THE AFL will consider playing an exhibition match in India as part of a strategy to build momentum for the establishment of a club in western Sydney.

In an extraordinary instalment in the national code's effort to spread its gospel, the AFL believes a match in India could capture the attention of a sizeable west Asian population in Sydney that has not previously been engaged with the sport.

It may sound unorthodox, but both NSW/ACT AFL general manager Dale Holmes and AFL chief broadcasting and commercial boss Gillon McLachlan confirmed that a game in India was under investigation because of the ripple effect it could have on the western Sydney project. Holmes is likely to travel to India next month to meet with authorities and Australian connections to investigate the logistics.

"Part of the game plan (now that western Sydney has been confirmed as a home for an extra AFL team) is how we build profile and recognition for our game," Holmes said.

"A game in India could create great government relations, trade relations, business relationships and enable us to gain significant exposure in community media in Australia. It gives us a chance to build awareness in those communities … There are obvious reasons why you would do exhibition games in specific markets where there's government, business and community relations opportunities."

The AFL has staged several games overseas, most recently an exhibition match in South Africa last month between Fremantle and Carlton and a pre-season match between Collingwood and Adelaide in Dubai. Four clubs — Fremantle, Carlton, West Coast and Collingwood — have taken their AFL community camps to South Africa in the past 15 months with some speculating about the possibility of AFL recruits coming out of South Africa. Some clubs believe the expanding football competition there could one day result in AFL recruits.

Holmes said if a game went ahead, it would most be likely held in 2009 or 2010 to coincide with the founding of the western Sydney club.

The AFL has stated it wants the new club in operation by 2010 to give it a two-year lead-in to a 2012 on-field debut.

McLachlan said India was a realistic goal and added that exhibition games could also soon be played in China and the US.