Melbourne part ways with CEO after seven months in the job
Melbourne has parted ways with CEO Paul Guerra after just seven months in the role, despite the team's strong start to the 2026 AFL season. Brian Cook has been named interim CEO after previously being brought in to mentor Guerra. The club has faced off-field scrutiny following a controversial pre-season meeting involving players' partners and a breach of confidentiality. No official reason has been given for Guerra's departure.
Full article excerpt tap to expand
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","dateModified":"2026-04-28T03:13:46Z","datePublished":"2026-04-28T03:13:46Z","description":"The Demons have started the season well on the field, but Paul Guerra’s time as CEO has ended after just seven months. ","headline":"Former Cats, Blues CEO takes interim role after Demons’ sudden split with Guerra","keywords":"AFL 2026, Just in Age, Melbourne Demons","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Michael Gleeson","jobTitle":"Sports columnist","url":"/by/michael-gleeson-hveeu"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Sam McClure","jobTitle":"Sports reporter","url":"/by/sam-mcclure-gnigix"}],"mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/melbourne-part-ways-with-ceo-after-seven-months-in-the-job-20260428-p5zrqa.html","@type":"WebPage"},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","height":"1322.6666666666665","url":"https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.2789%2C$multiply_0.7025%2C$ratio_1.777778%2C$width_1059%2C$x_38%2C$y_0/t_crop_custom/q_86%2Cf_auto/a83175834771ea6ce00207df1b4ede88f42e7bd4","width":"744"},"isAccessibleForFree":false,"hasPart":[{"@type":"WebPageElement","isAccessibleForFree":false,"cssSelector":".paywall"}],"publisher":{"@type":"NewsMediaOrganization","name":"The Sydney Morning Herald","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","height":"628","url":"https://www.smh.com.au/metro-assets/assets/static/smh.png","width":"1200"},"url":"https://www.smh.com.au"},"isPartOf":{"@type":["CreativeWork","Product"],"name":"The Sydney Morning Herald","productID":"smh.com.au:webonly"}}{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","item":{"@id":"https://www.smh.com.au/sport","name":"Sport"},"position":1},{"@type":"ListItem","item":{"@id":"https://www.smh.com.au/sport/afl","name":"AFL"},"position":2},{"@type":"ListItem","item":{"@id":"https://www.smh.com.au/topic/afl-2026-6i11","name":"AFL 2026"},"position":3}]}AdvertisementUpdatedSportAFLAFL 2026Former Cats, Blues CEO takes interim role after Demons’ sudden split with GuerraMichael Gleeson and Sam McClureApril 28, 2026 — 1:13pmSaveYou have reached your maximum number of saved items.Remove items from your saved list to add more.ShareAAAMelbourne have parted ways with chief executive Paul Guerra only seven months after he started in the job.The move was reported by multiple media outlets on Tuesday and was independently verified by this masthead. The Age has contacted Guerra, the Demons and club president Steven Smith.Demons chief executive Paul Guerra.Luis Enrique AscuiBrian Cook, a friend and former teammate of Smith – also a former CEO of West Coast, Geelong and Carlton – will become interim CEO after initially being recruited to mentor Guerra on a part-time basisGuerra started the role officially in September last year after he was appointed in April 2025.AdvertisementEditor's pickAFL 2026Spat on, heckled, treated differently: The issue forcing players out of local footy“I’m really clear around values. I think the football club has a wonderful set of values. I can bind to those and I’m sure everyone in the organisation does,” Guerra told the club website in his first interview as chief executive.“I’m also really clear on strategy. If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there. Let’s be really clear around where we’re going. The values then lead to a culture.”At the time of his appointment he was CEO of the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.The Demons have enjoyed a bright start to…
This excerpt is published under fair use for community discussion. Read the full article at The Sydney Morning Herald.