Unofficial · AI-generated · not affiliated with the AFL or any club

Fixture explained

The 2027 modelled fixture, “Two opening dates”, walked through in the order a new fixture is usually revealed. Every number here is counted from what this version records. Games are named by their slot band (“Friday night”, “Saturday twilight”); kick-off clocks are modelled and shown smaller.

About this version · Every round · The wall: every club, every round

1. Headline games

The season opens with Thursday night: Brisbane Lions v Adelaide at Gabba, Thu 18 Mar.

How many of the 207 games land in each slot band:

Monday twilight

Thursday night

Friday twilight

Friday night

Saturday day

Saturday twilight

Saturday night

Sunday day

Sunday twilight

Sunday night

2. Round 1

Home side first, in blue; away side in red.

Round 1 · 9 games

Thursday nightBrisbane Lions (home) v Adelaide (away)Gabba · Thu 18 Mar
Friday nightCarlton (home) v Collingwood (away)M.C.G. · Fri 19 Mar
Saturday twilightEssendon (home) v Fremantle (away)M.C.G. · Sat 20 Mar
Saturday nightPort Adelaide (home) v Geelong (away)Adelaide Oval · Sat 20 Mar
Saturday nightHawthorn (home) v Gold Coast (away)M.C.G. · Sat 20 Mar
Saturday dayMelbourne (home) v North Melbourne (away)M.C.G. · Sat 20 Mar
Sunday twilightSydney (home) v Greater Western Sydney (away)S.C.G. · Sun 21 Mar
Sunday twilightRichmond (home) v West Coast (away)Docklands · Sun 21 Mar
Sunday dayWestern Bulldogs (home) v St Kilda (away)Eureka Stadium · Sun 21 Mar

3. Prime time, club by club

Prime time here means Thursday night and Friday night games.

Most: Adelaide (23 each). Fewest: Collingwood, Essendon, Greater Western Sydney and St Kilda (3 each).

Thursday & Friday Night Games

23Adelaide
22–
21–
20–
19–
18–
17–
16–
15–
14–
13–
12Brisbane Lions
11–
10–
9–
8Geelong
7Gold Coast
6Hawthorn, North Melbourne, Western Bulldogs
5Fremantle, Melbourne, Sydney, West Coast
4Carlton, Port Adelaide, Richmond
3Collingwood, Essendon, Greater Western Sydney, St Kilda
2–
1–
0–

See every prime-time game

4. Who each club plays twice

Each club meets some opponents a second time. They are grouped by where those opponents finished on the 2026 ladder (the home-and-away ladder): top 6, middle 6, bottom 6. Clubs are listed in ladder order.

