2024 AFL finals series

2024 premiership season
Geelong's Jack Bowes lining up for a shot at goal during the second preliminary final
Date	5 September – 28 September
Teams	8
Premiers	Brisbane Lions
Runners-up	Sydney
Attendance
Matches played	9
Total attendance	533,520 (59,280 per match)
Highest	100,013 (Grand Final, Sydney v Brisbane Lions)

The 2024 Australian Football League finals series is the 128th annual edition of the VFL/AFL finals series, the Australian rules football playoff tournament staged to determine the winner of the 2024 AFL premiership season. The series is scheduled to be played over 4 weeks in September, culminating in the 2024 AFL Grand Final.

The top eight teams from the 2024 AFL Premiership season qualify for the finals series. AFL finals series have been played under the current format since 2000.

Qualification

See also: 2024 AFL season

In round 24 of the 2024 AFL season, Sydney's win over Adelaide confirmed their minor premiership. Port Adelaide's victory against Fremantle secured second place, while Geelong's win over West Coast and Greater Western Sydney' loss to Western Bulldogs locked in third and fourth positions respectively. Brisbane Lions guaranteed fifth place and a home final by defeating Essendon. Western Bulldogs' upset win over Greater Western Sydney ensured they finished sixth, while Hawthorn's earlier victory against North Melbourne confirmed their seventh place. Finally, despite Carlton's loss to St Kilda, Fremantle's defeat by Port Adelaide secured Carlton the eighth and last Finals spot.

Ladder

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	D	PF	PA	PP	Pts	Qualification
1	Sydney	23	17	6	0	2242	1769	126.7	68	Finals series
2	Port Adelaide	23	16	7	0	2011	1752	114.8	64
3	Geelong	23	15	8	0	2164	1928	112.2	60
4	Greater Western Sydney	23	15	8	0	2034	1864	109.1	60
5	Brisbane Lions (P)	23	14	8	1	2130	1747	121.9	58
6	Western Bulldogs	23	14	9	0	2171	1736	125.1	56
7	Hawthorn	23	14	9	0	2090	1763	118.5	56
8	Carlton	23	13	10	0	2151	1952	110.2	52
9	Collingwood	23	12	9	2	1991	1943	102.5	52
10	Fremantle	23	12	10	1	1964	1755	111.9	50
11	Essendon	23	11	11	1	1892	2024	93.5	46
12	St Kilda	23	11	12	0	1748	1758	99.4	44
13	Gold Coast	23	11	12	0	1925	1943	99.1	44
14	Melbourne	23	11	12	0	1785	1812	98.5	44
15	Adelaide	23	8	14	1	1906	1923	99.1	34
16	West Coast	23	5	18	0	1594	2339	68.1	20
17	North Melbourne	23	3	20	0	1619	2550	63.5	12
18	Richmond	23	2	21	0	1505	2364	63.7	8

Source: afl.com.au
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for
(P) Premiers

Season notes

• Sydney won the minor premiership for the first time since 2016 and its tenth overall.
• After winning the premiership the previous season, Collingwood missed finals for first time since 2021.
• St Kilda and Melbourne missed finals for the first time since 2022 and 2020 respectively.
• Western Bulldogs and Hawthorn reached the finals for the first time since 2022 and 2018 respectively.

Venues

Melbourne	Brisbane Sydney Adelaide Melbourne	Brisbane
Melbourne Cricket Ground		The Gabba
Capacity: 100,024		Capacity: 36,700
Adelaide		Sydney	Sydney
Adelaide Oval		Sydney Cricket Ground	Engie Stadium
Capacity: 53,500		Capacity: 48,000	Capacity: 23,500

Matches

See also: AFL final eight system

The system used for the 2024 AFL finals series is a final eight system. The top four teams in the eight receive the "double chance" when they play in week-one qualifying finals, such that if a top-four team loses in the first week it still remains in the finals, playing a semi-final the next week against the winner of an elimination final. The bottom four of the eight play knock-out games – only the winners survive and move on to the next week. Home-state advantage goes to the team with the higher ladder position in the first two weeks, and to the qualifying final winners in the third week.

In the second week, the winners of the qualifying finals receive a bye to the third week. The losers of the qualifying final plays the elimination finals winners in a semi-final. In the third week, the winners of the semi-finals from week two play the winners of the qualifying finals in the first week. The winners of those matches move on to the Grand Final.

