Zak Butters celebrates a goal during the 2026 season and (right) Harry Dean and Kysaiah Pickett clash during the 2026 wildcard game. Pictures: AFL Photos

NEW BULLDOG Zak Butters will face his old side - and Port Adelaide's supporters - in a Gather Round grudge match at Adelaide Oval in April, while there will also be three 2026 finals re-matches when the AFL competition returns to South Australia next year.

The AFL has confirmed the fixture for Gather Round 2027, with Port's game against the Western Bulldogs - and Butters - in primetime on the Sunday night the highlight of the schedule after his big-money free agency move.

>> SCROLL DOWN FOR THE FULL GATHER ROUND FIXTURE

And it is not the only grudge match on the Gather Round agenda, with Rowan Marshall's Geelong to face St Kilda on the Sunday afternoon at Barossa Park following his headline-grabbing trade to the Cats earlier this month.

Marshall did not attend St Kilda's best and fairest three weeks ago as he pushed to leave the club for the second year in a row, with a trade agreed to six days before the deadline.

Rowan Marshall poses for a photo in Geelong colours on October 9, 2026. Picture: AFL Photos

Held across the weekend of April 9-12, Gather Round will also feature three match-ups from this year's finals series: Adelaide v Brisbane on the Thursday night as well as Carlton v Melbourne (Saturday afternoon) and Fremantle v Hawthorn (Saturday night), all at Adelaide Oval.

The game against the Crows will be the first time the Lions - the three-time premiers - will have played at Adelaide Oval during Gather Round.

There will also be three match-ups between teams who should be evenly matched after missing finals in 2026 - Gold Coast v Greater Western Sydney, Essendon v North Melbourne and Richmond v West Coast - while Collingwood will face Sydney in a huge Friday night clash, the second time they have played at Gather Round after they faced off in 2025.

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The AFL has already confirmed the 2027 season will start on either March 17 or 18, later than recent years due to the 150th anniversary Test match between Australia and England, during which the MCG will be unavailable for football.

With Opening Round scrapped, round one will be a traditional nine-game affair and followed by the Easter weekend of games in round two, with Gather Round to be round four and coincide with school holidays.

"Gather Round brings all 18 clubs and their fans together in South Australia and this fixture gives supporters nine exciting match-ups to look forward to across four days," AFL CEO Andrew Dillon said.

Zak Butters poses during a media opportunity after signing with the Western Bulldogs at Whitten Oval on October 12, 2026. Picture: AFL Photos

"From Thursday night at Adelaide Oval through to Sunday, there will be footy across Adelaide, Norwood and the Barossa, giving fans the chance to experience matches and everything South Australia has to offer.

"We saw another terrific response from supporters in 2026 and we're looking forward to welcoming fans from across the country back to South Australia in April."

Gather Round tickets will go on sale on December 9-10.

2027 Gather Round fixture

Thursday April 8
Adelaide v Brisbane at Adelaide Oval, 7.10pm

Friday April 9
Collingwood v Sydney at Adelaide Oval, 7.10pm

Saturday April 10
Gold Coast v Greater Western Sydney at Barossa Park, 12.05pm
Carlton v Melbourne at Adelaide Oval, 1.05pm
Richmond v West Coast at Norwood Oval, 4.05pm
Fremantle v Hawthorn at Adelaide Oval, 7.15pm

Sunday April 11
Essendon v North Melbourne at Norwood Oval, 12pm
Geelong v St Kilda at Barossa Park, 2.45pm
Port Adelaide v Western Bulldogs at Adelaide Oval, 6.45pm

(all times local)