It was the first season of a restructured two-division competition, in which automatic promotion and relegation between the divisions was abandoned.
One factor contributing to this came about as a result of the promotion and relegation system which existed between the two divisions: this system, which had been in place since 1961, saw promotion for the Division 2 premiers and relegation for the Division 1 wooden-spooners at the end of each season, giving a fair opportunity for promotion and relegation based on on-field performance;[1] but, the automatic nature of this promotion and relegation meant that no consideration was given to the off-field strength of the club, which was the most critical factor in determining a club's viability.
The conclusion was that the Association would be more viable if the clubs which made up Division 1 were selected based on off-field merit and viability, rather than on-field results.
Under the new structure:[3] The Association also encouraged a number of its weaker clubs to consider amalgamating with neighbouring clubs to improve long-term viability, although it stopped short of forcing amalgamations.
As many as fourteen of the Association's twenty clubs were sent letters on the matter of amalgamation during 1981 – Prahran and Caulfield,[5] Box Hill and Camberwell, and Oakleigh and Waverley were amongst the pairs of clubs known to have been approached[6] – but no amalgamations resulted.
Two Division 1 clubs were relegated for 1982:[7] Two other clubs who were considered for relegation but held their places were: Geelong West, who had gone through but recovered from a severe financial crisis in 1980–81; and Coburg, who, like Brunswick, was suffering from a low fanbase due to demographic shifts in its locality.