AFTER five double-headers with men's and women's elite footy, clubs are broadly very supportive of the concept, but logistical challenges remain.

The 2027 men's season will be pushed back by a week to accommodate the 150th anniversary Test in the cricket, meaning there is likely to be an extra round of overlap with the AFLW season, opening the door for more double-headers.

St Kilda-Carlton and North Melbourne-Geelong were the two whole-club clashes in Victoria, and it's understood events at Marvel Stadium were frictionless, with staff from the men's and women's programs able to work around each other with relative ease.

In some cases, staff work across both programs (eg. St Kilda dietician Meg Crocker), and while it was a very long day at work, they were able to stay at the same ground (rather than travel across town to get to multiple matches) and work with each team.

West Coast travelled as one club to take on Greater Western Sydney, with the Giants requesting the women to play after the men late on Sunday afternoon.

Ease of travel and cost-sharing is another benefit of double-headers, but it remains to be seen which is the optimal order of matches – women's into men's, or men's into women's.

There's no set minimum time between matches, with a variety of issues influencing the gap, including the ground facilities (changerooms, benches, coaches boxes), ticketing structure and broadcast requirements, all of which can change from ground to ground.

The other three AFL/W double-headers involved one consistent home side facing differing opposition, and it's understood the ability to share and set up facilities – including the coaches boxes and interchange benches – wasn't quite as smooth sailing.

There were concerns about protection of intellectual property, while it's also easier to move in and out of spaces when the staff involved are all from the same club and already know each other, and can plan movement in advance.

One club general manager mentioned the ability to get AFLW in front of more fans will hopefully lead to repeat attendees, such as those who hadn't attended women's matches before but enjoyed the experience.

While Geelong and Gold Coast's AFLW teams get regular access to stadiums, double-headers with men's programs also allow for a greater number of women's games in tier one stadiums.

There will be a number of all-AFLW double-headers in the upcoming rounds, which hopes to appeal to general women's football fans.

Richmond and Walyalup will play at Ikon Park on Sunday, with Carlton-Collingwood to follow. The Grand Final eve public holiday will see Carlton-Richmond opening for Melbourne-North Melbourne, also at Ikon Park.

Windy Hill will host its first W double-header in round 10, with Collingwood-Sydney and Essendon-North Melbourne split by a half-hour gap.

The Bombers have been working overtime to get the new Windy Hill changerooms ready to house four teams at once, having brought forward their plans to host double-headers by a year.

AFLW-AFL double-headers

St Kilda v Carlton – 20,455 at Marvel Stadium
North Melbourne v Geelong – 14,573 at Marvel Stadium
GWS v West Coast – N/A at Engie Stadium
Geelong v St Kilda (men's was Geelong v Richmond) – 15,266 at GMHBA Stadium
Sydney v Essendon (men's was Sydney v North Melbourne) – 16,672 at the SCG