'Opening Round' was first added to the AFL calendar in 2024 as part of a push to compete with the first round of the new NRL season by giving the four New South Wales and Queensland clubs clear air and exclusive home games.
The 2025 edition saw the two Queensland matches postponed because of a tropical cyclone, before the league added a one-off Sunday night match between Collingwood and St Kilda to conclude 'Opening Round' in 2026.
The inclusion of a single game in Melbourne caused widespread confusion amongst pundits and supporters, many of whom could not understand the league's mixed intentions to include some Victorian clubs but not others in the opening weekend.
The subsequent 'split rounds' that followed between Rounds 2 and 4 was also seen to have taken a lot of momentum out of the opening month of the season, with some clubs such as the Western Bulldogs forced into a bye just as they were beginning to build an early season head of steam.
The 2027 season has been forced to start one week later than usual because of a one-off Test cricket match between Australia and England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Test cricket.
That and the expanded five-week finals series has denied the AFL the wiggle room for its experimental 'Opening Round', which the league has not ruled out reviving in 2028.
League boss Andrew Dillon had previously described Opening Round as "key" to growing the sport north of the Barassi Line and attributed the change of calendar to the squeeze caused by MCG Test cricket in March.
The late start to the season has pushed the 2028 Grand Final back to October 2.