How to Add AFL Fixtures to Your Calendar
Sport to Calendar makes it simple to keep the 2026 AFL season in front of you every day. Here's a step-by-step
guide to getting your fixtures synced, no matter which calendar app you use.
Option 1 — Direct Google Calendar Sync
This is the most seamless option for Google Calendar users. Click Connect Google Calendar, sign in with your Google account, then tick the teams you want to follow and click Add to Google Calendar. Your fixtures are created instantly — no file download, no manual import required.
If the AFL later adjusts a kick-off time or venue (which happens regularly, especially from Round 15 onwards), simply return to this page and click Update Existing Events. The tool will patch every affected event in your calendar without creating duplicates.
Option 2 — Download an ICS File
Select your teams and click Download ICS File. An .ics file will save to your device. You can then import it into Apple Calendar, Outlook, Thunderbird, Proton Calendar, Fastmail, or any other app that supports the iCalendar standard.
On iPhone/iPad: tap the downloaded file and iOS will offer to add it to your calendar. On Mac: double-click the file and Calendar opens automatically. In Outlook: go to File → Open & Export → Import/Export and follow the calendar import wizard.
Tips for Getting the Most Out of the Tool
- Select multiple teams if you enjoy rivalry matches — for example, add both Collingwood and Essendon to catch every time they meet.
- Enable the Email Reminder option before adding to Google Calendar to get a notification before each game.
- Use the Full Season Fixture panel to browse all rounds and search by team name before deciding which clubs to add.
- Return here mid-season to click Update Existing Events — the AFL typically releases final time confirmations 4–6 weeks out from each round.
- If you follow a club that travels frequently (Brisbane, GWS, Gold Coast, West Coast, Fremantle, Adelaide, Port Adelaide), pay close attention to venue changes in later rounds as broadcasters lock in primetime slots.
About the AFL
The Australian Football League (AFL) is Australia's premier professional sporting competition and the governing
body of Australian rules football at the elite level. The league traces its origins to 1897 when eight Victorian
clubs formed the Victorian Football League (VFL), making it one of the oldest professional sporting competitions
in the world. For nearly a century the competition remained concentrated in Victoria, but through the 1980s and
1990s the league expanded into Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, New South Wales, and the Northern
Territory. In 1990 the VFL was officially rebranded as the Australian Football League to reflect this national
footprint.
Today the AFL comprises 18 clubs: Adelaide Crows, Brisbane Lions, Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Fremantle,
Geelong Cats, Gold Coast Suns, GWS Giants, Hawthorn, Melbourne, North Melbourne, Port Adelaide, Richmond,
St Kilda, Sydney Swans, West Coast Eagles, and Western Bulldogs. Each season the clubs play a home-and-away
fixture across 23 rounds, with the top eight clubs advancing to a four-week finals series that culminates in
the AFL Grand Final — traditionally held on the last Saturday of September.
Attendance and television audiences for AFL are enormous by any measure. The AFL Grand Final routinely draws
crowds of 95,000-plus at the Melbourne Cricket Ground and attracts television audiences of several million
viewers, making it one of the most-watched single sporting events in Australia each year. Average home-and-away
attendance per game typically ranks among the highest of any football code in the world, underscoring the
sport's deep cultural roots, particularly in Victoria, South Australia, and Western Australia.
Games are played primarily on weekends, with Friday night twilight and Saturday fixtures being the most
popular timeslots for broadcasters. Thursday and Sunday slots are also used throughout the season. Scheduling
is managed centrally by the AFL and can change throughout the year due to broadcast renegotiations, venue
bookings, and special event rounds — which is precisely why syncing your calendar with a live source like
Sport to Calendar is so valuable.
The 2026 AFL Season
The 2026 AFL season opens in late March and runs through to the Grand Final in late September — a 26-week
journey through 207 home-and-away matches plus a four-week finals series. The season traditionally kicks off
with Gather Round, a festival-style opening weekend in which multiple rounds of games are played at a single
host city, giving fans around Australia a chance to see several matches in person in one location.
Several rounds carry special significance on the calendar. ANZAC Round (Round 6) marks the
annual Collingwood–Essendon clash at the MCG on ANZAC Day, a fixture that has been played since 1995 and
consistently draws one of the largest crowds of the regular season. The Queen's Birthday Round
in June traditionally features a blockbuster Melbourne match. Sir Doug Nicholls Round
celebrates First Nations players and culture across all matches. Pride Round acknowledges
LGBTQIA+ inclusion in the game, and Multicultural Round celebrates the diversity of football
communities across Australia.
