AFLW to Open Footy at New Perth Stadium

First big footy match at the new Perth Stadium will be an AFL women’s game.

The AFL is set to schedule an AFLW match at the new Perth stadium in early 2018, CEO Gillon McLachlan says.

Speaking on Fox Footy show On the Couch Monday, the AFL CEO said an AFLW game will take place in February 2018, weeks before planned NRL games or the 2018 AFL season, with details to be determined.

“Feb 10 (there’ll be an) AFLW game to open football ahead of rugby,” McLachlan said.

McLachlan also revealed he’s still waiting to confirm a deal with the WA Government.

“We’ve got to get a deal done… but we’ll get a deal done,” he said.

Gil reveals on #OnTheCouch the AFL is planning to fixture an AFLW game at the new Perth Stadium before the NRL plays their matches there — Luke Sicari (@lukesicari) September 4, 2017

It’s almost certain the Fremantle Dockers AFLW


team would play host the first ever Australian rules footy match at the new state-of-the-art, $1.2 billion stadium.

In 2017, the AFLW season began in the first week of February.

The event would likely attract a big crowd – given high fan anticipation for footy at the new venue – along with the growing popularity of AFL Women’s.

Will you attend the AFLW game?

VIDEO: New Perth Stadium

The new Perth Stadium is set to open in December 2017.

Cricket will likely host the first major event at the stadium on January 28th, with a ODI between Australia and England.

The NRL had announced Sydney teams would travel to Perth to take advantage of the stadium in March, before Fremantle and West Coast host their first games. An Ed Sheeran concert will take place on March 2.

An AFLW match involving the Fremantle Dockers AFLW team would be a huge drawcard and may sell-out most of the stadium.

The new Perth Stadium is starting to attract significant media attention from across Australia.

This week, Sydney’s Daily Telegraph newspaper described the venue as the best in the southern hemisphere, suggesting NSW should be “jealous”


In South Australia, the local Adelaide Advertiser daily newspaper is worried Adelaide Oval might lose it’s unofficial “best venue in Australia” tag to Perth Stadium.

Related: New Perth Stadium – everything you need to know

New Perth Stadium – Chevron Parklands Epic New Kids Playground.

More to come…