The Gather Round Community Footy Roadshow will again make its way to the Limestone Coast to connect AFL fans across South Australia with the excitement of the month-long festival of footy.


The Gather Round Community Footy Roadshow – a key curtain-raiser to the nine AFL Gather Round matches and SANFL v VFL Men’s State Game to be held in SA next month – will travel to more than 30 regional towns across 21 days covering more than 4000km.


The roadshow will be in Millicent, Mount Burr, Kalangadoo and Mil Lel on March 27, before visiting Mount Gambier, Allendale East and Moorak on March 28 and finishing up in Bordertown and Keith on April 2.


Each stop on the action-packed roadshow will feature family-friendly activities for locals, including sausage sizzles and kick and catch clinics.


Fans will also have a chance to get up close with the 2024 AFL and AFLW Premiership cups and the perpetual SANFL Thomas Seymour Hill Trophy and the SANFL Women’s League Premiership cup.


This year every regional junior football club in the state will receive 15 brand-new Sherrin footballs as part of the roadshow celebrations.


Other new additions to feature on the tour are women and girls football education sessions, coach education sessions, regional umpire recruitment and development and a roll out of the Tackle your Feelings mental health training program for clubs.


The roadshow supports AFL’s goal to have one million registered participants by 2033 fuelled by $1b of investment into game development and community football in that time.


In 2023, the AFL, SANFL and the State Government announced an $8m Football Facilities Fund to support continued growth of the game as part of a legacy investment from the inaugural Gather Round.


Last year’s Roadshow reached 5000 fans in regional towns and SANFL Executive General Manager Football Matt Duldig said his team was looking forward to bringing the excitement of the historic Gather Round to even more footy fans in every corner of the state over the coming weeks.


Mr Duldig said the football roadshow was a fantastic opportunity to help inspire young players and grow the national game in regional communities, especially in areas which have been doing it tough the past few years.


“Of the 52,000-plus players in SA, over half are in regional communities – the Gather Round Community Footy Roadshow is therefore a great way to allow these players, as well as the hundreds of coaches, umpires and volunteers, to embrace this historic event in their hometowns,” he said.


“We thank the AFL for their support and providing the AFL and AFLW premiership cups which, along with the SANFL premiership cups, will provide unforgettable moments for South Australians as we lead into Gather Round.”


Visit sanfl.com.au/gather-round/roadshow for a full list of sites and afl.com/gather-round for more information and ticketing on AFL Gather Round.