The AFL unveiled its women’s competition logo on Monday morning, marking what CEO Gillon McLachlan calls “a new era in Australian sport”.

The bold logo, dubbed “the final piece in the puzzle” of the league that has been years in the making, coincides with a new name. Now, the women’s league will be referred to as ‘AFL Women’s’, or by its acronym, AFLW.

The AFL says its new coral logo “celebrates our women players and the excitement they will create on and off the field”. While the ‘W’ pays tribute to the heritage of the AFL logo, the design also integrates four goal posts and a goal square. 

Introducing our new logo! #AFLW

A video posted by AFL Women’s (@aflwomens) on Sep 18, 2016 at 3:19pm PDT

“These players are powerful and engaging athletes that have already captured the heart of the nation and will bring us a new and exciting brand of football, inspiring future generations,” McLachlan said.

“With the creation of the AFL ‘W’ we want fans to see and experience the game from a new perspective.”

McLachlan says the branding of AFLW, which was done in consultation with the AFL Women’s Advisory Group, shows a significant commitment to the women’s league.

“We have been thrilled by the public and media groundswell to the announcement of AFL Women’s and today’s launch of AFL ‘W’ further cements our commitment to  building this premium sporting code where fans can engage and be a part of the action.”

AFL Women’s will launch in February 2017.