Double Match Ups

Ladder	Club	Plays twice (rounds beneath)
1	Fremantle	Sydney · Top 6R8, R22 Brisbane Lions · Top 6R6, R18 Collingwood · Middle 6R4, R16 Carlton · Middle 6R7, R19 St Kilda · Middle 6R11, R23 West Coast · Bottom 6R10, R24
2	Sydney	Fremantle · Top 6R8, R22 Brisbane Lions · Top 6R12, R24 Geelong · Top 6R4, R17 Greater Western Sydney · Middle 6R1, R13 North Melbourne · Bottom 6R6, R18 West Coast · Bottom 6R3, R16
3	Brisbane Lions	Fremantle · Top 6R6, R18 Sydney · Top 6R12, R24 Hawthorn · Top 6R10, R22 Gold Coast · Bottom 6R8, R20 North Melbourne · Bottom 6R9, R21 Richmond · Bottom 6R11, R23
4	Hawthorn	Brisbane Lions · Top 6R10, R22 Geelong · Top 6R2, R20 Adelaide · Top 6R9, R21 Melbourne · Middle 6R4, R17 Gold Coast · Bottom 6R1, R23 Richmond · Bottom 6R3, R24
5	Geelong	Sydney · Top 6R4, R17 Hawthorn · Top 6R2, R20 Adelaide · Top 6R6, R18 Melbourne · Middle 6R11, R23 Port Adelaide · Bottom 6R1, R24 Essendon · Bottom 6R3, R15
6	Adelaide	Hawthorn · Top 6R9, R21 Geelong · Top 6R6, R18 Melbourne · Middle 6R10, R22 Western Bulldogs · Middle 6R12, R24 Port Adelaide · Bottom 6R11, R23 Essendon · Bottom 6R4, R16
7	Melbourne	Hawthorn · Top 6R4, R17 Geelong · Top 6R11, R23 Adelaide · Top 6R10, R22 Western Bulldogs · Middle 6R5, R18 Richmond · Bottom 6R6, R21 Essendon · Bottom 6R12, R24
8	Western Bulldogs	Adelaide · Top 6R12, R24 Melbourne · Middle 6R5, R18 Collingwood · Middle 6R9, R22 Carlton · Middle 6R10, R23 St Kilda · Middle 6R1, R13 Port Adelaide · Bottom 6R3, R15
9	Collingwood	Fremantle · Top 6R4, R16 Western Bulldogs · Middle 6R9, R22 Carlton · Middle 6R1, R14 St Kilda · Middle 6R8, R20 Greater Western Sydney · Middle 6R10, R24 West Coast · Bottom 6R11, R23
10	Carlton	Fremantle · Top 6R7, R19 Western Bulldogs · Middle 6R10, R23 Collingwood · Middle 6R1, R14 St Kilda · Middle 6R12, R24 Greater Western Sydney · Middle 6R9, R21 Essendon · Bottom 6R5, R17
11	St Kilda	Fremantle · Top 6R11, R23 Western Bulldogs · Middle 6R1, R13 Collingwood · Middle 6R8, R20 Carlton · Middle 6R12, R24 Greater Western Sydney · Middle 6R5, R19 Gold Coast · Bottom 6R10, R22
12	Greater Western Sydney	Sydney · Top 6R1, R13 Collingwood · Middle 6R10, R24 Carlton · Middle 6R9, R21 St Kilda · Middle 6R5, R19 Gold Coast · Bottom 6R3, R16 North Melbourne · Bottom 6R4, R23
13	Gold Coast	Brisbane Lions · Top 6R8, R20 Hawthorn · Top 6R1, R23 St Kilda · Middle 6R10, R22 Greater Western Sydney · Middle 6R3, R16 North Melbourne · Bottom 6R12, R24 Port Adelaide · Bottom 6R4, R21
14	North Melbourne	Sydney · Top 6R6, R18 Brisbane Lions · Top 6R9, R21 Greater Western Sydney · Middle 6R4, R23 Gold Coast · Bottom 6R12, R24 Port Adelaide · Bottom 6R7, R22 Richmond · Bottom 6R8, R20
15	Port Adelaide	Geelong · Top 6R1, R24 Adelaide · Top 6R11, R23 Western Bulldogs · Middle 6R3, R15 Gold Coast · Bottom 6R4, R21 North Melbourne · Bottom 6R7, R22 West Coast · Bottom 6R2, R14
16	West Coast	Fremantle · Top 6R10, R24 Sydney · Top 6R3, R16 Collingwood · Middle 6R11, R23 Port Adelaide · Bottom 6R2, R14 Richmond · Bottom 6R1, R13 Essendon · Bottom 6R8, R21
17	Richmond	Brisbane Lions · Top 6R11, R23 Hawthorn · Top 6R3, R24 Melbourne · Middle 6R6, R21 North Melbourne · Bottom 6R8, R20 West Coast · Bottom 6R1, R13 Essendon · Bottom 6R10, R22
18	Essendon	Geelong · Top 6R3, R15 Adelaide · Top 6R4, R16 Melbourne · Middle 6R12, R24 Carlton · Middle 6R5, R17 West Coast · Bottom 6R8, R21 Richmond · Bottom 6R10, R22

Who each club plays twice

Club	Top 6	Middle 6	Bottom 6
Fremantle	Sydney, Brisbane Lions	Collingwood, Carlton, St Kilda	West Coast
Sydney	Fremantle, Brisbane Lions, Geelong	Greater Western Sydney	North Melbourne, West Coast
Brisbane Lions	Fremantle, Sydney, Hawthorn	–	Gold Coast, North Melbourne, Richmond
Hawthorn	Brisbane Lions, Geelong, Adelaide	Melbourne	Gold Coast, Richmond
Geelong	Sydney, Hawthorn, Adelaide	Melbourne	Port Adelaide, Essendon
Adelaide	Hawthorn, Geelong	Melbourne, Western Bulldogs	Port Adelaide, Essendon
Melbourne	Hawthorn, Geelong, Adelaide	Western Bulldogs	Richmond, Essendon
Western Bulldogs	Adelaide	Melbourne, Collingwood, Carlton, St Kilda	Port Adelaide
Collingwood	Fremantle	Western Bulldogs, Carlton, St Kilda, Greater Western Sydney	West Coast
Carlton	Fremantle	Western Bulldogs, Collingwood, St Kilda, Greater Western Sydney	Essendon
St Kilda	Fremantle	Western Bulldogs, Collingwood, Carlton, Greater Western Sydney	Gold Coast
Greater Western Sydney	Sydney	Collingwood, Carlton, St Kilda	Gold Coast, North Melbourne
Gold Coast	Brisbane Lions, Hawthorn	St Kilda, Greater Western Sydney	North Melbourne, Port Adelaide
North Melbourne	Sydney, Brisbane Lions	Greater Western Sydney	Gold Coast, Port Adelaide, Richmond
Port Adelaide	Geelong, Adelaide	Western Bulldogs	Gold Coast, North Melbourne, West Coast
West Coast	Fremantle, Sydney	Collingwood	Port Adelaide, Richmond, Essendon
Richmond	Brisbane Lions, Hawthorn	Melbourne	North Melbourne, West Coast, Essendon
Essendon	Geelong, Adelaide	Melbourne, Carlton	West Coast, Richmond

Who plays whom twice, drawn

5. Byes by round

Round 12 · Byes: Geelong, Port Adelaide, Richmond, West Coast
Round 13 · Byes: Carlton, Essendon
Round 14 · Byes: Fremantle, Gold Coast, Greater Western Sydney, St Kilda
Round 15 · Byes: Adelaide, Collingwood, Hawthorn, Sydney
Round 16 · Byes: Brisbane Lions, Melbourne, North Melbourne, Western Bulldogs

6. Breaks between games

Across the season there are 15 games a club plays after a break of five days or fewer. Most: Melbourne (3).

