AFLW players again miss out on chance to play at big venues after 2025 fixture release

There’s a few standout omissions in the 2025 AFLW fixture that has been finally released just months out from the start of the season.

No double-headers with AFL games, no matches at the MCG or Marvel Stadium, the SCG, Adelaide Oval or the Gabba.

The 12-week AFLW season will again be played at smaller venues but in more traditional timeslots in 2025 after the full fixture was revealed on Friday.

There will be no Tuesday or Wednesday games, as included in last year’s heavily criticised compressed fixture, but the walk-back from officials on linking up with men’s matches across the final two home and away rounds was a fixture shock.

Last month, AFLW general manager, Emma Moore said a “one-club, two-team approach” would present opportunities for double-headers.

“One of the things we’re focusing on is optimising what we can do in terms of the crossover of the women’s and men’s competition and clearly double-headers are part of that conversation and analysis we’re doing,” Moore said.

North Melbourne beat the Brisbane Lions in the 2024 AFLW grand final. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

But there are none, and instead the AFLW has given itself flexibility with start times to ensure clubs who have men’s teams in the finals don’t play at the same time.

The season will open on Thursday, August 14, with two games, including a clash between Carlton and Collingwood.

There will again be a glut of matches on the eve of the men’s grand final, with four matches on the Friday, then another four on the Sunday.

AFL head of strategy and scheduling Josh Bowler said the fixture aimed to build rivalries and attendance.

“As we head into the 10th season of the NAB AFLW competition, it is important to recognise the moments and match-ups in the game that have helped shape the league so far while also nurturing the emerging rivalries and making it easy and accessible for fans to attend,” Bowler said.

“The fixture is always a complex jigsaw to piece together and I’d like to thank all stakeholders including club representatives, senior coaches, our broadcast partners, the AFLPA and our team who have all worked incredibly hard to produce a fixture that enables fans to form even stronger connections with their team.”

The AFLW season will begin on August 14. Picture: Morgan Hancock/AFL Photos/via Getty Images

Rather than play at Marvel Stadium or the MCG, games will again be played at AFL training bases, including Moorabbin, the Whitten Oval and Alberton Oval as well as Norwood.

Hawthorn will also play in Cairns, the Kangaroos in Tasmania, while Geelong will play at GMHBA Stadium and the Gold Coast at People First Stadium, both AFL venues.

Bowler said the flexible timing for some games would come in to play “if one club’s AFL and AFLW match windows are within one hour of overlapping”.

“Further to that, if a club is hosting two home games over one weekend, these will fall on different days to ensure the club can operationally deliver the best possible match-day experience for fans across two venues,” he said.

The season will end with a floating fixture in round 12, with game times to be determined at a later stage in order to set up the finals.