NORTH Melbourne will sign a lucrative 3-year deal with Ballarat that may take low-drawing AFL matches to Victoria's third-biggest city.

The agreement with Ballarat, believed to be worth more than $500,000 to the club, to be signed today, will enable the Kangaroos cement its commitment to the region, the Herald Sun reports.

The short-term objectives include a community relationship between the club and the famous city, a regional challenge game and potentially an NAB Cup match.

But it is believed the success of the partnership could pave the way for the long-term opportunity of playing three or four home-and-away games in Ballarat, if funding for a new stadium can be found.

Those games would potentially be against non-Victorian clubs such as Port Adelaide and Fremantle.

The parties are believed to be considering approaching state and federal governments to fund a boutique stadium, of which the Kangaroos could become a shareholder.

"You never say never," Arocca said of Ballarat possibly hosting its first AFL match.

"If we got a strong supporter base there over the next two to five years, we could be arguing for something like that."

Ballarat chief executive Anthony Schinck was buoyant about the deal.

"We would love to see an AFL game played here in Ballarat," Schinck said.

"We are really positioning Ballarat as the capital regional city for western Victoria. Part of that positioning is to create an aspiration about what we can provide for people living in regional Victoria. This three-year agreement sets out the beginning of that relationship."

Read more at the Herald Sun Superfooty site