The 2026 AFL season is over — the Brisbane Lions beat Fremantle by 7 points in the Grand Final on 26 September to win their third premiership in a row. The next season starts in March 2027. Meanwhile the women's competition, the AFLW, is on now. During the season, Channel 7 / 7plus broadcast selected games free to air — Thursday nights, Friday nights, Sunday afternoons and all marquee matches. The Grand Final is exclusive to Channel 7 (free). Every game of every round is on Fox Footy / Kayo.

The NRL season runs from March to October, with three free-to-air games per week on Channel 9. Every game of every round is on Fox League / Kayo. State of Origin is exclusively live on Channel 9 / 9Now (free). The 2026 NRL Grand Final is on Sunday 4 October at Accor Stadium, Sydney — the Sydney Roosters take on the Newcastle Knights, the first time these two clubs have ever met in a Grand Final. The NRLW (women's) Grand Final is played earlier the same day. Both are free on Channel 9 / 9Now.

The A-League Men and Women's A-League are in off-season, kicking off their 2026/27 seasons on 16 October 2026. The English Premier League, however, is already under way — the 2026/27 season began on 21 August and runs through to May 2027. In September the Socceroos gave five-time world champions Brazil two real scares — a 1–1 draw in Townsville, then a narrow 4–2 loss at Suncorp Stadium in front of a record Brisbane crowd of 52,423.

The Super Rugby Pacific season finished back in June. The Wallabies are now well into a big 14-Test year — after home Tests against Ireland, France and Italy in July and a series in Japan in August, they won the Puma Trophy in Argentina (a win and a draw — their first-ever series win there), then beat world champions South Africa 42–38 in a thriller in Perth on 27 September, despite being down to 11 men late in the game. Next is the Bledisloe Cup against New Zealand — Auckland on 10 October, then Sydney on 17 October. Super Rugby and Wallabies Tests are broadcast live on Stan Sport (subscription).

The Supercars Championship (Australia's premier touring car series) runs March to November, with most rounds live on Kayo Sports / Fox Sports and some free-to-air coverage on Channel 7. Formula 1 runs March to December; the Australian Grand Prix was held in Melbourne earlier in the year. F1 in Australia is on Kayo Sports / Fox Sports (subscription). Coming up: the famous Bathurst 1000 on Sunday 11 October (race starts 10:30am Queensland time), then the Gold Coast 500 and the Australian MotoGP at Phillip Island, both 23–25 October.

All four Grand Slams for 2026 are now complete. At the US Open in September, Germany's Alexander Zverev beat Ben Shelton to win the men's title (his second major this year, after the French Open) and Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina beat Aryna Sabalenka to win the women's title. Next up is the Australian Open in Melbourne in January 2027. In Australia, the Australian Open is on Channel 9 / 9Now (free); the US Open and Wimbledon are on Stan Sport (paid); the French Open is on beIN Sports / Kayo (paid). Stan Sport also covers the full ATP and WTA tour year-round.

The Australian cricket summer is getting started. The state One-Day Cup began on 18 September, the Sheffield Shield starts on 6 October, the women's WBBL begins 29 October and the men's Big Bash League starts 12 December. The main men's international summer follows later in the year. Cricket Australia's website has fixtures and results year-round; live coverage of most cricket in Australia is on Fox Cricket / Kayo (subscription), with the Big Bash League also free on Channel 7 / 7plus.

The 2026 Suncorp Super Netball season wrapped up on 4 July, with the Adelaide Thunderbirds demolishing the Melbourne Vixens 61–40 in the Grand Final — the biggest winning margin in Grand Final history. The next season begins around March 2027. The Australian Diamonds (national team) also picked up bronze at the Commonwealth Games in August.

All four of golf's majors for 2026 have now been played. Rory McIlroy won the Masters for the second consecutive year, Aaron Rai (England) claimed the PGA Championship, and New Zealand's Ryan Fox won The Open at Royal Birkdale in July. Scottie Scheffler won the FedEx Cup in August, and in late September the USA won the Presidents Cup 17–13 — but only after the International team, captained by Australia's Geoff Ogilvy and featuring Adam Scott and Min Woo Lee, led for much of the week. In Australia, all PGA Tour and major golf is on Fox Sports / Kayo (subscription) — there is no free-to-air coverage.

The men's NBL season tipped off on 19 September — the local Brisbane Bullets opened with a special open-air game at Pat Rafter Arena, and most of their home games are at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Boondall. The women's WNBL starts on Thursday 15 October. The Boomers (men) and Opals (women) represent Australia internationally throughout the year. (Looking for the NBA? That's under USA Sports below.) Australia also topped the 3x3 basketball medal table at the Commonwealth Games in August.

Racing runs year-round in Australia, and the big Spring Racing Carnival is now in full swing. Key dates: The Everest (Sydney) and the 150th Caulfield Cup (Melbourne), both Saturday 17 October; the Cox Plate on Saturday 24 October (held at Flemington this year while Moonee Valley is rebuilt); and the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday 3 November. Free-to-air coverage of major race days is on Channel 7 / 7plus and Network 10, with Sky Racing (via Foxtel/Kayo, or free through TAB accounts) showing every race, every day.

Outside of major Games, Australian athletes also compete on the international Diamond League circuit through the (northern) summer, and domestically in the Australian Athletics Championships each April. Coverage in Australia is mostly on Kayo Sports / ESPN, with free scores and results always available from World Athletics.

The Tour de France for 2026 has been and gone (shown free-to-air on SBS, a long-standing tradition for Australian cycling fans). The Vuelta a España, the year's final Grand Tour, finished on 13 September — Spain's Enric Mas won, after race favourite Tadej Pogačar crashed out with a broken collarbone. The Australian summer brings the Tour Down Under in Adelaide each January. Road cycling classics and Grand Tours outside the Tour de France are mostly on subscription services in Australia.

Outside of the Commonwealth Games, the Australian Dolphins compete domestically at the Australian Swimming Championships (usually April/May, doubling as major-event trials) and internationally throughout the year. Coverage of most swimming outside marquee events is limited in Australia — check Swimming Australia for the latest broadcast details.

Major League Baseball's regular season runs March/April to September/October, building to the World Series. Coverage in Australia is on ESPN / Kayo (subscription). The Australian Baseball League (ABL) runs November–February each summer, with some free coverage.

Australia's national teams, the Kookaburras (men) and Hockeyroos (women), compete internationally throughout the year, including the FIH Pro League. Domestically, the Hockey One League runs September–October. Note: hockey is not part of the 2026 Commonwealth Games program this time around.

A catch-all for sports that don't need their own section but residents may still want to follow — surfing, boxing, mixed martial arts, sailing, squash and more.

American sports have a growing following in Australia, mostly via ESPN on Kayo Sports (subscription). The NFL regular season is now under way; MLB has finished its regular season and heads into the playoffs and World Series in October; the NBA and NHL are both in their off-seasons, returning in October. MLS (soccer) is also in season.