further vision at half-time, which should have been inspected earlier, showed that the decision was wrong," the statement in September said.
Speaking to the Herald Sun, Dillon put a line through introducing the score review mechanism to the men's competition in 2025 but was impressed with how far it's come.
"We have been really happy with the way it has gone in (AFL)W, but we want to continue to make sure it is as good as it can be before it goes any further," Dillon said.