2024 AFL fixture released

The AFL has revealed the fixture for the 2024 Toyota AFL Premiership Season, and Geelong will open the season at home against St Kilda.

Rounds 1 to 15 are fully fixtured, with Rounds 16 to 24 fixtured with match-ups and venues.

The Cats will begin 2024 against the Saints at GMHBA Stadium on March 16 in Round 1 – one of nine games at GMHBA Stadium over the course of the year.

Traditional rivals Hawthorn and Geelong will again round out a long weekend of football as they play on Easter Monday at the MCG.

Immediately following Easter weekend in Round 4, Gather Round…A Festival of Footy will take over Adelaide for the second time with all 18 clubs assembling in South Australia.

Sir Doug Nicholls Round will be played across Rounds 10 and 11 and will start in Darwin with a match-up between the Suns and the Cats at TIO Stadium.

Geelong’s 2024 AFL season:

• Round 1 vs St Kilda, GMHBA Stadium, Saturday, March 16, 7.30pm
• Round 2 vs Adelaide, Adelaide Oval, Friday, March 22, 7.40pm
• Round 3 vs Hawthorn, MCG, Monday, April 1, 3.20pm
• Round 4 vs Western Bulldogs, Adelaide Oval, Saturday, April 6, 8.10pm
• Round 5 vs North Melbourne, GMHBA Stadium, Sunday, April 14, 1pm
• Round 6 vs Brisbane Lions, Gabba, Saturday, April 20, 7.30pm
• Round 7 vs Carlton, MCG, Saturday, April 27, 4.35pm
• Round 8 vs Melbourne, MCG, Saturday, May 4, 7.30pm
• Round 9 vs Port Adelaide, GMHBA Stadium, Friday, May 10, 7.10pm
• Round 10 vs Gold Coast, TIO Stadium, Thursday, May 16, 7.30pm
• Round 11 vs Greater Western Sydney, Saturday, May 25, 4.35pm
• Round 12 vs Richmond, GMHBA Stadium, Saturday, June 1, 7.30pm
• Round 13 vs Sydney Swans, SCG, Sunday, June 9, 3.20pm
• Round 14 – Bye
• Round 15 vs Carlton, MCG, Friday June 21, 7.40pm
• Round 16 vs Essendon, MCG
• Round 17 vs Hawthorn, GMHBA Stadium
• Round 18 vs  Collingwood, MCG
• Round 19 vs Western Bulldogs, GMHBA Stadium
• Round 20 vs North Melbourne, Blundstone Arena
• Round 21 vs Adelaide, GMHBA Stadium
• Round 22 vs Fremantle, Optus Stadium
• Round 23 vs St Kilda, Marvel Stadium
• Round 24 vs West Coast Eagles, GMHBA Stadium

Friday night football has an earlier start time of 7.40pm and the number of Thursday night timeslots has increased from 11 to 14 matches across the first 15 rounds.

“We are really pleased with the club’s 2024 fixture and particularly excited about playing nine home games in Geelong in front of a 40,000 capacity stadium, kicking-off with St Kilda on a Saturday night in Round 1,” Geelong’s chief strategy and growth officer Marcus King said.

“Big teams will get more used to coming down the highway now that we have a 40,000 capacity stadium and we look forward to welcoming Hawthorn and Richmond next year as part of a strong overall mix of opponents at GMHBA Stadium.

“We thank the Victorian government for their investment in the Stage 5 redevelopment and what that offers for the Geelong region.

“In what is a great result for our Melbourne members, we will play seven games in Melbourne.

Our interstate fans are also well served, as we play in each state as well as the Northern Territory.

“We can’t wait to see our fans in blue and white hoops cheering loudly and supporting the team on the road.

“We are also pleased to provide our members and fans with a strong mix of timeslots fin the first 15 rounds for both home and away matches, including primetime Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night matches as well as afternoon and twilight games, providing something for all Geelong members and fans.”

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.

For the six matches where clubs play an opponent for the second time, the league continues to use a weighted rule based on the previous seasons’ ladder, grouping teams between the top six, middle six and bottom six.

AFL head of broadcasting and scheduling Josh Bowler said the 2024 Toyota Premiership Season would take on a different start than normal, which will set the scene for the many incredible match ups to come in the first half of the season.

“After a record-breaking attendance of more than eight million fans through the gates in 2023, we are thrilled to deliver a fixture that is aimed at maximising match day attendance and television viewership, as well as being the fairest possible fixture for all 18 clubs in their pursuit of the Premiership.

“Thursday night footy is featured across 14 rounds which has allowed for blockbuster matches to be scheduled, and we know fans love these big clashes that build the anticipation for the rest of the weekend’s games.

“Opening Round has given us a unique opportunity to create momentum ahead of the traditional Round 1 Thursday night fixture between Carlton and Richmond, allowing the league to build more marquee games.

“As an industry, along with the help of our fans, we have been able to build the excitement and anticipation in our big occasion matches around key dates in the national calendar.

“Our Good Friday match, Anzac Eve blockbuster and the King’s Birthday Big Freeze match have all become synonymous with these holidays and are always penned early in supporters’ diaries.

“We always want to give our fans as much certainty as possible and these first 15 rounds have created key marquee games that our supporters can plan travel around and we will confirm dates and times for Rounds 16 to 23 about four to six weeks out, with Round 24 remaining floating.”