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The Australian Football League is the elite men's competition in Australian rules football, played by 18 clubs across five states. This independent guide explains the league, the clubs, the season, and the sport itself, and it points to our factory for custom footy guernseys and club kit.
Australian rules football is played on an oval ground with 18 players per side and four interchange players on the bench. The ball can travel in any direction, and the sport rewards a mix of running, marking, and contested work. These are the four skills that decide most matches.
Players move the ball by kicking it or by handball, which is striking the ball with a closed fist while it is held in the other hand. A player may run with the ball but must bounce it or touch it to the ground at least every 15 metres.
A mark is a clean catch of a kicked ball that has travelled at least 15 metres without touching the ground or another player. A mark earns the catcher an uncontested kick, and a mark inside the forward 50 metres usually sets up a shot on goal.
Once an opponent has the ball, a player may tackle between the shoulders and the knees. There is no offside rule, so play flows across the whole oval and the ball can be won back anywhere on the ground.
A goal is worth 6 points and is kicked through the two tall central posts. A behind is worth 1 point and passes between a tall post and a shorter outer post, or touches a post on the way through. The higher total wins.
The competition is national, but it began in Victoria, and Victorian clubs still make up more than half of the league. The other eight clubs are split evenly across Western Australia, South Australia, New South Wales, and Queensland.
The season runs from summer training through to the Grand Final, then the women's competition plays through spring. This is the shape of a typical year.
Clubs train through summer and play practice matches before the premiership season starts. New recruits and draft picks use this window to win a place in the senior side.
From March to August, each club plays a full home and away season. A win is worth 4 premiership points and a draw is worth 2. The ladder decides who reaches the finals.
The top eight clubs play a four week finals series. The first week is the qualifying and elimination finals, then the semifinals, then two preliminary finals decide the last two sides.
The last two clubs meet in the Grand Final, usually in late September at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The winner takes the premiership cup.
After the men's Grand Final, the AFLW competition plays through spring and early summer, and clubs reset for the trade and draft period.
Beyond the regular rounds, a few fixtures and awards carry the most attention each year.
An entire round of matches is played in one host city, turning the league into a travelling festival. South Australia has secured Gather Round through 2029. Read our Gather Round 2026 report.
One of the biggest home and away fixtures of the year is played on Anzac Day, a public holiday that remembers Australians who served in war.
An annual match that celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and players, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
The league's highest individual award goes to the best and fairest player of the season, decided by votes from the field umpires after each match.
We manufacture sublimated footy guernseys, match shorts, warmup kit, and training wear for clubs, schools, and local leagues. Send your crest, colours, and playing list for a free mockup and a quote, and we will match your club identity from the first sample.
AFL stands for Australian Football League, the elite men's competition in Australian rules football. The league began in 1897 as the Victorian Football League and was renamed the Australian Football League in 1990.
There are 18 clubs: ten in Victoria, two in Western Australia, two in South Australia, two in New South Wales, and two in Queensland.
A goal is worth 6 points and is kicked through the two tall central posts. A behind is worth 1 point. The team with the higher total wins the match. If the totals are level the match is recorded as a draw, and during finals a draw is settled by extra time.
The home and away season runs from March to August, the finals run through September, and the Grand Final is usually played in late September.
The Grand Final is usually played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Victoria, in front of a full capacity crowd.
No. We are an independent custom apparel manufacturer. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the Australian Football League or any of its clubs, and we do not reproduce official league or club marks.
Tell us your club, your sport, and your quantities, and our sales desk will send a mockup and a quote. Factory direct production from the Philippines, shipped worldwide.
This page is independent editorial content. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the Australian Football League or any of its clubs. Club names are used for identification only, and no official league or club marks are reproduced.
