AFL may be forced into major finals shake-up after NFL targets early September clash at MCG

The AFL could be forced into a major finals shake-up as the LA Rams target a September landing at the MCG. See what date the NFL is targeting, and the major shake-up it could force the AFL into.

The AFL could be forced to make a significant compromise to its semi-final fixture next season with Friday September 11 shaping as a potential date for the LA Rams historic MCG clash.

The Rams will be the home tenant at the MCG for the 2026 clash against a yet-to-be-announced opponent, with the NFL hopeful of scheduling that clash in the opening round of their 2026-2027 season.

The most likely date for that game would be on Friday morning in Melbourne to allow for a Thursday night prime time contest back into American households.

The possibility of a game in early September had given rise to the possibility the AFL might schedule their pre-finals bye on that weekend.

But the NFL game is likely to fall on the second weekend of September, which instead lines up with the second week of the AFL’s finals across semi-final weekend.

Head coach Sean McVay and the Rams will be coming to the MCG next September. Picture: AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill.

It would prevent the league from scheduling Friday and Saturday night finals at the MCG under a scenario where Victorian teams both earned home finals.

The quickest possible turnaround from a Friday morning NFL game to return it to an AFL finals venue would be Saturday night.

The AFL does not schedule Sunday semi-finals because it forces the winning team to play a preliminary final off a six-day break.

So the AFL will need to work around a scenario where the MCG can only play one semi-final unless the league dispenses with its usual fixture and leaves room for a potential Sunday semi final.

There is plenty of goodwill from the AFL and its boss Andrew Dillon to make way for the NFL given the groundbreaking game but as yet no easy solution.

Visit Victoria board member and former Pies president Eddie McGuire has floated a scenario where there is no football that weekend but the entire finals series pushes into early October.

It would require the AFL to postpone its season by two weeks next year.

The AFL could also introduce a wildcard weekend next year or scrap the pre-finals bye altogether.

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan and LA Rams NFL players Steve Avila and Kobie Turner at the MCG. Picture: NewsWire / Andrew Henshaw

The AFL and MCC have committed to pulling out all stops to make the NFL game an international spectacle as the first NFL game in Australia.

There are other possibilities for that game including a rare Wednesday night game in the United States, which would see the game played on Thursday September 10.

The NFL’s other international games in Europe usually start in about round 6 of their season but the 14-hour flight back to Los Angeles means the Rams would ideally arrive a week early for promotion and training then fly back to America immediately after their game.

So the Friday September 11 contest in Melbourne shapes as the most likely outcome.

NFL games in Germany and London are usually broadcast into America early on Sunday mornings and require a much shorter flight back to the US.

Victorian premier Jacinta Allen said recently of the fixture concerns: “There won’t be a clash. We’re putting together a committee to make sure the timing works for everyone, the AFL, the NFL, and the stadium.”

Originally published as AFL may be forced into major finals shake-up after NFL targets early September clash at MCG