AFL 2025: Dates, schedule, history, odds and more

The new AFL season will begin in March 2025 with the Brisbane Lions out to win back-to-back grand finals.

The Lions won the 2024 premiership, dominating Sydney in the grand final, and look to be the team to beat once again.

However the competition is fierce and it looks set to be wide open once again, with Sydney out for revenge, while Hawthorn, GWS and Geelong could also be in the mix.

Here is all you need to know about the 2025 AFL season.

AFL 2025 Dates

The AFL season gets underway in March each year and runs all the way through to the end of September, when the grand final is played.

The 2025 AFL campaign will begin on Thursday 6th March when Brisbane Lions entertain Geelong at the Gabba.

AFL 2025 Venues

The AFL season sees games played at a wide range of venues. They are as follows:

Victoria – MCG, Marvel Stadium, GMHBA Stadium, Mars Stadium
New South Wales – SCG, Engie Stadium
Western Australia – Optus Stadium.
South Australia – Adelaide Oval, Norwood Oval, Adelaide Hills
Queensland – The Gabba, People First Stadium
Tasmania – Ninja Stadium, University of Tasmania Stadium,
Canberra – Manuka Oval
Northern Territory – TIO Traeger Park, TIO Stadium

AFL 2025 How to watch

Most games are shown free-to-air on Channel 7 and via the 7Plus app.

Subscribers to FoxSports and Kayo are able to watch every game of the 2025 AFL season.

AFL 2025 History

The competition first began way back in 1897 and was then known as the VFL as it was made up of teams from Victoria.

Melbourne Football Club, who wrote the first laws of the game, is the oldest club in the competition.

The AFL era began in 1990 when clubs from other states in Australia joined the competition.

The AFL has gone from strength-to-strength and now consists of 18 teams.

Greater Western Sydney are the most recent addition to the AFL, joining the league in 2012. Gold Coast Suns had joined the previous year in 2011.

Carlton, Collingwood and Essendon hold the record for the most premierships throughout the VFL and AFL eras. They have won 16 each.

Brisbane Lions, who have won four premierships, are the reigning premiers.

AFL 2025 Odds

Brisbane are priced at 7.00 to go back-to-back and win the 2025 AFL grand final, while Hawthorn can be backed at 8.00.

Greater Western Sydney are 9.00, with Geelong, Sydney and Carlton, all available at 10.00.

Any odds displayed were correct at the time of writing and are subject to fluctuation.