Australian rules football champion Carl Ditterich has been charged with historical child sex offences.

The former ruckman, who played 285 games for St Kilda and Melbourne from 1963 to 1980, has been charged with three counts of indecent assault and one count of gross indecency.

Bayside Sexual Offences and Child Abuse Investigation Team laid the charges against the 78-year-old Moama man following an investigation into alleged historic child sex offences.

The alleged incidents relate to one victim and took place at Heatherton, a suburb in Melbourne's south-east, in 1985, police said.

The matter was heard in the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Friday and is due back in court in late June.

Ditterich was renowned as a hard man and one of the most reported players in AFL/VFL history, appearing before the tribunal on 19 occasions and being suspended for 30 matches across his glittering career.

He missed St Kilda's only premiership in 1966 while serving a six-match ban.

Ditterich is a member of St Kilda's team of the century after playing 203 games for the Saints across two stints.

He also served as captain-coach for Melbourne in 1979 and 1980, and was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2004.

A St Kilda Football Club spokesperson said the club was aware of the charges against Ditterich "relating to an alleged incident after his playing career".

The AFL has been contacted for comment.

AAP