Days break

▲ 5 or fewer days◆ 6 days7+ daysblank: bye or first game

Days since each club's previous game, by round. ▲ marks 5 days or fewer, ◆ marks 6 days.
Round	ADE	BRL	CAR	COL	ESS	FRE	GEE	GCS	GWS	HAW	MEL	NTH	PTA	RIC	STK	SYD	WCE	WBD
1	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game	first game
2	7	10	7	◆6	8	◆6	9	◆6	◆6	9	7	◆6	7	◆6	◆6	7	◆6	7
3	7	◆6	◆6	9	◆6	7	▲5	7	◆6	◆6	◆6	8	7	8	7	7	8	◆6
4	8	7	9	▲5	◆6	◆6	7	8	8	7	9	7	7	7	8	◆6	7	8
5	◆6	◆6	7	9	8	7	◆6	7	7	◆6	7	8	7	7	◆6	8	7	7
6	7	7	◆6	8	8	8	◆6	◆6	7	7	◆6	7	8	◆6	8	7	◆6	◆6
7	7	7	8	◆6	◆6	8	9	◆6	◆6	7	7	7	7	8	7	◆6	8	8
8	7	7	7	8	7	7	7	8	◆6	◆6	8	◆6	7	◆6	7	7	◆6	▲5
9	7	7	7	◆6	7	7	7	8	9	◆6	▲5	◆6	7	8	7	8	◆6	8
10	7	7	7	7	7	8	8	8	7	8	◆6	9	▲5	◆6	7	▲5	9	7
11	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	◆6	7	8	10	▲5	◆6	◆6	7	8	◆6	◆6
12	7	8	7	7	8	7	bye	◆6	8	7	7	7	bye	bye	◆6	7	bye	◆6
13	7	8	bye	9	bye	◆6	13	8	◆6	7	8	◆6	17	14	8	7	13	10
14	7	◆6	15	◆6	13	bye	◆6	bye	bye	7	▲5	9	7	◆6	bye	7	9	▲5
15	bye	◆6	◆6	bye	▲5	14	◆6	14	15	bye	7	7	7	9	12	bye	7	9
16	14	bye	7	13	7	7	10	8	7	13	bye	bye	◆6	8	7	14	◆6	bye
17	7	14	7	7	9	7	▲5	◆6	7	9	15	14	8	◆6	◆6	◆6	◆6	13
18	7	8	7	7	8	7	◆6	7	7	7	7	◆6	◆6	7	10	7	8	8
19	7	7	7	7	7	7	8	8	7	◆6	7	8	8	7	7	◆6	◆6	◆6
20	7	◆6	7	7	◆6	7	7	▲5	7	◆6	7	8	◆6	8	◆6	9	◆6	7
21	7	8	7	7	7	8	9	9	◆6	◆6	▲5	◆6	8	▲5	8	7	9	8
22	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	8	9	◆6	◆6	▲5	8	7	8	7	◆6
23	7	7	◆6	7	7	◆6	7	7	7	8	10	9	◆6	7	◆6	◆6	7	◆6
24	7	◆6	8	7	7	7	7	7	◆6	7	◆6	7	10	8	7	◆6	7	◆6

Every club’s breaks, round by round

7. Travel

An interstate trip is a game at a venue outside the club’s home state. This version has 164 trips in all, and 44 times a club travels interstate two weeks in a row. Most trips: Greater Western Sydney (14).

Every trip on a timeline

8. Fair or not? The facts side by side

Fairness is hard to define, and a perfectly even fixture is not possible with 18 clubs and 23 games. So there is no overall score here: just the counts, one row per club, for you to weigh.

Club	Twice v top 6	Twice v middle 6	Twice v bottom 6	Prime time	Interstate trips	Trips two in a row	Breaks of ≤5 days
Fremantle	2	3	1	5	10	3	0
Sydney	3	1	2	5	12	6	1
Brisbane Lions	3	0	3	12	11	2	0
Hawthorn	3	1	2	6	11	2	0
Geelong	3	1	2	8	7	1	2
Adelaide	2	2	2	23	10	3	0
Melbourne	3	1	2	5	7	1	3
Western Bulldogs	1	4	1	6	7	1	2
Collingwood	1	4	1	3	7	1	1
Carlton	1	4	1	4	7	2	0
St Kilda	1	4	1	3	7	3	0
Greater Western Sydney	1	3	2	3	14	6	0
Gold Coast	2	2	2	7	13	5	1
North Melbourne	2	1	3	6	7	3	1
Port Adelaide	2	1	3	4	10	2	2
West Coast	2	1	3	5	10	1	0
Richmond	2	1	3	4	7	1	1
Essendon	2	2	2	3	7	1	1

Counts from this version’s recorded games, dates, slot bands and venues. Flag an issue