Fox Sports makes HORRIBLE mistake in farewell for retiring AFL star as they confuse him with another Indigenous player

Footy fans have called out a glaring error from Fox Sports that saw the broadcaster mix up the identities of two Indigenous AFL stars in a tribute piece.

The pay TV network showed West Coast Eagles star Liam Ryan receiving his premiership medal in 2018 - while confirming Port Adelaide forward Willie Rioli was hanging up his playing boots.

'Really disappointing and disrespectful for a retiring First Nations player to see this happen,' one supporter fumed on Reddit.

'I don't expect much from Fox (Sports) but this is terrible. They (footy stars) are completely different humans who don't look similar.'

Another felt the gaffe was 'genuinely pathetic', with a third asking if 'the interns are running the show.'

It comes as Rioli - who made his AFL debut in 2017 for the West Coast Eagles - confirmed why he was retiring.

'I have given all I can to the game at the highest level,' the 30-year-old said in a club statement.

'I made up my mind a couple of weeks ago that this would be my last season.

'I want to see even more opportunities given to our young, talented small forwards at Port Adelaide in Joe Berry and Tom Cochrane.

'They're the future of our club. It's time for me to step aside.'

Rioli considered retiring in the midst of controversies in late April and early May.

He first expressed a hatred for Hawthorn in the wake of the rival club's racism allegations in a social media post.

And in early May, he was banned for one game following a social media threat to Bailey Dale after the Western Bulldogs star made what Port described as a 'culturally insensitive' remark during a game.

In total, Rioli played 109 AFL games - 57 at the Power and 52 at West Coast, where he was part of the Eagles' 2018 premiership-winning team.

That year, Rioli and Ryan were teammates in blue and yellow.