Essendon and Richmond will play a second Dreamtime game in Perth in both 2027 and 2028, with the new Dreamtime at Maali match at Optus Stadium to sit alongside the traditional Dreamtime at the ’G.
The clubs announced the two-year partnership with Tourism Western Australia and the AFL on Tuesday. Maali is the Noongar word for black swan.
Essendon will host the first Dreamtime at Maali on Sunday 4 July 2027, the opening day of NAIDOC Week, in an afternoon timeslot. Richmond will be the home side when the game returns to Perth in 2028.
Dreamtime at the ’G, played during Sir Doug Nicholls Round, will go ahead as usual and will be a Richmond home game in 2027.
Back to NAIDOC Week
The Dreamtime game was first championed by then Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy in 2005, when that year’s clash with Richmond fell during NAIDOC Week. The clubs said the Perth match returns the occasion to NAIDOC Week.
Read more: 2027 AFL Fixture: Round 1 Revealed as Swans Host Cats at SCG
The two clubs played Dreamtime at Optus Stadium in 2021, during the COVID-affected season, in front of 55,656 fans, The Age reported.
The National Indigenous Times reported a Perth Dreamtime game may also be on the cards for 2029 as part of a deal worth as much as $6 million.
More than one match
In the lead-up week, Essendon will run its Marngrook Kids Program in Perth, and there will be a Perth edition of The Long Walk, the movement Essendon great Michael Long started in 2004. Long’s AFL career began at Perth’s WACA Ground in 1989.
Read more: Zak Butters to Face Port Adelaide in 2027 Gather Round Fixture
What it means for members
Essendon said on its Dreamtime at Maali page that the Perth match is listed for Round 16, with the time to be confirmed. WA-based Essendon game access members can redeem a $0 reserved seat, and all 2027 Essendon members can buy a $20 member-priced ticket.
Essendon reserved seat members will get a replacement game in Round 1 against Melbourne at the MCG, with the Ponsford Stand set aside for Bombers members. The club said Dreamtime at the ’G will be an Essendon home game in both 2028 and 2029.
7NEWS reported the AFL is due to release the full 2027 fixture on Thursday.
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