The AFL has guaranteed it will retain all of its 18 clubs in their current composition when the competition shutdown ends.

"We are going into this with 18 clubs and we'll come out with 18 clubs," AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan told SEN.

While the economic impact of coronavirus has been severe, McLachlan hosed down widespread speculation about the ability of some debt-riddled clubs to merge, relocate or go out of business altogether.

"That's our commitment over the next four, six, eight, 10 months, whatever it looks like, that we will have the same structure at the elite level,” McLachlan said.

"There's a whole lot of speculation going on about that and I'm not going to add to speculation … it's not something I've thought about or buying into.

"Right now our task is to preserve our revenue streams, cut costs, raise liquidity, have a focus on the other side [of the shutdown] so when we can restart in June, July, August, September, whatever that period is, we start with the 18 teams in the locations they are, playing AFL football.

"We're dealing with the issues at hand, and doing that in the knowledge that hopefully our supporters and our members come out of this tough period going, 'I can't wait to go and watch my team'.

"I want them to know that's the total focus."