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AFL scraps Opening Round, returns to traditional round one for 2027
The AFL has confirmed the end of the Opening Round experiment, with all 18 teams to start the 2027 season in a traditional nine-game round one. The change comes as the MCG hosts a historic cricket Test, pushing back the season start, with AFL boss Andrew Dillon citing fan and stakeholder feedback.
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AFL ends Opening Round, returns to traditional round one for 2027
The Australian Football League has scrapped its Opening Round experiment after three seasons, confirming that all 18 teams will begin the 2027 season in a traditional nine-game round one. AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon announced the decision on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, ending the concept that had seen a selection of eight teams play four games exclusively in Queensland and New South Wales since its introduction in 2024.
The change comes as the season's start is pushed back a week to accommodate the Melbourne Cricket Ground hosting a historic one-off Test between Australia and England from March 11-15, commemorating 150 years of Test cricket. The AFL season will now open on Wednesday, March 17, or Thursday, March 18, 2027.
Reasons for the change
Dillon said the decision followed "important feedback from fans and stakeholders and consultation with clubs and broadcasters." In a statement, he said: "Round 1 will see the return of a traditional nine-game round played across the country."
The Opening Round concept, which saw teams in Queensland and Sydney open the season with marquee games in a bid to grow the sport in traditional NRL heartlands, had drawn criticism. Reports noted claims that it gave teams starting earlier an unfair advantage in building match fitness, and that the need for byes resulted in an unbalanced ladder until mid-season.
Dillon had previously defended the concept, calling it "key" to growing Australian rules football in the northern states.
New season structure
The 2027 home-and-away season will span 24 rounds, concluding on Sunday, August 30, followed by a five-week finals series beginning with two wildcard finals. The grand final is scheduled for Saturday, October 2, marking just the seventh time in the AFL era the decider will be played outside September. Gather Round in South Australia remains locked in for April.
Dillon said the league was "really pleased to be able to provide fans and clubs with this clarity well ahead of the 2027 season." He added that pre-season and AFL Origin fixtures would be revealed in the coming days, while the league's immediate focus remains on the current season's finals, which he described as coming after an "all-time record-breaking home-and-away attendance and the inaugural Wildcard Finals delivering record broadcast and crowd numbers."
How each outlet told it
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Framing: The headline emphasizes the scrapping of the 'Opening Round' experiment, describing it as 'controversial' and 'three-season'.
Facts Included:
AFL boss Andrew Dillon confirmed the end of the three-season 'Opening Round' experiment on Wednesday 2 September 2026.
The 2027 AFL season will begin with all 18 teams in action in a traditional nine-game first round.
Opening Round featured four games played exclusively in Queensland and New South Wales between only a selection of eight teams.
Dillon had previously defended the concept, saying it was 'key' to growing Australian rules footballin the northern states.
The decision to scrap Opening Round came as the season will begin a week later due to the MCG hosting the 150th anniversary cricket Test between Australia and England.
Dillon cited 'important feedback from fans and stakeholders, and consultation with clubs and broadcasters' as reasons for the return to a traditional nine-game round.
The first round will be played from Wednesday or Thursday, March 17 or 18, 2027.
The 24-round home-and-away season will conclude on Sunday, August 30, with the five-week finals series beginning with two wildcard finals.
The grand final will be held on Saturday, October 2 and Gather Round in South Australia is locked in for April.
Australia and England will play a one-off Test next year at the MCG to celebrate 150 years of Test cricket.
Framing: The headline emphasizes the AFL's decision to revert to a traditional round one for 2027, and highlights the axing of the Opening Round.
Facts Included:
The AFL has ended its Opening Round experiment, with the league confirming all 18 teams will start their season in a traditional round one next year.
The MCG will host an historic one-off Test between Australia and England to commemorate 150 years of the Ashes from March 11-15, and the AFL has pushed back its start date with the season to open on Wednesday, March 17 or Thursday, March 18.
There is no space for an Opening Round fixture, which has been in place since 2024, and saw teams in Queensland and Sydney open the season with marquee games in a bid to grow the game in traditional NRL heartlands.
The initiative has come under intense criticism, with claims it gives the teams that start earlier an unfair advantage given their ability to build match fitness.
It was also lamented by fans, with the need for byes resulting in an unbalanced ladder until the middle of the season.
Chief executive Andrew Dillon said the league has been listening.
According to Dillon, 'After important feedback from fans and stakeholders and consultation with clubs and broadcasters, Round 1 will see the return of a traditional nine-game round played across the country.'
Dillon also said, 'To accommodate the historic 150th anniversary test match at the MCG next March, we have been working through alternative options to deliver the start of the AFL season.'
Dillon added, 'We're really pleased to be able to provide fans and clubs with this clarity well ahead of the 2027 season.'
A later start will also see the AFL hold a rare October grand final, with the 2027 decider to be played on Saturday, October 2, just the seventh time in the AFL era the grand final will be played outside of September.
The league is also set to reveal the pre-season and AFL Origin fixtures in the coming days, though Dillon said the league's focus remains on this year's finals after the success of the inaugral wildcard round.
Dillon stated, 'Before we get there, we are focused on making the end to the 2026 Toyota AFL Premiership season one to remember, after an all-time record-breaking home and away attendance and the inaugural Wildcard Finals delivering record broadcastand crowd numbers.'
Dillon also said, 'The passion of footy fans is unmatched.'
Dillon added, 'We're looking forward to another four big matches this coming weekend across Western Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia.'
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Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status is Contested when two claims on this page negate each other; otherwise it counts the distinct outlets we found asserting that specific claim — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.
Claim
Confidence
Status
ClaimThe AFL has ended its Opening Round experiment, with the league confirming all 18 teams will start their season in a traditional round one next year.
ClaimThe MCG will host an historic one-off Test between Australia and England to commemorate 150 years of the Ashes from March 11-15, and the AFL has pushed back its start date with the season to open on Wednesday, March 17 or Thursday, March 18.
ClaimThere is no space for an Opening Round fixture, which has been in place since 2024, and saw teams in Queensland and Sydney open the season with marquee games in a bid to grow the game in traditional NRL heartlands.
ClaimThe initiative has come under intense criticism, with claims it gives the teams that start earlier an unfair advantage given their ability to build match fitness.
ClaimAccording to Dillon, 'After important feedback from fans and stakeholders and consultation with clubs and broadcasters, Round 1 will see the return of a traditional nine-game round played across the country.'
ClaimDillon also said, 'To accommodate the historic 150th anniversary test match at the MCG next March, we have been working through alternative options to deliver the start of the AFL season.'
ClaimA later start will also see the AFL hold a rare October grand final, with the 2027 decider to be played on Saturday, October 2, just the seventh time in the AFL era the grand final will be played outside of September.
ClaimThe league is also set to reveal the pre-season and AFL Origin fixtures in the coming days, though Dillon said the league's focus remains on this year's finals after the success of the inaugral wildcard round.
ClaimDillon stated, 'Before we get there, we are focused on making the end to the 2026 Toyota AFL Premiership season one to remember, after an all-time record-breaking home and-away attendance and the inaugural Wildcard Finals delivering record broadcastand crowd numbers.'
ClaimDillon added, 'We're looking forward to another four big matches this coming weekend across Western Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia.'
ClaimThe decision to scrap Opening Round came as the season will begin a week later due to the MCG hosting the 150th anniversary cricket Test between Australia and England.
ClaimDillon cited 'important feedback from fans and stakeholders, and consultation with clubs and broadcasters' as reasons for the return to a traditional nine-game round.