Key stadiums hosting matches this season include the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) — the spiritual home of
Australian football, with a capacity of 100,024 — as well as Marvel Stadium, Adelaide Oval, Optus Stadium
in Perth, the Gabba and People First Stadium in Queensland, ENGIE Stadium in Sydney, GMHBA Stadium in
Geelong, and Blundstone Arena in Hobart. Interstate travel is a significant factor in team performance, with
clubs from Perth, Adelaide, and Queensland sometimes required to travel vast distances for away fixtures.
The finals series begins in early September. Under the AFL's current finals system, the top four clubs receive
double chances while clubs finishing 5th through 8th play elimination finals. By late September, two clubs
remain to contest the Grand Final at the MCG. Use the Sport to Calendar tool to add every step of the season
to your calendar so you never miss a match, from the opening bounce to the final siren on Grand Final day.
The AFL Finals System Explained
The AFL uses a finals system that has evolved significantly over the league's history. The current format —
sometimes called the "McIntyre Final Eight" variant — gives the top four clubs a double chance while still
rewarding finishing higher on the ladder. Here is how the four weeks play out:
| Week |
Match |
Clubs Involved |
Stakes |
| Week 1 |
Qualifying Final 1 |
1st vs 2nd |
Winner advances to Preliminary Final; loser gets a second chance |
| Week 1 |
Qualifying Final 2 |
3rd vs 4th |
Winner advances to Preliminary Final; loser gets a second chance |
| Week 1 |
Elimination Final 1 |
5th vs 8th |
Win or go home |
| Week 1 |
Elimination Final 2 |
6th vs 7th |
Win or go home |
| Week 2 |
Semi-Final 1 & 2 |
QF losers vs EF winners |
Win or go home |
| Week 3 |
Preliminary Final 1 & 2 |
QF winners vs SF winners |
Winners earn a Grand Final berth |
| Week 4 |
AFL Grand Final |
PF winners |
Premiership decider at the MCG |
One important detail for fixture-tracking purposes: finals venues are not always confirmed until a few weeks
before the matches. While the MCG hosts the Grand Final and most high-profile finals, clubs that finish in
the top two on the ladder may be awarded home finals at their home ground if capacity and broadcast
arrangements allow. This is another reason to keep your calendar events updated throughout the finals period.
The 18 AFL Clubs
Each of the 18 clubs in the AFL has its own history, home ground, and passionate supporter base. Below is a
quick reference to all clubs competing in the 2026 season, including their home state and primary stadium.
Adelaide Crows
Founded 1990 · South Australia
Home: Adelaide Oval (53,583)
Brisbane Lions
Founded 1996 · Queensland
Home: The Gabba (42,000)
Carlton
Founded 1897 · Victoria
Home: MCG (100,024)
Collingwood
Founded 1897 · Victoria
Home: MCG (100,024)
Essendon
Founded 1897 · Victoria
Home: Marvel Stadium (56,347)
Fremantle
Founded 1994 · Western Australia
Home: Optus Stadium (60,000)
Geelong Cats
Founded 1897 · Victoria
Home: GMHBA Stadium (36,052)
Gold Coast Suns
Founded 2010 · Queensland
Home: People First Stadium (26,000)
GWS Giants
Founded 2011 · New South Wales
Home: ENGIE Stadium (24,000)
Hawthorn
Founded 1902 · Victoria
Home: MCG / Blundstone Arena
Melbourne
Founded 1897 · Victoria
Home: MCG (100,024)
North Melbourne
Founded 1897 · Victoria
Home: Marvel Stadium
Port Adelaide
Founded 1997 · South Australia
Home: Adelaide Oval (53,583)
Richmond
Founded 1908 · Victoria
Home: MCG (100,024)
St Kilda
Founded 1897 · Victoria
Home: Marvel Stadium (56,347)
Sydney Swans
Founded 1874 (as South Melbourne) · New South Wales
Home: SCG (48,000)
West Coast Eagles
Founded 1986 · Western Australia
Home: Optus Stadium (60,000)
Western Bulldogs
Founded 1877 · Victoria
Home: Marvel Stadium
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an ICS file?
An ICS file (iCalendar format) is a universal calendar file that works across virtually every calendar application — Google Calendar, Apple Calendar on iPhone/iPad/Mac, Microsoft Outlook, Samsung Calendar, Thunderbird, Proton Calendar, Fastmail, and more. The format is an open standard (RFC 5545), which means it's been supported reliably for decades. Once you import an ICS file, each match appears as a calendar event with the correct date, time, venue, and a description showing both teams. You can edit or delete individual events just like any other appointment in your calendar.
