Brisbane Lions CEO Greg Swann made the following statement today: 

“There has been a fair amount of hysteria today around the idea of having a real lion at our home games next season.

“Let me be clear in saying it is an idea and only that.

“It is one of a number of initiatives we have discussed as part of planning for the 2015 season, and it has found its way into the media.

“Animal welfare would always be the overwhelming priority in any such idea, but let me stress we are only at a conceptual stage at the moment.

“With the lion set to feature prominently as part of our 2015 marketing campaign, and with the ‘old’ lion returning to the guernsey next season, we simply asked ourselves whether we might be able to add the “real thing” to a match day experience.

“Given the reaction today, we are mindful that people have strong views and we will take that into consideration as we continue to plan for next season.”