	Qualifying and elimination finals					Semi-finals						Preliminary finals					Grand final
	7 September, Sydney Cricket Ground
	1	Sydney	13.10 (88)
	4	Greater Western Sydney	12.10 (82)			14 September, Engie Stadium
						Greater Western Sydney		15.10 (100)
	7 September, the Gabba					Brisbane Lions		15.15 (105)				20 September, Sydney Cricket Ground
	5	Brisbane Lions	14.15 (99)									Sydney		14.11 (95)
	8	Carlton	11.5 (71)									Port Adelaide		8.11 (59)			28 September, Melbourne Cricket Ground
																	Sydney		9.6 (60)
	6 September, Melbourne Cricket Ground											21 September, Melbourne Cricket Ground					Brisbane Lions		18.12 (120)
	6	Western Bulldogs	9.8 (62)									Geelong		12.13 (85)
	7	Hawthorn	14.15 (99)			13 September, Adelaide Oval						Brisbane Lions		14.11 (95)
						Port Adelaide		11.9 (75)
	5 September, Adelaide Oval					Hawthorn		11.6 (72)
	2	Port Adelaide	7.12 (54)
	3	Geelong	20.18 (138)

All starting times are local time. Source: afl.com.au

Finals Series

Week one – Qualifying and Elimination Finals

	Second qualifying final
Thursday, 5 September (7:10 pm)	Port Adelaide 7.12 (54)	def. by	Geelong 20.18 (138)	Adelaide Oval (crowd: 50,342)	Report Stats
	3.4 (22) 6.7 (43) 6.9 (45) 7.12 (54)	Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4	3.7 (25) 9.9 (63) 14.16 (100) 20.18 (138)
Burgoyne, Burton, Georgiades, Horne-Francis, McEntee, Rioli, Rozee		Goals	Cameron 4, Stengle 4, Mannagh 3, Miers 3, Bowes 2, Neale 2, Bruhn, O. Henry
Bergman, Wines, Horne-Francis, Burton		Best	Dangerfield, Holmes, Stengle, Cameron, Mannagh, Miers, Bowes

	Second elimination final
Friday, 6 September (7:40 pm)	Western Bulldogs 9.8 (62)	def. by	Hawthorn 14.15 (99)	Melbourne Cricket Ground (crowd: 97,828)	Report Stats
	4.1 (25) 5.4 (34) 6.5 (41) 9.8 (62)	Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4	2.1 (13) 7.3 (45) 11.11 (77) 14.15 (99)
Naughton 3, Bontempelli, Darcy, English, Treloar, Vandermeer, Williams		Goals	Watson 4, Dear 3, Macdonald 2, Ginnivan, Gunston, Maginness, Meek, Newcombe
Liberatore, Richards, Treloar, Lobb, Williams		Best	Newcombe, Sicily, D'Ambrosio, Meek, Dear, Ward
The crowd of 97,828 for the Western Bulldogs v Hawthorn elimination final is the largest ever crowd for an elimination final and the largest crowd for a match between the two clubs since 1961.

	First qualifying final
Saturday, 7 September (3:20 pm)	Sydney 13.10 (88)	def.	Greater Western Sydney 12.10 (82)	Sydney Cricket Ground (crowd: 43,189)	Report Stats
	1.4 (10) 4.5 (29) 7.6 (48) 13.10 (88)	Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4	2.5 (17) 7.8 (50) 10.9 (69) 12.10 (82)
Heeney 3, Hayward 2, Papley 2, Amartey, Campbell, Lloyd, McDonald, Rampe, Rowbottom		Goals	Cadman 3, Hogan 3, Ward 2, Jones, Keeffe, McMullin, Peatling
Heeney, Lloyd, Warner, Rowbottom, Papley, Cunningham		Best	Green, Peatling, Hogan, Ward, Whitfield, Cadman

	First elimination final
Saturday, 7 September (7:30 pm)	Brisbane Lions 14.15 (99)	def.	Carlton 11.5 (71)	The Gabba (crowd: 35,660)	Report Stats
	5.5 (35) 9.7 (61) 10.12 (72) 14.15 (99)	Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4	0.0 (0) 2.1 (13) 5.2 (32) 11.5 (71)
Rayner 3, Ah Chee 2, Cameron 2, Daniher 2, Lohmann 2, Morris 2, Bailey		Goals	McKay 3, Pittonet 2, Acres, Cripps, Docherty, Fantasia, Hewett, E. Hollands
McCluggage, Zorko, Ashcroft, Neale, Starcevich, Wilmot		Best	Cripps, Hewett, Acres, Newman, De Koning, Weitering
Carlton's scoreless first quarter against the Brisbane Lions was the first by any team in a final since 1974.

