AFL football operations manager Laura Kane promises to be "bold" with AFLW this year, starting with St Kilda and Carlton opening the new season as part of a double-header with a men's fixture.
For the first time, the Saints and Blues will do battle in both AFLW and AFL fixtures at Marvel Stadium on the same day on Sunday August 9.
It is the first of four double-headers set to take place in 2026.
The AFLW opener will be played as part of a split round, with the rest of the round taking place the following week.
"We want to start big. We'll be bold with AFLW this year," Kane said.
"We've already been bold with W for now a decade but we're making sure that we go 'bang' early."
The AFLW opener will be part of the sixth annual Spud's Game, celebrating and honouring the legacy of former St Kilda captain Danny Frawley, who died in 2019.
The event raises funds for mental health research, prevention programs and treatment.
"It was really important to us to make sure that the double-headers that were selected made sense in the context of the broader fixture," Kane said.
"This game in the AFL competition had already been earmarked as Spud's Game, so we took the opportunity to bring one game out and play it early.
"It was an opportunity that we didn't want to pass up."
Kane dismissed fears the AFLW opener will be overshadowed by the men's fixture.
"We can do two things at once," Kane said.
"Both our men's and women's programs are getting extraordinary coverage and will get extraordinary coverage by virtue of it being Spud's Game.
"So no, we're not concerned - we're excited."
