A fan who touched Richmond player Marlion Pickett from the stands at Marvel Stadium in round 21 has been banned from attending AFL games until the end of the 2024 season.

On Friday, the spectator sitting along the fence leaned over and patted Pickett on the back after a Western Bulldogs goal during the third quarter.

Pickett turned to face the man and swotted at their hand, which had already been taken away.

Richmond general manager of football performance approached Pickett the three-quarter time.

"I think all Marlion was doing was alerting Tim to the fact that something happened, and just getting security to deal with it and the AFL will deal with it now," Tigers coach Andrew McQualter said post-match.

The action sparked calls for life bans. Former Hawthorn and Melbourne player Jordan Lewis said fan-to-player contact in that circumstance should never occur.

"That fan right there should be banned for life," Lewis said.

"I would hope that that fan was ejected straight away and the right process and protocol should be followed.

"It's a no-go zone – that should be worldwide in any sport."

A resulting probe from the league confirmed the man was not a club or AFL member.

"After reviewing the security report and tracing the patron's details from the locations of his seats, the AFL has immediately banned him from attending all AFL / AFLW matches until October 2024," an AFL statement released on Monday read.

AFL executive general manager customer and commercial Kylie Rogers said "when you overstep the boundaries…then you will lose the privilege of being able to attend the footy."

"Our clear message is this - we love the interactions between players and fans especially in the precious moments pre and post-game - however what we saw on Friday night during the match is not acceptable and never will be," Ms Rogers said.