The AFL has announce the 2021 VFL season is set to begin on Saturday 17 April, with teams from Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales to take part.

The home and away season will feature 22 clubs from those three states and will consist of a 16-game season across 19 rounds.

A top eight finals structure will commence on Saturday 28 August, with the VFL Grand Final to be held on the weekend of September 18-19.

All clubs will have three allocated byes to provide an added level of flexibility to adjust where required.

The VFL competition will integrate into a streamlined calendar for men’s football along with the 2021 NAB League Boys competition, with both seasons running concurrently with the 2021 Toyota AFL Premiership Season.

The 2021 fixture is set to be released at the end of February, given the connection to the 2021 Toyota AFL Premiership Season.

Club practice matches will commence in March.

 

Clubs

Standalone Clubs
: Aspley, Coburg, Frankston, Northern Bullants, Port Melbourne, Southport, Werribee, Williamstown

Standalone AFL Clubs:
Brisbane Lions, Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Footscray, Geelong Cats, Gold Coast Suns, GWS Giants, North Melbourne, Richmond, Sydney Swans

Aligned Clubs:
Sandringham (St Kilda), Box Hill Hawks (Hawthorn), Casey Demons (Melbourne)