"Hardest things I’ve done": Chris Fagan confirms Lions exit

Brisbane Lions coach Chris Fagan has stepped down from his position after winning a third premiership with the club.

The 65-year-old, who last week told SEN he was unsure of his immediate plans, announced his plans on Thursday afternoon before confirming that he and his wife would be returning to Melbourne.

Fagan spoke today after the revelation.

“After 10 fantastic years here at the footy club, I’ve decided to not be an AFL coach anymore,” Fagan said.

“It’s a job that I’ve loved. I can’t believe how well I’ve been embraced by the footy club, the people of Brisbane and our own fans.

“I’ve always felt the love. So, I’m ever grateful for the time that I’ve had here as a coach.

“I’m really proud of how far the club has come in that time because things weren’t great when we all first started on this journey together.

“But now we’ve got lots of members and we fill our stadium and we’re successful on the field and all of those sorts of things.

“My aim was always to hopefully leave the club in a better position than what it was when I turned up, and I feel like we are in a good position now, so I am fairly pleased with that.

“I’m not claiming all of that, I’m just saying I was part of that process. So many people have done so many great things to make the team what it is.

“All of our staff here, the way that we prepare them, our coaches, our fitness people, our medical people, Danny Daly who does a great job at running the whole football department.

“It’s just a great place to come to work. Our players are fantastic. And our recruiting staff have done a brilliant job to bring players in from other clubs or draft players, 18-year-old boys into our club that have become really great players for us.

“A lot of things have gone right to bring the success that we’ve had. I’ve probably just reached a point where the responsibility and the pressure of being an AFL coach is relentless.

“I’ve been doing it for 10 years and, pretty much, you eat, sleep, and breathe it every day of the year.

“I’ve just got to the stage where I just don’t want to do that anymore. I still love footy, I still want to work in footy, somewhere, but I just don’t want to be in that position anymore.

“I’ve loved it, it’s a unique experience. It’s not a place for the faint hearted, but I think after 10 years, I owe it to my family to give them a little bit more time because I’ve got grandchildren and stuff now and I’ve softened a bit in my old age.

“I liked the idea of spending a bit of time with them, and so that’s what I’ll do.

“But I’ll just say this – I’m ever so grateful that the club took a punt on me because it was a punt. I wasn’t a big name in AFL footy.

“Most of the players didn’t know who I was when I first turned up, so I’m grateful that they gave me that opportunity.

“I’m pleased that I’ve been able to do a good job for the club in that time. It’s been a bit of an emotional day, telling the players.

“I’ve actually done a better job with this than I did with the players, because they are sort of like my sons.”

Fagan took over at the Lions ahead of the 2017 season and coached the club in 243 games for 148 wins, two draws and 93 defeats.

His first two seasons yielded just 10 wins before he masterminded a finals appearance in 2019.

They’ve remained in September ever since, winning one final in 2020 and making the Preliminary Final that year, before bettering that in 2023.

The ’23 Grand Final loss to Collingwood spawned a new Lions dynasty with the club taking out the 2024 flag over Sydney, then again in 2025 over Geelong and completing the three-peat just last weekend against Fremantle.

Fagan is one of just seven coaches to win a three-peat.

He is the only coach who did not play at V/AFL level to win a flag at the elite level.

The last long-time premiership coach to harmoniously depart after lifting the cup was Frank 'Checker' Hughes at Melbourne back in 1948.