Carlton Supporters Club

Carlton will head to Brisbane in 2024’s Opening Round, as confirmed by the AFL this morning.

In a league first, Carlton will be one of four Victorian teams heading to the northern states for Opening Round, with the Blues’ preliminary final rematch against the Lions to take place on Friday 8 March from 6:50pm local time (7:50pm AEDT).

It has also been confirmed that the Blues will kick off proceedings in Melbourne the following week in Round 1 when hosting the traditional clash with the Tigers.

Farken joke! We are one the biggest clubs in the land with almost 100K members and we have to go to crapsville to play the Bears rnd one. I couldn't give a toss about opening the season, but to schedule us interstate rnd one is a slap in the face to us members.
Here's a thought for rnd 1:
Thurs Night Bris v GC
Frid Night Syd v GWS
Sat Day early WC v Freo  early arvo Melb time Coll v Ess
Sat Night Carl v Rich
Sun Day PA v Ade, StKilda v Melb
Sun Night Geel v Haw
Monday Night NM v Foots
Rotate the opener around every year, everyplays at home in front of their fans.
Its not that farken hard AFL you imbeciles.

I was thinking along the same lines G2C, every team playing in their home state would be a great way to start the season.

We don’t need gimmicks to boost crowds or TV audiences, just evenly matched teams, consistent umpiring and knowledgeable, calm commentators.

its utter garbage mate. Lets be clear, Im all for “anyone, anytime, anywhere”but round 1 is all about fans wanting their game back after 6mnths of trading, drafting and preseasons. I just forked out over 3k for membership and cant
Use it for the first game (without forking out another 2 to 3k for tickets,flights and accom). Absolutely atrocious scheduling by the AFL.

Farken joke! We are one the biggest clubs in the land with almost 100K members and we have to go to crapsville to play the Bears rnd one. I couldn't give a toss about opening the season, but to schedule us interstate rnd one is a slap in the face to us members.
Here's a thought for rnd 1:
Thurs Night Bris v GC
Frid Night Syd v GWS
Sat Day early WC v Freo  early arvo Melb time Coll v Ess
Sat Night Carl v Rich
Sun Day PA v Ade, StKilda v Melb
Sun Night Geel v Haw
Monday Night NM v Foots
Rotate the opener around every year, everyplays at home in front of their fans.
Its not that farken hard AFL you imbeciles.

Great schedule, GTC old son, especially for those who attend games. However... the AFL has a major consideration - TV / streaming audience numbers (ratings) and giving advertisers bang for their buck.

Your Thur and Fri schedule would be terrific for local fans but the TV / streaming audience nationally (particularly Vic, SA & WA) would be a few goats, the odd ferret and easily amused crickets - a ratings disaster.

Unfortunately, the commercial reality is TV / streaming ratings are king for the AFL.

::)  :-\  ???
When is an 'opening' round not round 1 ?

::)  :-\  ???
When is an 'opening' round not round 1 ?

Let's face it, this is probably about the AFL throwing rocks at the NRL and Soccer more than anything to do with crowds or members. More of a strategic move in response to potential threatening opponents than anything else.

Fans can speculate, but we only hear about this stuff after decisions are made, we aren't privy to the commercial / corporate intelligence or sponsor feedback that underwrites these decisions.

The more "out of the blue" an action is, the less it has to do with you!

There's absolutley no doubt that there is a little more to the reasoning behind these 'opening round' shenanigans.

https://www.nrl.com/tickets/vegas/

NRL starts with a gimic, so a few days later we try something different as well.

I give in 😵‍💫

Opening: coming at the beginning of something; initial.

More absolute amateur nonsensical garbage from an organisation that's lost.
Lost: unable to find one's way; not knowing one's whereabouts.
"Help! We're lost!"

Opens the door for more football to be played in future.

Players in Europe play 40 games per year and their off season is two months.
We have a 22 game competition with five month off season (too long off season shouldn't be longer than three months).

There is no doubt in my mind that if I was a broadcaster I would demand more content and bang for my buck.

I think the intensity of AFL football is a good deal higher than soccer. I think the season is too long, given the list sizes. I would be either increasing playing lists or cutting the number of games. Being on current list sizes, I would have teams play each other once only, then top four plays finals. Less injuries, less wear and tear, players are fresher for longer, they have longer careers, and the end result is better quality football IMO. I've floated this idea in the past, and it's been about as popular as a severe dose of the clap. Still, i remain undaunted.

I think the intensity of AFL football is a good deal higher than soccer. I think the season is too long, given the list sizes. I would be either increasing playing lists or cutting the number of games. Being on current list sizes, I would have teams play each other once only, then top four plays finals. Less injuries, less wear and tear, players are fresher for longer, they have longer careers, and the end result is better quality football IMO. I've floated this idea in the past, and it's been about as popular as a severe dose of the clap. Still, i remain undaunted.

My ideal is to play every other side twice.
That's not going to happen with 18-20 sides.
Playing every other side once isn't a bad option to my mind...but the fly in the ointment would be broadcasters and sponsors who wouldn't wear a reduced season

Explaining the move, new AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon said the opening round fixture was introduced to help bolster the sport’s appeal in the northern markets.

“We were fortunate to be in a position where we were able to have access to our major venues in Queensland and NSW a weekend earlier than usual which gave us a unique opportunity to play these four games in key markets where footy continues to grow in popularity,” Dillon told AAP. “The four match-ups are big, with four of our biggest-supported Victorian clubs travelling north, and we look forward to starting our season with real momentum before we head into a blockbuster round of matches in round one.”

Yes but the players are also built differently.

Pre season should be December to February imo.. main season should be stretched out to November with more byes/breaks sometimes stretching out two weeks like in soccer with international matches.

Soccer grounds are soccer grounds, AFL uses cricket grounds mainly.
Have you got enough money to build and more importantly maintain grounds only/primarily  for AFL use ?

It's only an additional six rounds. Considering those six rounds will give broadcasters more content and more negotiation power to broker a deal at a much higher rate in next TV deal. Where funding goes to where it is required most - a nationalised state league and premier division in each state for development. We are seeing 19-25 year olds in state leagues far exceeding pick 30s in recent years but don't have the platform to showcase their wares due to poor competition structure.

You missed the point of his post.

The AFL season starts when it does because there are no grounds to play on earlier than that.
Pre-season games are played out bush half the time just to find a ground.

The problem is only going to get worse with the growing demand for women's sporting facilities, compounded by the AFL and it's stupid game schedule policy, but it's not just a footy problem.

problem solved, reinstate ikon park and get vfl park ready!