Where the season sits.
AFL finals season in September and early October is one of the largest sporting-economic events on Melbourne's calendar, drawing hundreds of thousands of interstate visitors, filling hotels, and generating an economic footprint the state government estimates at more than $400m across the four weeks of the finals series.
The top eight teams from the home-and-away season contest a four-week finals series, culminating in the Grand Final at the MCG on the last Saturday of September (or the first Saturday of October when the season runs long). Between four and six of the eight finalists are typically Melbourne clubs.
The AFL and the Victorian Government's hosting arrangement locks the Grand Final at the MCG until at least 2059. Capacity for the day is around 100,000, of which roughly 17,000 seats are reserved for MCC and AFL members, another substantial block for club members of the competing teams, and around 30,000 general-public tickets released through Ticketmaster.
The average resale price for a Grand Final seat when two Melbourne clubs make the game exceeds $1,200 through the AFL's authorised resale platform. When an interstate club is involved, prices soften slightly on the secondary market as demand from local fans thins.
Visit Victoria's post-event analysis of the 2025 finals series estimated $427m in direct visitor spend across accommodation, hospitality, retail and transport, plus significant broadcast-value returns from the international audience. Hotels in the CBD, Docklands and Southbank run at 95%+ occupancy on Grand Final weekend, with average daily rates roughly 60% above the September baseline.
Melbourne Airport handles roughly 40,000 additional inbound passengers over the four days around the Grand Final. Uber and 13Cabs both operate surge protocols; Metro Trains runs a modified timetable with a dedicated post-match service pattern.
The Friday before the Grand Final has been a Victorian public holiday since 2015 — one of the few state-specific holidays tied to a sporting event anywhere in the world. Business Chamber and Australian Industry Group data suggest the holiday costs Victorian business roughly $1.1bn in lost productivity but returns a portion through hospitality, retail and tourism spending. The public generally rates the holiday well in Roy Morgan surveys.
The Grand Final Parade winds along Wellington Parade and Brunton Avenue on the Friday morning, drawing crowds of 100,000+ when both teams have strong Melbourne followings.
Beyond the Grand Final itself, the four weeks of finals prop up a network of pubs, function venues and event operators. The AFL Grand Final Public Screening at Federation Square has run every year since 2013. Corporate hospitality packages at Marvel and the MCG typically sell out by mid-August.
Which clubs make the eight, ticket-release logistics in September, and whether the AFL revives the "twilight" Grand Final start time that was trialled once in 2016 and remains a live conversation between broadcasters and the club-support base.