New system for AFL fixtures?

[Cleavy]

With how rubbish the AFL is at setting up the match fixtures, they might as well just draw names out of hats at this stage.

they probably do already and blame it on the "supercomputer"

 

[Altum Volantes]

With how rubbish the AFL is at setting up the match fixtures, they might as well just draw names out of hats at this stage.

You know they’d stuff it up and end up scheduling Collingwood vs Collingwood to maximise the ratings and crowd.

 

[Coolangatta]

3 year rolling fixture with every club playing each other home and away alternatively.

Advantages -

Everyone gets to play each other a consistent amount of times, home and away.
“Where is our next game against Brisbane?” - Well last time the game was in Perth, so we must be due a trip to Brisbane.

Abandon retrospective ‘ladder based’ fixturing that is rarely a true indicator of in-season difficulty anyway.

Actual fixture integrity - there is no ‘Collingwood haven’t played in Western Sydney for 7 years!’ bulltish (for example), they will play there every 2nd meeting.

Disadvantages (depending on how you see it?) -

Less manufactured fixture designed to increase crowds and TV ratings.

Less guaranteed double-up games ala West Coast vs Fremantle, twice every year. Teams will get a ‘home’ blockbuster twice in every 3 year period, instead of 3 times.

Gather Round is a curve ball (of course…) but could be used to fixture marquee games to draw big crowds/attendances.



Imagine it, an actual consistent fixture where everyone plays everyone, home and away, over a set period of time.

Or every team plays each other once in the first 17 rounds, and those fixtures are reversed each year.

Rounds 18-23 can be random double ups or the AFL can maximise their blockbusters, derbies and so on like they do now.

It’s very doable.