\u201cAn active player focusing on their current playing career, will pursue a venue with existing hospitality professionals, those of which can focus completely on the business, with an AFL player taking more of a consultancy role until such time as they are ready to commit their entire focus post playing career,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Here is a glimpse at some of the hospitality ventures owned by AFL players:<\/p>\n
Spotswood Hotel, Spotswood<\/p>\n
In late 2025, a hospitality group comprised of past and present Western Bulldogs as investors snapped up the historic Spotswood Hotel.<\/p>\n
The Mona Castle Group led by ex-Bulldog Lukas Webb, former Footscray VFL player Bradley Olsson and their mate Nicholas Schultze purchased the venue at 62 Hudsons Rd, Spotswood.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Spottyhotel.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
The Spotswood Hotel was acquired by the Mona Castle Group in 2025. Picture: Supplied<\/p>\n
Western Bulldogs vice-captain Tom Liberatore and former full-forward Jack Redpath, were among the group\u2019s backers.<\/p>\n
Mr Connolly said the hotel\u2019s sales price was undisclosed, with the off-market deal completed following months of negotiations.<\/p>\n
According to the Victorian Heritage Council, the Spotswood Hotel was built in 1888, and was formerly known as the Spottiswoode Hotel and is significant for its association with the Spottiswoode family for the suburb\u2019s namesake.<\/p>\n
Mr Connolly said the hotel which featured a beer garden, bistro and restaurant space, had undergone a significant ground floor refurbishment.<\/p>\n
The group also owns the Ascot Vale Hotel, and the Mona Castle Hotel in Seddon.<\/p>\n
Whiplash Cafe, Hawthorn<\/p>\n
A love of coffee saw two mates, former Collingwood defender Jordan Roughead and hospitality heavyweight Jordan Faulkner team up to open Whiplash Caf\u00e9 in Hawthorn in late 2021.<\/p>\n
The old school style milk bar \u2013 which had sat idle for years \u2013 was transformed into a takeaway style, \u2018pandemic-practical caf\u00e9.\u2019<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/WhiplashCafe.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Whiplash Cafe in Hawthorn, owned by Jordan Roughead and business partner Jordan Faulkner. Picture: Supplied<\/p>\n
Located at 226 Auburn Road, Hawthorn, Whiplash Caf\u00e9 is also owned by AFL players Callum Brown, Nathan Murphy and Brody Mihocek, alongside chef Will Steele.<\/p>\n
Four-and-a-half years since Whiplash Caf\u00e9 opened, Mr Steele said they would like to think the business was something of an institution in the area.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can pretty much operate off our regulars alone and then people that come to the area is certainly an added bonus,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He said many Collingwood players frequent the caf\u00e9, particularly because the club\u2019s in-house osteopath is located across the road.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, just last month the team expanded their hospitality offerings with the opening of a diner, named Aftermath in Prahran.<\/p>\n
Doutta Gala Hotel, Kensington<\/p>\n
Former AFL players Luke Hodge, known for playing for the Brisbane Lions and Hawthorn Football Club, and Andrew Walker, from the Carlton Football Club, were among the investors involved with the new look Doutta Gala Hotel in Kensington, which underwent significant renovations giving it a new lease of life.<\/p>\n
Located at 339 Racecourse Road, Kensington, the historic hotel first opened its doors in 1889, and after almost a year of works, it reopened to the public, retaining its famous heritage red doors, and offering patrons a public bar, restaurant, outdoor dining and function spaces.<\/p>\n
East End Wine Bar, Hawthorn East<\/p>\n
Melbourne Football Club captain Max Gawn is a co-owner of East End Wine Bar in Hawthorn East, which opened in 2019, inside the century-old former Young\u2019s Auction House.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/MaxGawnEastEnd1.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Max Gawn and East End Wine Bar ownership group (from left to right) Phil Gjisbergs, Craig Tate and Richard Donovan. Picture: News Corp<\/p>\n
The wine bar serves pizzas and snacks designed to share, and an array of \u2018carefully selected\u2019 wines from young and emerging winemakers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Venturing into the world of hospitality has become an increasingly popular venture among the AFL player fraternity, where…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":517164,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,85],"class_list":["post-517163","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-afl","tag-afl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australian-football-league","tag-australianfootballleague","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/517163","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=517163"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/517163\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/517164"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=517163"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=517163"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=517163"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}