The AFL has been forced to cancel the Shanghai game between St Kilda and Port Adelaide due to coronavirus.

Round 11’s match between the clubs was to be played in the Chinese megacity but instead will head to the Saints’ home ground of Marvel Stadium. An official announcement will be made on Wednesday.

It’s understood the Saints and Power have had their bye moved, with Sunday June 7 slated for their hit out.

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Round 18

The AFL is having to balance multiple stakeholders to decide when to play the match, including the Chinese government and Australian broadcasters.

As of lunchtime on Tuesday, senior officials at both clubs had not been officially told the exact date and time of the rescheduled match.

The reshuffling of the fixture means St Kilda plays nine of its first 11 matches at Marvel Stadium, with its match against Port Adelaide to be a twilight game, with a public holiday for the Queen’s Birthday the following day.

Port Adelaide handily won last year’s Shanghai game against St Kilda. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos) Source: Getty Images

There have been three matches played at Jiangwan Stadium in Shanghai, all featuring and won by Port Adelaide. Gold Coast was paid to host and lose to the Power in 2017 and 2018, while St Kilda took over that role in 2019.

But current advice from the Australian government is for all residents to avoid travelling to China, thanks to the outbreak of coronavirus.

The centre of the outbreak, the central city of Wuhan in Hubei province, is 800 kilometres from coastal Shanghai. More than 86,500 people have been infected with the disease and killed nearly 3,000; the majority of those have been in China and most in Hubei.

Australians flying in from China are currently required to spend 14 days in quarantine upon landing, which obviously would impact negatively on the Saints and Power’s ability to train after returning home.

- with Max Laughton