Ballarat Football Netball League action will kick off on Good Friday, with grand final rematches on the cards in round one.
The 2026 season will open with a Good Friday showcase, headlined by East Point and Bacchus Marsh.
Round one will commence 11 April, featuring local derbies between all Ballarat-based clubs, while the Eastern block teams will also face off in a major early-season highlight.
It will include Darley hosting the Sunbury Lions at Darley Park, which will be a grand final rematch in the senior football and A-grade netball.
Melton will face Bacchus Marsh in other round one action.
Anzac Day will be strongly represented in round three, with several twilight matches scheduled to commemorate the occasion.
The local Bacchus Marsh and Darley derby will be held underlights on Anzac Day.
The two local rivals will also face each other in wellness round.
Sunbury and Melton will also play underlights on Anzac Day.
Sunday action will also return in 2026, with four clubs linking senior matches with their junior programs.
Themed rounds remain a major feature of the BFNL calendar.
Wellness round—spanning two weeks—returns to provide clubs the opportunity to promote and support causes important to their communities.
Sir Doug Nicholls round and the Ronald McDonald House Charity round will also return, reinforcing the league’s commitment to celebration, inclusion and community connection.
Interleague football and netball will take centre stage during the first league-wide bye, with BFNL under-23 football and netball, under-18 girls, and under-18 boys travelling to Hampden for the annual representative competition.
Gisborne, which had applied to join the league, is not in the fixture.
AFL Victoria declined the Bulldogs application, but Gisborne had said it wouldn’t return to the Bendigo Football Netball League.
A second full-competition bye will occur during the middle week of school holidays.
