The stage is set for the biggest Festival of Footy ever seen on Seven, with the LIVE and FREE action across Rounds 9-12 blasting off today with a special Wednesday night clash between the emerging Western Bulldogs and reigning premier Richmond at Metricon Stadium.
The Bulldogs-Tigers grudge match kicks off at 7.00pm AEST on Channel 7 and 7mate, and will be followed by everyone’s favourite footy show, The Front Bar, where former Saints speedster Aussie Jones and AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan will join Andy, Mick and Sam at the special time of 9.30pm.
And that’s just the start of a huge week for footy fans on Seven, with tonight’s match kick-starting an unprecedented four straight nights of prime-time footy, all of them between teams with finals firmly on their minds:
· Melbourne v Port Adelaide on Thursday night at the Gabba
· Essendon v Brisbane Lions on Friday night at Metricon Stadium
· West Coast v Geelong on Saturday night at Optus Stadium.
The Festival powers on next week too, when Seven will broadcast four consecutive blockbusters across Rounds 10-11, starting with an enticing Thursday night encounter between two of 2020’s most-improved teams, Gold Coast and St Kilda, at Metricon Stadium on August 6.
That’s followed by three more headline match-ups that, again, will help shape this year’s finals race:
· Essendon v GWS Giants on Friday night at Metricon Stadium
· Brisbane Lions v Western Bulldogs on Saturday night at the Gabba
· West Coast Eagles v Carlton on Sunday at Optus Stadium.
And the must-see action just keeps on coming in Round 12 with a tantalising trifecta that’s highlighted by a Friday night showdown between two of this season’s premiership contenders, Geelong and Port Adelaide, at the Gabba on August 14.
The Festival then finishes with a bang with Fremantle v Carlton on the Saturday night at Optus Stadium, followed by St Kilda v Essendon at the Gabba on Sunday.
Managing Director Seven Melbourne and Head of Network Sport Lewis Martin commented:
“This season’s epic adventure just continues to roll on with fans set to enjoy the biggest Festival of Footy they’ve ever seen. It kicks off tonight with a special Wednesday night clash that’s the first of four consecutive prime-time blockbusters on Seven – and things only hot up from there! Virtually every game will be an ‘eight-point’ match between genuine finals contenders, while fans will also have front-row seats to LIVE and FREE heavyweight battles that will shape the top-four race. This is one festival you don’t want to miss.”
The Front Bar returns to Wednesday nights throughout the Festival of Footy, when Mick Molloy, Sam Pang and Andy Maher will assume their usual positions at the bar to celebrate the lighter side of footy and shout some of the game’s biggest stars a beer.
As always, viewers in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia will be able to watch every game involving their local AFL teams on Seven.
And post-match on Friday nights, Adam Cooney and Cam Luke will settle in on the Armchair Experts sofa, offering viewers their unique take on the big match.
