| 1858 |
August 7: First recorded match of Australian Football, Scotch College v Melbourne Grammar |
| 1866 |
Time limit for matches introduced |
|
Behind posts used for first time |
| 1872 |
Field umpires introduced |
| 1873 |
Team uniforms introduced |
| 1877 |
Victorian Football Association established |
| 1879 |
First night match using electric light |
| 1886 |
Four quarter games instead of two halves |
| 1887 |
Umpire required to bounce ball instead of throwing it up in the air |
|
Flags waved to signify goals |
| 1891 |
Introduction of centre bounce at start of quarters and after every goal |
|
Players required to take up set field positions |
| 1896 |
October 2: Delegates from Geelong, Essendon, Collingwood, Fitzroy, Melbourne and South Melbourne meet to form the VFL as the breakaway competition |
|
Carlton and St Kilda invited to join |
| 1897 |
New scoring system: six points for a goal, one for a behind - previously, only goals were counted |
|
First finals system implemented |
|
May 8: First round of VFL matches played |
| 1902 |
Carlton appoints Jack Worrall as first ever VFL coach |
| 1904 |
First appointments of boundary umpires |
| 1908 |
Richmond and University enter competition |
| 1909 |
Boundary umpires given power to report players |
| 1910 |
Goal Umpires: power to report players |
| 1911 |
Official player payments approved |
| 1912 |
Players wear numbers in all matches |
|
Stewards appointed with power to report players |
|
Football Record first published |
| 1913 |
League independent tribunal instituted |
| 1915 |
University no longer in competition |
| 1918 |
Steward system of reporting players abolished |
| 1919 |
Reserve Grade competition formed |
| 1923 |
All league venues required to display quarter by quarter scores |
| 1924 |
Brownlow Medal instituted |
|
New rule: black shorts for home team and white shorts for away team |
| 1925 |
Radio descriptions introduced during finals |
|
Footscray, Hawthorn and North Melbourne enter competition |
| 1930 |
Coulter Law adopted, restricting payments to players |
| 1933 |
Experimental siren used |
| 1942 |
Geelong in recess due to war-time restrictions |
| 1944 |
Geelong resumes participation |
| 1946 |
Under 19 competition begins |
| 1947 |
Players advocates first permitted to defend players at tribunal hearings |
| 1956 |
First night competition |
| 1957 |
Last quarter of AFL matches televised live |
|
Reserved seating for finals matches introduced |
| 1959 |
Reserve grade competition first played as curtain raiser to seniors |
| 1960 |
First Anzac Day game |
| 1962 |
TV stations permitted to play replays of AFL games but no live telecasts |
| 1970 |
April 5: First Sunday game - Fitzroy v Richmond (MCG) |
| 1973 |
Ten year automatic clearance rule introduced, then rescinded in May |
| 1975 |
Clubs permitted to wear colour shorts for colour television coverage |
|
Video tape become admissible evidence at Tribunal hearings |
| 1976 |
Two field umpire system introduced |
| 1977 |
First live telecast of Grand Final |
| 1979 |
Norm Smith Medal introduced for best afield in Grand Final |
| 1982 |
South Melbourne relocates to Sydney |
| 1983 |
August 5: First Friday match for premiership points |
| 1984 |
League Commission formed |
|
First Sunday finals match |
|
Salary Cap introduced for use in 1985 |
| 1985 |
Independent League Commission becomes the decision making body |
| 1986 |
Introduction of 50 metre arc ground markings |
|
Video investigation first used to examine on-field incidents |
|
Introduction of National Player Draft |
| 1987 |
ABC televises matches during Channel Seven's one season of non-coverage |
|
West Coast Eagles and Brisbane Bears enter competition |
| 1988 |
Emergency umpires empowered to report players |
| 1990 |
VFL renamed the AFL |
| 1991 |
Last season of under 19 competition |
|
Final six introduced |
|
Adelaide Crows enter competition |
| 1992 |
MCG colour video scoreboard used |
|
May 4: AFL relocates to MCG Great Southern Stand |
| 1993 |
Introduction of three field umpire system |
| 1994 |
Blood rule introduced |
| 1995 |
Fremantle Dockers enter competition |
| 1996 |
Fitzroy plays its last AFL match |
|
Brisbane Bears merge with Fitzroy |
| 1997 |
Footscray renamed the Western Bulldogs |
|
Brisbane Bears renamed the Brisbane Lions |
|
Port Adelaide Power enters competition |
| 1999 |
North Melbourne renamed the Kangaroos |
| 2000 |
AFL matches first played at Colonial Stadium (Telstra Dome) |
| 2001 |
Brisbane Lions win first AFL premiership |
| 2004 |
Port Adelaide win first AFL premiership |
| 2007 |
Geelong win their first flag since 1963, destroying Port Adelaide in the Grand Final |
