PICKING up from where they left off.

Carlton will head to Brisbane in 2024’s Opening Round, as confirmed by the AFL this morning.

In a league first, Carlton will be one of four Victorian teams heading to the northern states for Opening Round, with the Blues’ preliminary final rematch against the Lions to take place on Friday 8 March from 6:50pm local time (7:50pm AEDT).

It has also been confirmed that the Blues will kick off proceedings in Melbourne the following week in Round 1 when hosting the traditional clash with the Tigers.

Opening Round takes place on the weekend of the Labour Day weekend in Victoria, with the Blues looking to replicate the scenes which saw a wave of Navy Blue descend on Queensland for the preliminary final.

Featuring in Opening Round means the Blues are one of eight teams who will have an extra bye (additional to the mid-season bye) throughout the season, which will be taken between Rounds 2-6.

It’ll be the first time the Blues have kicked off their campaign outside of Victoria since 2004, which was the longest streak in the competition.

The full 2024 fixture will be announced tomorrow on Thursday 16 November. In addition to their Opening Round and Round 1 opponents, it was announced on the weekend that Carlton would be taking on Fremantle at Adelaide Oval in the second annual Gather Round.

Opening Round

Brisbane v Carlton
Friday 8 March, 2024
6:50pm local time (7:50pm AEDT)
Gabba

It has also been confirmed that Carlton will kick off Round 1 the following weekend against Richmond at the MCG on Thursday 14 March.