AFL fans can also keep across all the action on the @7AFL social pages on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
TV Broadcast times on Seven:
AFL – Season 2020
ROUND NINE
Wednesday, July 29
Western Bulldogs v Richmond, Metricon Stadium
Sydney 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Melbourne 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Adelaide 6.30pm LIVE on Channel 7
Perth 5.00pm LIVE on 7mate
The Front Bar
Sydney 9.30pm LIVE on 7mate, Encore 10.30pm on Channel 7
Melbourne 9.30pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 9.30pm LIVE on 7mate, Encore 10.30pm on Channel 7
Adelaide 9.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Perth 8.30pm on 7mate, Encore 10.30pm on Channel 7
Thursday July 30
Melbourne v Port Adelaide, Gabba
Sydney 7.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Melbourne 7.30pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 7.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Adelaide 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Perth 5.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Friday July 31
Essendon v Brisbane Lions, Metricon Stadium
Sydney 7.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Melbourne 7.30pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 7.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Adelaide 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Perth 5.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Armchair Experts
Sydney 11.15pm on 7mate
Melbourne 11.15pm on Channel 7
Brisbane 11.15pm on 7mate
Adelaide 10.45pm on Channel 7
Perth 11.15pm on 7mate
Saturday August 1
North Melbourne v Adelaide Crows, Metricon Stadium
Adelaide 2.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
St Kilda v Sydney Swans, Gabba
Sydney 5.00pm LIVE on 7mate
West Coast Eagles v Geelong Cats, Optus Stadium
Melbourne 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Perth 5.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Sunday August 2
Gold Coast Suns v GWS Giants, Metricon Stadium
Sydney 3.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Brisbane 3.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Fremantle v Collingwood, Optus Stadium
Perth 4.00pm LIVE on 7mate
ROUND 10
Monday August 3
Port Adelaide v Western Bulldogs, Adelaide Oval
Adelaide 6.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Tuesday August 4
Richmond v Brisbane Lions, Metricon Stadium
Brisbane 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Wednesday August 5
Adelaide Crows v Melbourne, Adelaide Oval
Adelaide 7.30pm LIVE on Channel 7
The Front Bar
Sydney 11.00pm on Channel 7
Melbourne 8.30pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 11.00pm on Channel 7
Adelaide 10.00pm on Channel 7
Perth 8.30pm on Channel 7
Thursday August 6
Collingwood v Sydney Swans, Gabba
Sydney 5.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Gold Coast Suns v St Kilda, Metricon Stadium
Sydney 8.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Melbourne 7.30pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 7.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Adelaide 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Perth 5.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Friday August 7
Essendon v GWS Giants, Metricon Stadium
Sydney 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Melbourne 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate, 7.30pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Adelaide 6.30pm LIVE on 7mate, 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Perth 5.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Armchair Experts
Sydney 11.00pm on 7mate
Melbourne 11.00pm on Channel 7
Brisbane 11.00pm on 7mate
Adelaide 10.30pm on Channel 7
Perth 11.00pm on 7mate
ROUND 11
Saturday August 8
Port Adelaide v Richmond, Adelaide Oval
Adelaide 4.00pm on Channel 7
Brisbane Lions v Western Bulldogs, Gabba
Sydney 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Melbourne 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Sunday August 9
West Coast Eagles v Carlton, Optus Stadium
Melbourne 3.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Perth 1.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Monday August 10
Fremantle v Hawthorn, Optus Stadium
Perth 6.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Tuesday August 11
Adelaide Crows v Collingwood, Adelaide Oval
Adelaide 6.30pm LIVE on 7mate
Wednesday August 12
Gold Coast Suns v Essendon, Metricon Stadium
Brisbane 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
The Front Bar
Sydney 10.45pm on Channel 7
Melbourne 8.30pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 10.45pm on Channel 7
Adelaide 8.30pm on Channel 7
Perth 8.30pm on Channel 7
ROUND 12
Thursday August 13
Sydney Swans v GWS Giants, Optus Stadium
Sydney 8.00pm on 7mate
Friday August 14
Geelong Cats v Port Adelaide, Gabba
Sydney 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Melbourne 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate, 7.30pm LIVE on Channel 7
Brisbane 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Adelaide 6.30pm LIVE on 7mate, 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Perth 5.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Armchair Experts
Sydney 11.00pm on 7mate
Melbourne 11.00pm on Channel 7
Brisbane 11.00pm on 7mate
Adelaide 10.30pm on Channel 7
Perth 11.00pm on 7mate
Saturday August 15
North Melbourne v Brisbane Lions
Brisbane 2.30pm on Channel 7
Fremantle v Carlton, Optus Stadium
Sydney 7.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Melbourne 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Adelaide 6.30pm LIVE on 7mate, 7.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
Perth 5.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Sunday August 16
Western Bulldogs v Adelaide Crows, Metricon Stadium
Adelaide 3.30pm on Channel
St Kilda v Essendon, Gabba
Melbourne 3.00pm LIVE on Channel 7
West Coast Eagles v Hawthorn, Optus Stadium
Perth 4.00pm LIVE on 7mate
Monday August 17
Richmond v Gold Coast Suns, Metricon Stadium
Brisbane 7.00pm on 7mate