The AFL has pledged to appoint a first indigenous member of the sports’s ruling commission by 2018.

Although nine per cent of AFL players are indigenous, commission chairman Mike Fitzpatrick acknowledged more needed to be done regarding representation in other key roles.

“The issue of representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women at all levels of the game remains a significant challenge,” Fitzpatrick said in a statement on Friday.

“The AFL Commission acknowledges that to further advance the influence and contribution of Indigenous Australians, we must work toward better representation in the governance of the game, including the AFL Commission, AFL club boards, state bodies and the community competitions.”

The 18 AFL clubs must agree to the appointment of any new commissioner, who receives a recommendation from a nominations committee.