In a major shake-up for the AFLW, the league has announced significant changes to the fixture for the 2025 season. Most notably, the controversial compressed schedule has been scrapped and the grand final will be played at night for the first time in the competition’s history. The moves come after the AFL listened to feedback from players, coaches, fans, and other key stakeholders who voiced concerns about the impacts of the congested fixture on player wellbeing and the quality of play.
Compressed Fixture Scrapped
The 2024 AFLW season featured a highly condensed schedule, with games played in quick succession over a short period. While this format had some benefits, such as increased exposure with matches played on weeknights, it drew strong criticism for leading to more injuries and compromising the standard of play as fatigued players struggled to recover between games.
AFL head of football Laura Kane confirmed the league had taken this feedback on board, stating:
“On balance, the feedback from players wanting more space between each game was compelling. There was some good stuff in the compressed model, but we needed to listen to what those at the coalface were telling us about it.”
12-Game, 12-Week Season
As a result, the AFLW will revert to a standard 12-game home-and-away season played over 12 weeks in 2025. This will provide a more balanced schedule, allowing for adequate rest and recovery between matches and hopefully reducing injury risk while enabling higher-quality, more attractive football.
Night Grand Final a Landmark
In another historic first, the 2025 AFLW grand final will be played at night. The twilight or evening timeslot is expected to attract a larger broadcast audience and aligns with the league’s push to grow the women’s game.
Kane described the decision as an “experiment” focused on expanding the AFLW’s reach and appeal, saying:
“The growth that we all want to see and work so hard to see in [AFLW] has been on display this year… We have an opportunity to do things differently, we don’t have the same history, we have a different proposition, a different product, and we think that we can do things to mix it up a little bit.”
The grand final venue will be determined by the results of the revamped five-week finals series, with the league leaving open the possibility of the decider being played outside of Melbourne if earned by a non-Victorian team. An Adelaide, Brisbane or Perth grand final would be scheduled at twilight local time but in the prime-time evening broadcast slot on the east coast.
Broader Implications
While Kane stressed that the AFLW night grand final was a standalone “experiment” and distinct from previous Covid-enforced shifts to the men’s decider timeslot, she acknowledged it would likely fuel the ongoing debate about the timing of the AFL’s showpiece event.
“I don’t expect that question [the timing of the men’s grand final] to slow now in particular.”
The league is also considering expanding the use of double-headers with the men’s competition in 2025 to further boost attendance and exposure. Top-level double-headers like those scheduled at the MCG have drawn some of the largest crowds of the season to date.
Positive Signs
Kane described it as a positive season overall for the AFLW despite average attendance of around 2,500 falling short of the 6,000 crowd threshold required by the collective bargaining agreement to trigger an extension of the season from 12 to 14 games.
“We were up in every metric – crowds, broadcast numbers and games… The growth that we all want to see and work so hard to see in [AFLW] has been on display this year.”
The 2025 season fixtures will be released later this year after the completion of the 2024 finals series currently underway. With the league listening and adapting to feedback, it’s hoped that these changes can help unlock the full potential of AFLW and build towards a bigger, brighter future for women’s Australian rules football at the elite level.
