Round five of the 2023 AFL season has a unique spin on it, with the league preparing for its inaugural 'Gather Round... A festival of Footy' between April 13-16.
Loosely based on the NRL's 'Magic Round', all 18 AFL teams will travel to South Australia and play across three different grounds, with Adelaide Oval holding six of the nine matches.
The weekend gets underway with a mouth-watering clash between Adelaide and Carlton on Thursday evening, while it concludes with ladder-leaders St Kilda facing Collingwood Sunday twilight.
Norwood (hosting two matches) and Mount Barker Ovals (Brisbane vs North Melbourne) are the remaining locations for the other three games across the weekend.
What is Gather Round?
The AFL's inaugural 'Gather Round' showcases South Australia and all it has to offer, while putting on all round five games in the one city.
Spread across three grounds (Adelaide Oval, Norwood Oval and Mount Barker Oval), all 18 teams will feature in the one state as they vie for important premiership points.
Beginning on Thursday April 13 with a clash between Adelaide and Carlton, the weekend ends with St Kilda and Collingwood doing battle on Sunday twilight.
Gather Round Fixture
The full schedule for the inaugural round is as follows:
| Date | Fixture | Time (AEST/Local) | Network | Venue |
| Thu, Apr 13 | Adelaide Crows 18.10 (118) def. Carlton 9.8 (62) | 7:40 pm / 7:10 pm | Seven | Adelaide Oval |
| Fri, Apr 14 | Fremantle 15.10 (100) def. Gold Coast Suns 13.12 (90) | 5:10 pm / 4:40 pm | Fox | Norwood Oval |
| Fri, Apr 14 | Richmond 11.12 (78) def. by Sydney 18.14 (122) | 8:10 pm / 7:40 pm | Seven | Adelaide Oval |
| Sat, Apr 15 | Brisbane Lions 22.20 (152) def. North Melbourne 12.5 (77) | 1:10 pm / 12:40 pm | Fox | Mount Barker Oval |
| Sat, Apr 15 | Essendon 15.14 (104) def. Melbourne 11.11 (77) | 4:10 pm / 3:40 pm | Fox | Adelaide Oval |
| Sat, Apr 15 | Port Adelaide 10.10 (70) def. Western Bulldogs 8.8 (56) | 7:50 pm / 7:20 pm | Seven | Adelaide Oval |
| Sun, Apr 16 | Geelong Cats 21.10 (136) def. West Coast Eagles 13.11 (89) | 1:10 pm / 12:40 pm | Fox | Adelaide Oval |
| Sun, Apr 16 | GWS Giants 10.17 (77) def. Hawthorn 11.9 (75) | 3:20 pm / 2:50 pm | Seven | Norwood Oval |
| Sun, Apr 16 | Collingwood 10.10 (70) def. St Kilda 9.10 (64) | 4:50 pm / 4:20 pm | Fox | Adelaide Oval |
Gather Round Tickets
For all your ticketing information, find it here.
All nine Gather Round matches have now sold out.
— AFL House (@AFL_House) April 13, 2023
Tickets for the Gather Round match Sydney Swans vs Richmond at Adelaide Oval are now exhausted.
If you've purchased a ticket but cannot attend, you can return your ticket via the Ticketek App and receive a refund here.
Gather Round Entertainment
The AFL revealed headline acts The Veronicas and Peking Duk for the upcoming Gather Round.
Peking Duk will kick off the inaugural weekend with a pre-match performance before the Adelaide and Carlton game on Thursday (April 13), while The Veronicas will take the stage on the Saturday (April 15) before the Port Adelaide and Western Bulldogs clash.
Both bands acknowledged the privilege they had in performing in the AFL's first Gather Round.
“We are so excited to be celebrating and bringing music to such an iconic sporting event. We can’t wait to hit the field with you all," The Veronicas said.
Peking Duk will be joined on stage by special guests Ben Woolner and Julia Stone (Australian folk singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist).
DJs Yo! Mafia, Emma Peters, Matt Sammut, Jesse, Louis F and Marc B will also be performing across the weekend at all three venues (Adelaide Oval, Norwood Oval and Mount Barker Oval - Adelaide Hills).
AFL Executive General Manager Customer and Commercial Kylie Rogers said it was exciting to have a host of great Australian artists part of the first-ever AFL Gather Round celebrations.
“The AFL is proud to have an incredible line up of award-winning artists in The Veronicas and Peking Duk along with six of the best Aussie DJs entertain fans as part of our Gather Round celebrations,” Ms Rogers said.
“Not only do we have a host of amazing matches for fans to get excited about, but we have heaps of FREE family friendly activities that fans of all ages can enjoy, so we hope to see as many people there to soak up all the atmosphere.”
Fans will also be treated to a 150m long zip line that travels across the River Torrens as part of the four-day Pepsi Max Football Festival.
The footy festival will be held at the Elder Park and Pinky Flat precincts, which is walking distance to Adelaide Oval.
The entire round will be shown on big screens, while AFL and AFLW stars will appear to meet-and-greet fans during the extended weekend.
South Australia's best local vendors, food trucks and licensed bars will be on display with Pinky Flat, which is a designated 18+ zone.
AFL GM of Customer and Commercial Kylie Rogers expressed her excitement about what's on offer for over "150,000 fans".
"More than 150,000 fans are expected to attend Gather Round matches, and now every South Australian will be able to join the festivities at the Pepsi Max Footy Festival," Rogers said.
“We are proud to bring the best of both the AFL and local SA vendors to provide four days of free activities for footy fans of all ages to soak up the atmosphere of Gather Round.”
Gather Round Venues
The famous Adelaide Oval is playing host to six of the nine matches throughout the weekend, located in the parklands between the city centre and North Adelaide.
Norwood Oval - which sees two games - is placed in the western end of Norwood.
Lastly, the third ground is Mount Barker Oval, a new sporting complex located in the picturesque Adelaide Hills, where Brisbane and North Melbourne will play on Saturday afternoon (April 15).
Gather Round Guernseys
Inspired by the weekend's festivities, clubs have curated new guernseys to mark the special occasion that is Gather Round.
Fremantle have unveiled a new strip in honour of the weekend.
Fremantle's Gather Round kit is 🔥
— 7AFL (@7AFL) April 10, 2023
📸 @freodockers pic.twitter.com/wljLdnDocz
Adelaide also revealed the strip they will be wearing on Thursday night against Carlton.
.@Adelaide_FC unveiled its special heritage guernsey for Gather Round tonight on #AFL360.
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) April 11, 2023
They'll wear it against @CarltonFC - which may be an interesting look... 🔵🤔 pic.twitter.com/apOg0d0XiU
