A FIRST ever AFLW International Rules game is set to become a reality, with an agreement around fixtures pairing Australia against Ireland in June or July this year edging ever closer.
While the final details are still being hashed out between the AFL and the GAA, it’s understood some of the best women’s talent will square off in at least one fixture on Australian shores in either June or July.
Given the June-July timing, it’s expected that International Rules will form part of an extended shakeup of the AFLW’s pre-season schedule, with players to return to training on May 11 before the season begins the week commencing August 10.
It’s currently thought that the match will be played under Australian Rules, with a classic Sherrin football, as opposed to previous men’s iterations of International Rules which have been played with a round ball under Gaelic rules.
That is partly down to the immense influx of Irish talent currently playing AFLW, with some of the competition’s best players having quickly acclimatised to Australian Rules football in recent years.
The reigning back-to-back AFLW premiers, North Melbourne, had four Irish players in its 2025 Grand Final squad – Erika O’Shea, Blaithin Bogue, Vikki Wall and Amy Gavin Mangan – with more than 40 now playing AFLW across the League.
Erika O’Shea, Vikki Wall, Amy Gavin Mangan and Blaithin Bogue pose for a photo after North Melbourne’s 2025 Grand Final win over Brisbane at Ikon Park. Picture: AFL Photos
There were five Irish players in last season’s All-Australian team including Brisbane’s Jennifer Dunne, Carlton’s Dayna Finn, Hawthorn’s Aine McDonagh, North Melbourne’s Bogue and Gold Coast’s Niamh McLaughlin.
Carlton’s Finn, Hawthorn’s McDonagh and Fremantle’s Aisling McCarthy also claimed club best and fairest awards last season, the first time in AFLW history that Irish players have won such honours.
Dayna Finn celebrates a goal during the preliminary final between Brisbane and Carlton at Brighton Homes Arena on November 22, 2025. Picture: AFL Photos
Sydney even hired the first ever Irish senior coach across both men’s and women’s football late last year, when it appointed ex-player Colin O’Riordan to lead its AFLW side following the departure of Scott Gowans.
The AFL and the GAA have been in talks around potential men’s and women’s International Rules clashes for a significant period recently, with Australia having not played against Ireland at any level in almost 10 years.
The two countries played a two-match men’s series in Adelaide and Perth in 2017, with Australia winning both games. But an Australian squad hasn’t travelled across to Ireland since a one-off fixture at Croke Park in 2015.
