Rampart Talks

Gillon McLachlan: From leading the AFL to Tabcorp

Rampart Talks

Show Notes

The full interview with Gil McLachlan is available exclusively for Rampart subscribers - go to rampart.news to watch now. In this second episode of Rampart Talks, Joe Aston sits down with Gil McLachlan, former CEO of the AFL and now chief executive at Tabcorp. The conversation is wide-ranging, covering his footy legacy, from his regrets over the handling of the Adam Goodes racism scandal to the blockbuster commercial growth of Aussie rules (now comfortably the richest sport in the country) to the messy succession to Gil’s lieutenant Andrew Dillon led by the AFL Commission in 2022 and 2023. Joe also presses Gil on the normalisation, on his watch, of gambling advertising in sport, a natural segue to his new job at Tabcorp, where he was very frank about his belief in the renaissance of racing and the resonance of the Tabcorp brand with young consumers, and his plans to catch up with digital market leader Sportsbet.

Rampart Talks is brought to you by ⁠RESOLVE Forensic⁠, ⁠BHP⁠ and ⁠Ray White Commercial⁠.

About Joe Aston: Joe Aston is one of Australia’s most influential commentators on business, finance and politics. For 12 years, he struck fear into the hearts of the nation’s political and corporate leaders, transforming The Australian Financial Review’s Rear Window into the nation’s premier daily column. In 2024, he became a best-selling author with the publication of his first book, The Chairman’s Lounge: The Inside Story of How Qantas Sold Us Out. And in 2025, he launched ⁠Rampart⁠, a premium subscription news publication specialising in Australian business and finance. Follow Joe Aston on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠X⁠. Follow Rampart on ⁠LinkedIn⁠, ⁠Instagram⁠, ⁠X⁠, ⁠YouTube⁠.

Rampart Talks Producer: Eliza Harvey Production/Editing: Mentored Studios Technical and commercial support: Squiz Media

More from Rampart Talks

Oct 9, 2026

This is just an excerpt. The full interview with GREG BOORER is available exclusively for Rampart subscribers - go to rampart.news to watch now.

Aug 29, 2026

This is just an excerpt. The full interview with MICHAEL LEE is available exclusively for Rampart subscribers - go to rampart.news to watch now.

Jul 25, 2026

This is just an excerpt. The full interview with JOHN MULLEN is available exclusively for Rampart subscribers - go to rampart.news to watch now. John Mullen is the chair of Qantas and one of Australia’s most respected business leaders. He took over as chair in February 2024 when the company was at a low ebb. Long time CEO Alan Joyce had resigned in disgrace the previous year and the company was broadly loathed by the Australian public. Two years later, Mullen says Qantas is in a much stronger position, both because of improved performance metrics like on-time performance but also a better corporate culture and “low ego” environment. As well as his duties at Qantas, Mullen chairs global logistics company Brambles, Treasury Wine Estates, professional services advisory Scyne and is a non-executive director of Brookfield Infrastructure Corporation. In this podcast interview, he speaks about his decades of leadership in the corporate sector, running the port and rail operator Asciano, negotiating with the union movement and working at TNT/Ansett under Rupert Murdoch and Australian corporate legend Sir Peter Abeles, who he calls a mentor. Mullen also discusses his deep passion for maritime history. He helped fund the search for the wreck of the Montevideo Maru, the Japanese warship that was sunk in World War Two carrying Australian prisoners of war, making it the greatest loss of life in the country’s history in one single incident.

Jun 19, 2026

This is just an excerpt. The full interview with TODD GREENBERG is available exclusively for Rampart subscribers - go to rampart.news to watch now.

May 30, 2026

This is just an excerpt. The full interview with RUTHIE ROGERS is available exclusively for Rampart subscribers - go to rampart.news to watch now. American-British restaurant legend Ruthie Rogers is Joe Aston’s guest on this month’s Rampart Talks. She’s the owner of the River Cafe, a Michelin starred Italian restaurant on the banks of the River Thames in London, about halfway between Harrods and Heathrow. This podcast explores the humble beginnings of the restaurant which has become a global phenomenon. In 1987, Rogers and her co-founder Rose Gray had a basic goal: to serve the kind of simple, delicious food they enjoyed eating in Italy. Four decades later, the restaurant is an important stop on the global food trail. Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver was discovered as a young trainee in the restaurant’s kitchen, while over a million copies of The River Cafe Cookbook series have sold internationally. More recently, after the death of her famous architect husband Lord Richard Rogers, Ruthie embarked on a new professional endeavour. Her podcast, Ruthie’s Table 4, has gained a cult following off the back of interviews with celebrities like Paul McCartney and David Beckham, who discuss their memories and life experiences through the lens of food. In this interview with Joe Aston, Ruthie talks about balancing her desire to be in the kitchen with the realities of running a business, how technology has diminished the dining experience and what she reaches for when she needs some comfort food. Rampart Talks is brought to you by ⁠⁠BHP⁠, Evidentia Group and ⁠Ray White Commercial⁠.

See all episodes →