ROUND one of the NAB AFLW season will be split, with the Spud's Game double-header between St Kilda and Carlton at Marvel Stadium the sole women's match of its weekend.

The remaining eight games will be played the following weekend, with at least four double-headers expected in the upcoming fixture, set to be released in the coming days.

There's a chance of a fifth double-header featuring Geelong, but if that were to be the case, it will come down to the men's side position on the ladder coming into round 24.

The League's executive general manager of AFLW, health and football operations Laura Kane was also asked about the possibility of AFLW-AFLW double-headers, and said it had been considered, and to "keep your eyes peeled".

She also said the AFL was not concerned about the launch of the AFLW season being overshadowed by the men's game and the timing of the match, Sunday at 4.35pm AEST.

"[Spud's Game] will be the only (W) game of this round, the first of the NAB AFLW season on the Sunday afternoon, into the following weekend, which will see the rest of round one being played," she told reporters on Monday.

"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. This game in the context of the AFLW fixture had already been earmarked as Spud's Game. We took the opportunity to take one game out and play it early, an opportunity that we didn't want to pass up.

"We can do two things at once. Both our men's and our women's programs are getting extraordinary coverage by virtue of it being Spud's Game. So we're not concerned, we're excited."

Double-headers have been much discussed over the years, and the attitudes towards them – which previously focused on not wanting the women's game to become a curtain-raiser to the men's – has evolved, with a growing "one-club approach".

"We felt ready. We make sure we're driven by data, we're driven by what our fans are doing, we're driven by what our fans want. We're also driven by what our players want," Kane said.

"I was asked a few things by our players, our captains in particular, and they wanted to play rep footy, and they wanted to play double-headers with the boys, and we wanted to play in stadiums like this one. 

"We've got a really clear idea coming into this season, going into a decade of AFLW about what works, and we'll continue to innovate, continue to make decisions to put our W players on the biggest of stages. The footy's unbelievable, and the improvement we've seen over a decade period is remarkable, and kudos to the players for all of the work they've put in over that time to make the game fast, quick and exciting in a number of ways."

Kane said there will be a focus on consistency and building ritual in the upcoming fixture.

"We hear a lot from our fans around what they love from smaller, boutique venues – they love being close to the players, they love feeling like they're part of the action. I know everyone here who's been to W, you feel you're there, on the field with them," she said.

"We don't want to lose that feeling that our fans have, but we've been really public and clear with venues, with making sure we're not playing at too many venues. 

"A big feature of this year's fixture is making sure we build rituals. Not building rituals as a collective, necessarily, but building rituals for each club. Depending on which club you support and pending where they play, we want to start to build consistency and ritual for your team, particularly for their home games. 

"You'll see adjusted venues, and we're always trying to rationalise, to bring that number down."