THE CARLTON Football Club will launch its 2022 AFL campaign with back-to-back Thursday night fixtures to start the season.
The Blues will take on the Tigers in a blockbuster match at the MCG in Round 1 – a tradition which started in 2008 with crowds reaching almost 80,000 annually.
Seven days later, Carlton will face 2021 Grand Finalists Western Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium under Thursday night lights.
Victorian fans are the real winners with the Club’s first three rounds being played in Melbourne with two of those home games at the MCG against Richmond and Hawthorn.
The Blues will then leave Victoria just once between Rounds 11 and 19 to take on West Coast in Round 17.
Of the Club’s 11 home games six will be played at Marvel Stadium with five at the MCG.
On Thursday, the AFL confirmed the dates and times of the opening nine rounds, with the remainder of the year to be a floating fixture.
Confirmation of the details of Rounds 10 – 23 will be made by the AFL at a later date.
Bluebaggers in Queensland and Western Australia will have the chance to show their support even more this season with two games set to be played in each state.
The Blues will also travel interstate to Giants Stadium in Round 9 and Adelaide Oval in Round 20.
The Club will face Richmond, Collingwood, Greater Western Sydney, Fremantle and Adelaide twice in 2022, with two interstate trips in a row at the back end of the season against Adelaide in Round 21 and Brisbane in Round 22.
The home and away season will end with a blockbuster home game against traditional rivals Collingwood at the MCG.
The first two games of the Blues’ 2022 campaign will be broadcast free-to-air on Channel 7, as well as Round 6 against Fremantle and Round 9 against Greater Western Sydney. Every game will continue to be shown live on Fox Footy.
Carlton CEO Brian Cook said the Club was excited to see fans back in the stands – especially Victorian fans during what is set to be a special Round 1.
“We are glad to be part of the marquee games to kick start the opening round of season 2022,” Cook said.
“Victorians have been starved of seeing their teams play live and we’re looking forward to seeing the Carlton faithful at our blockbuster Thursday night game.
“The 2022 fixture is a real win for our Victorian fans with 16 games played across the MCG and Marvel Stadium, and we cannot wait to see a sea of Navy Blue back in the stands.
“It is also a great result for Bluebaggers across the country as we travel to four different states and visit Western Australia and Queensland twice.
“To have our first two games of the season shown free-to-air on Channel 7 is fantastic for the exposure of our Club, and we hope to see more free-to-air games arise as the fixture is built out over the coming months.
