Victorian Football League (1897–1989)
Current season, competition or edition: 2018 AFL season
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| Formerly | Victorian Football League (1897–1989) |
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| Sport | Australian rules football |
| Founded | 2 October 1896 |
| Inaugural season | 1897 |
| CEO | Gillon McLachlan |
| No. of teams | 18 |
| Country | Australia |
| Headquarters | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Most recent champion(s) |
Richmond (11th premiership) |
| Most titles |
Carlton & Essendon (16 premierships) |
| TV partner(s) | |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Related competitions |
AFL Women's |
| Official website | AFL.com.au |
The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body, and is responsible for controlling the laws of the game. The league was founded as the Victorian Football League (VFL) as a breakaway from the previous Victorian Football Association (VFA), with its inaugural season commencing in 1897. Originally comprising only teams based in the Australian state of Victoria, the competition's name was changed to the Australian Football League for the 1990 season, after expanding to other states throughout the 1980s.
The league currently consists of 18 teams spread over five of Australia's six states (Tasmania being the exception). Matches have been played in all mainland states and territories of Australia, as well as in New Zealand and China (Although no professional teams or leagues exist outside Australia. Amateur teams exist small and sporadically, outside of Australia) to promote the sport abroad. The AFL season currently consists of a pre-season competition (currently branded as the "JLT Community Series"), followed by a 23-round regular (or "home-and-away") season, which runs during the Australian winter (March to September). The top eight teams then play off in a four-round finals series, culminating in the AFL Grand Final, which is held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground each year. The winning team in the Grand Final is termed the "premiers", and is awarded the premiership cup. The current premiers are the Richmond Football Club.
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