Do I need to create an account?
No account is required to use the ICS download. Select your teams, click Download ICS File, and you're done. The optional Google Calendar integration requires you to sign in with an existing Google account so that Sport to Calendar can create events on your behalf — but we never store your password and the login uses Google's own secure OAuth 2.0 flow. We do not collect or store your email address or any personal data beyond what is needed to authenticate the calendar API call.
Are the fixture times accurate?
Fixture data is sourced from the Squiggle AFL API, which reflects the officially published AFL schedule. Times are displayed in your local timezone, automatically detected by your browser. It is important to note that the AFL regularly adjusts kick-off times, particularly from Round 15 onwards as broadcast partners finalise primetime slots. Some games listed as TBC early in the season will have times confirmed four to six weeks before the match. We recommend returning to this page every few weeks and using the Update Existing Events button to keep your calendar current.
How do I update my calendar if fixtures change?
Google Calendar users: Sign in again, select the same teams, and click Update Existing Events. The tool will find each event it previously created and update the start time, end time, and venue without creating duplicates.
ICS file users: The simplest approach is to delete all the events you imported previously, then download a fresh ICS file and import it again. Most calendar apps let you filter events by calendar name, making batch deletion easy. If you named the imported events something distinct (Google Calendar lets you assign a colour), you can identify and delete them quickly.
Can I add all 18 teams at once?
Yes. You can select any combination of teams, from a single club to all 18. Selecting every team will add all 207 home-and-away matches plus the eight finals games to your calendar — ideal for footy fans who want to follow the full competition, media workers covering the sport, or anyone who just loves having the entire schedule at a glance. If you only want your club's games, deselect everything and tick just the one team; the tool will include all matches in which that club participates, both home and away.
Which calendar apps are supported?
The ICS download works with any application that supports the iCalendar standard. This includes Google Calendar (web, Android, iOS), Apple Calendar on Mac, iPhone, and iPad, Microsoft Outlook on Windows and Mac, Mozilla Thunderbird, Fastmail, Proton Calendar, Samsung Calendar, and Zoho Calendar. The direct Google Calendar sync is available to any user who can sign in with a Google account, including Google Workspace (formerly G Suite) accounts.
Do the calendar events include venue information?
Yes. Each calendar event includes the match venue as the location field. In Google Calendar, this means you can tap the event and use the built-in Maps integration to get directions to the ground. The event description also includes the round number, teams, and kick-off time so you have everything you need at a glance.
What about byes? Are they shown?
The Full Season Fixture panel in the tool displays bye information — teams that do not play in a given round are listed under that round's bye section. However, bye weeks are not added to your calendar as events, since there is no match to attend or watch. If you want a reminder that your team has a bye, you can manually create a calendar event after importing the fixture.
Is this service free?
Yes, Sport to Calendar is completely free to use. There are no subscriptions, no premium tiers, and no sign-up required to download an ICS file. The service is supported by advertising, which allows us to keep it free and cover the costs of maintaining the fixture data feed and API integrations throughout the season.
Why Syncing Your AFL Calendar Matters
Unlike sports with rigid, season-long schedules published months in advance, the AFL fixture is a living
document. The league publishes an initial draw in the lead-up to the season, but kick-off times for most
matches in the second half of the season are only confirmed four to eight weeks out — when broadcast partners
finalise their programming schedules. This means that even if you note down every game at the start of the
year, a significant portion of those times will change before the matches actually take place.
Having your AFL fixtures in your digital calendar — rather than written in a diary or saved as a screenshot —
means you can update them with a few clicks whenever the AFL announces time changes. With the Google Calendar
integration, the process is even faster: click Update Existing Events and every affected match in your
calendar is corrected automatically.
Beyond time changes, a synced calendar means AFL games appear alongside your other commitments. You can
quickly see whether a Friday night match clashes with a work event, whether you'll be traveling during
the ANZAC Day round, or whether the Grand Final falls on a weekend you've already planned a holiday.
For many fans, this visibility is what makes the calendar integration genuinely useful day-to-day rather
than just a novelty.
If you attend games in person, the venue information in each calendar event is especially handy. Tapping an
event on your phone immediately surfaces the ground address, and in Google Calendar you can launch Maps
directions to the stadium right from the event view — no need to separately search for the venue on game day.