Week two – Semi-Finals

	Second semi-final
Friday, 13 September (7:10 pm)	Port Adelaide 11.9 (75)	def.	Hawthorn 11.6 (72)	Adelaide Oval (crowd: 51,012)	Report Stats
	2.3 (15) 5.6 (36) 7.8 (50) 11.9 (75)	Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4	0.2 (2) 4.3 (27) 7.3 (45) 11.6 (72)
Georgiades 3, Byrne-Jones 2, Rioli 2, Burgoyne, Horne-Francis, Marshall, Rozee		Goals	Watson 3, Ginnivan 2, Breust, Chol, Dear, Maginness, Moore, Sicily
Burgoyne, Rioli, Horne-Francis, Georgiades, Jones, L. Evans, Zerk-Thatcher, Sweet		Best	Scrimshaw, Newcombe, Watson, Worpel, Sicily, Morrison

	First semi-final
Saturday, 14 September (7:30 pm)	Greater Western Sydney 15.10 (100)	def. by	Brisbane Lions 15.15 (105)	Engie Stadium (crowd: 18,357)	Report Stats
	5.3 (33) 8.7 (55) 14.8 (92) 15.10 (100)	Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4	3.5 (23) 4.10 (34) 9.13 (67) 15.15 (105)
Hogan 5, Greene 3, Peatling 2, Ash, Briggs, Cadman, Green, O'Halloran		Goals	Daniher 4, Cameron 2, Lohmann 2, Zorko 2, Ah Chee, Bailey, Fletcher, Hipwood, McInerney
Green, Hogan, Peatling, Kelly, Whitfield, Greene		Best	McCluggage, Daniher, Berry, Ashcroft, Zorko, Dunkley
The Brisbane Lions trailed by 44 points during the third quarter of the semi-final against Greater Western Sydney and went on to win, recording its biggest ever comeback in a final.

Week three – Preliminary Finals

	First preliminary final
Friday, 20 September (7:40 pm)	Sydney 14.11 (95)	def.	Port Adelaide 8.11 (59)	Sydney Cricket Ground (crowd: 44,053)	Report Stats
	4.0 (24) 9.1 (55) 13.7 (85) 14.11 (95)	Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4	2.3 (15) 4.6 (30) 6.9 (45) 8.11 (59)
Amartey 3, Papley 3, Heeney 2, McDonald 2, Warner 2, Lloyd, McLean		Goals	Rozee 2, Boak, Burgoyne, Burton, Dixon, Georgiades, Rioli
Heeney, Gulden, Blakey, Rowbottom, Warner, Florent		Best	Boak, Burgoyne, Rozee, Sweet, Butters
Ken Hinkley coached his 274th match for Port Adelaide in its loss to Sydney, breaking the record held by Mark Williams for most AFL matches coached for Port Adelaide.

	Second preliminary final
Saturday, 21 September (5:15 pm)	Geelong 12.13 (85)	def. by	Brisbane Lions 14.11 (95)	Melbourne Cricket Ground (crowd: 93,066)	Report Stats
	1.5 (11) 8.7 (55) 10.8 (68) 12.13 (85)	Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4	3.2 (20) 5.6 (36) 10.10 (70) 14.11 (95)
O. Henry 4, J. Cameron 2, Miers 2, Blicavs, Dangerfield, Dempsey, Mannagh		Goals	Ah Chee 3, Bailey 2, C. Cameron 2, Morris 2, Rayner 2, Hipwood, Lohmann, McCluggage
Holmes, Dangerfield, Stewart, Miers, O. Henry		Best	Lohmann, Neale, McCluggage, Starcevich, Zorko, Bailey

Week four – Grand Final

Main article: 2024 AFL Grand Final

	Grand Final
Saturday, 28 September (2:30 pm)	Sydney 9.6 (60)	def. by	Brisbane Lions 18.12 (120)	Melbourne Cricket Ground
	3.1 (19) 4.3 (27) 5.4 (34) 9.6 (60)	Q1 Q2 Q3 Final	4.3 (27) 11.7 (73) 16.11 (107) 18.12 (120)	Norm Smith Medal: Will Ashcroft Television broadcast: Seven Network National anthem: Cody Simpson

External links

• AFL finals series official website