Opinion Is 2026 the worst AFL season ever

[BigVic]

Sydney vs Hawthorn GF will be the lowest-rated and worst grand final ever. Could see less than 100K at the MCG and a one-sided match.

 

[Footy_Fan2007]

Hawthorn and Sydney in the granny would sum up the 2026 AFL Season. Would be a miss for me

When does cricket start

You always sook it up massively when your team is a shit. You have a history of it.
Worst season blah blah.
Don’t watch it then.

 

[archereleven]

I hear that claim year after year.

There's a reason for that...

 

[JayJ20]

"All big 4 clubs underperforming".

Richmond, Essendon and Carlton have been underperforming for the best part of 25 years (except for Richmond 2017-2020).

This thread is obviously about Collingwood being bad.

 

[HairyO]

Did my team lose: yes
Else: no

 

[north_lad]

It's not the league's fault Collingwood don't have a forward line

 

[GoEaglesGoSGIO]

Too early to call but its been a bad start

My issue foremost is the new rule changes are having a huge detrimental impact. The lasso rule is basically turning it into a game of basketball and the ruck rules have added to that. We basically now have a whole different sport infront of our eyes

I think lets wait til like round 20 before we judge fully but my early prediciton for that wont be nice. I think we will have record injury tolls, record one sided contests as teams begin to tank and give up and after that a finals series which is compromised by the rule changes in place

 

[fusion]

To

If Pies could kick straight this thread doesn't happen.

To be fair to the OP, I can see his point. And my team is having its best season for 5 years (albeit a very low bar).

Saturday night games may as well forget about footy. Scheduling has been terrible. Too many byes and opening round is just stupid, but getting worse each year with match ups.

Umpiring is generally bad in all games I've seen too. But the last touch rule is a good change.

The gap between good and bad teams is just too wide.

 

[Coolangatta]

Go back to top 8.

Go back to 22 games. 11 home, 11 away for each club. Opening Round & Gather Round **** off.

Revert to 1990s rules.

Get the Giants playing all of their home games in Sydney to increase engagement and change their name to Western Sydney Giants.

A Canberra club as team 20 would help achieve this, but watch the AFL chase $$$ and go for Brisbane 2.0 and then they just become another GWS.

All of these things would help.

 

[BigVic]

Go back to top 8.

Go back to 22 games. 11 home, 11 away for each club. Opening Round & Gather Round **** off.

Revert to 1990s rules.

Get the Giants playing all of their home games in Sydney to increase engagement and change their name to Western Sydney Giants.

A Canberra club as team 20 would help achieve this, but watch the AFL chase $$$ and go for Brisbane 2.0 and then they just become another GWS.

All of these things would help.

Great ideas. Gather Round and Opening Round have diluted the fixture

Bring back 1990s rules.

Equalisation

 

[hawkman]

Sydney vs Hawthorn GF will be the lowest-rated and worst grand final ever. Could see less than 100K at the MCG and a one-sided match.

No GF unless it is GWS v GC is getting under 100k

 

[BigVic]

No GF unless it is GWS v GC is getting under 100k

2014 GF drew a sub-100K crowd

 

[bzparkes]

2014 GF drew a sub-100K crowd

By 546 people...

 

[Jim Prideaux]

No, not even close. The predicted bottom teams are largely competitive (WCE, North, Dees, even the do a this week), the middle tier is doing middle tier stuff, and the top 6 looks to be a shoot out.

The new rules are, well, meh, some fine, some bad.

Overall I’d say it’s been a fine season. Not a great one, not a bad one. We can revisit at seasons end

 

[Wolfgang West]

By 546 people...

And the 546 that never fronted were Pies supporters sooking it up because their side were shit. Who would have thought ????

 

[_007_]

Is this thread the worst thread ever?

 

[Roobs321]

This season is fine, but I'm against a 20th team any time soon. I'd rather a perennial bye.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

My favourite part is when some people say the stand rule is saving the sport, internalizing the AFL media's bs narratives, when on average it's low scoring and super floods are everywhere, on top of players being forced to stay frozen while a ball carrier runs past them.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Too early to call but its been a bad start

My issue foremost is the new rule changes are having a huge detrimental impact. The lasso rule is basically turning it into a game of basketball and the ruck rules have added to that. We basically now have a whole different sport infront of our eyes

I think lets wait til like round 20 before we judge fully but my early prediciton for that wont be nice. I think we will have record injury tolls, record one sided contests as teams begin to tank and give up and after that a finals series which is compromised by the rule changes in place

Drives me nuts how they've removed all the creativity from ruck contests, Daniel Wells 2004 goal of the year is now illegal.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Go back to top 8.

Go back to 22 games. 11 home, 11 away for each club. Opening Round & Gather Round **** off.

Revert to 1990s rules.

Only changes I like were removing the umpires bouncing the ball, which is controversial, but I like the ball being properly symmetrically balled up instead of asymmetrically bounced up to one ruckman's advantage, and defenders not having to kick to themselves from goal square kick outs. If there had to be rule changes I would only want making all rushed behinds either thrown back in or bounced up 30 metres out from goal by the umpire, and removing backwards marking. Other than that, all these rule changes have removed creativity and overregulated the sport to where it's closer to resembling Sarcastaball.

 

[Strawballs]

Yeah, this is hands down the worst AFL season ever. These dumb rule changes have turned footy into bloody Auskick — constant whistles, endless interruptions, games that are straight-up unwatchable. The AFL has completely stuffed what used to be the greatest game on earth.

 

[BigVic]

Yeah, this is hands down the worst AFL season ever. These dumb rule changes have turned footy into bloody Auskick — constant whistles, endless interruptions, games that are straight-up unwatchable. The AFL has completely stuffed what used to be the greatest game on earth.

The GSHFL now or the Australian Farmer's League. Game is straight-up unwatchable. Geelong, Sydney and Hawthorn dominating the league with everyone below them. Used to be the greatest game on earth pre-Dillon and Kane

 

[Generalissimo]

Covid years were pretty dire but yeah, this year's been underwhelming so far.

 

[Gavin Excell]

The GSHFL now or the Australian Farmer's League. Game is straight-up unwatchable. Geelong, Sydney and Hawthorn dominating the league with everyone below them. Used to be the greatest game on earth pre-Dillon and Kane

This is hilarious

Im sure Bigvic is taking the piss

 

[PhatBoy]

The GSHFL now or the Australian Farmer's League. Game is straight-up unwatchable. Geelong, Sydney and Hawthorn dominating the league with everyone below them. Used to be the greatest game on earth pre-Dillon and Kane

I’m sure you’ll make another 4000000 threads about it until AFL house hears about how the team at 3-2 who struggled to get on top of west coast yesterday with two other wind coming narrowly, is destroying everything in its path based on invisible leg ups they’re receiving from the House itself.