The league is searching for a replacement for Linda Dessau, who has been appointed Victoria's first female Governor. AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick has said he would like Dessau to remain until July but it seems likely she will leave earlier.

It's understood Browne has the support of Collingwood president Eddie McGuire and West Coast chairman Alan Cransberg, two of the men who would sit on the nominations sub-committee.

Browne had been mooted as a possible successor to Fitzpatrick last year, but the former Carlton premiership captain is believed to want to remain in the top role for a couple more years. Provided Browne could work with Fitzpatrick, he remains the frontrunner to join the nine-member board.

Browne, now based in Western Australia, has a long history in the AFL, and would add crucial free-to-air broadcast knowledge in a year when the AFL will officially open negotiations for a new deal. He played a key role in renegotiating the recent NRL and cricket broadcast rights contracts for Nine.

Asked whether he was open to being approached by the AFL, Browne replied: "It's up to other people to think about that, not me. I am not seeking anything, nor am I coveting anything, nor I am encouraging anybody. I think the people involved in that process will determine how they want to handle it.

"I have got some interesting roles. I am pretty happy at the moment. I have a lot of diverse business interests which I am enjoying."

One of those roles is advising a consortium involved in the potential takeover of Channel Ten – a network likely to bid for a slice of the AFL rights.

"I am also chairman of Holden Special Vehicles, I am on the Carsales board. I have some other projects of my own that I am managing," Browne said.

"I like football. I have had a lot of my time, history, invested in football and I would like to see the AFL do well, the clubs do well. I am obviously interested in football but I am pretty committed to what I am doing."

Browne also recently joined the board of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Wesfarmers boss — and AFL Commissioner — Richard Goyder is the chairman of the JDRF advisory board.

McGuire did not wish to comment when contacted on Tuesday.

Browne had been the AFL's legal adviser for more than two decades before joining Nine. This included working alongside McGuire, then Nine's chief executive. He had also been McGuire's manager.

Browne had been instrumental in changing the AFL's rules and regulations during his time at league headquarters.

He had joined the then VFL after his dealings as an agent and adviser to players in the early 1980s had frustrated clubs and led to several stars changing clubs and securing major pay increases.

The biggest of these was in 1982 when Brownlow medallists Peter Moore (Collingwood) and Kelvin Templeton (Footscray) transferred to Melbourne in a stunning $1 million coup.

In 1985, he agreed to work exclusively for the VFL. Together with Graeme Samuel, he played a major role in developing the AFL Commission, dealt with racial vilification and integrity issues, and helped broker television rights deals.