2024 AFL Fixture: Round Zero kicks off in northern states
The 2024 AFL Fixture has been revealed, with the traditional season opener at the MCG to occur the week after ‘round zero’ in NSW and QLD.
As revealed earlier in the week, for the first time, the AFL season will commence with four games across three days exclusively in the northern states, starting with Sydney v Melbourne at the SCG, before matches at the Gabba, Carrara and Giants Stadium.
Round 1 then has all teams in action, with the traditional season opener between Carlton and Richmond first up at the MCG on March 14.
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A total of 17 stadiums will host AFL matches around Australia, including 47 matches at the MCG and 42 at Marvel Stadium. The Northern Territory will host three matches - two at TIO Stadium (Darwin) and one at Traeger Park (Alice Springs).
In 2024, all Friday night matches will commence 10 minutes earlier at 7:40pm, while Thursday night matches will start 10 minutes later at 7:30pm.
The number of Thursday night timeslots has increased from 11 to 14 matches across the first 15 rounds, with Carlton (8), Brisbane Lions (7), Collingwood (7) and the Adelaide Crows (6) featuring the most across both the Thursday and Friday showpiece timeslots.
Full details have been released for the opening 15 rounds, with rounds 16-24 a floating fixture with dates and times to be announced by the AFL during the season.
Gather Round returns to South Australia in 2024 during round four, with matches to be played at Adelaide Oval (including one double header), Norwood Oval, and the Summit Sports Park in the Adelaide Hills will host two matches after it hosted one last year.
ANZAC Round features in Round 7 in 2024, with the traditional ANZAC Eve match between Richmond and Melbourne on Wednesday night followed by an ANZAC Day double-header which begins with Essendon and Collingwood in the afternoon, before the action heads to the nation’s capital with the GWS GIANTS taking on the Brisbane at Manuka Oval, Canberra in the evening.
The eight teams that take part in the ‘Opening Round’ will have a bye between Rounds 2 and 6, with all teams on the same amount of games played by Round 7. All clubs will have a by across the four weeks between Rounds between Rounds 12 and 15.
