Wheelchair
Diversity
Inclusion
Media Release
Strap in, Wheelchair National Champs to hit Melbourne
30 OCT 2023 BY: AFL VICTORIA
The 2023 Toyota Wheelchair AFL National Championships will be played in Melbourne from November 2-5 at the State Netball & Hockey Centre
Australia’s elite men’s and women’s wheelchair footballers will travel to Melbourne this week for the 2023 Toyota Wheelchair AFL National Championships.
Co-delivered by the AFL and Disability Sports Australia (DSA) – and proudly supported by Toyota – the championships take place between Thursday 2 and Sunday 5 November at the State Netball and Hockey Centre in Parkville.
Highlighting the growth and popularity of Australian wheelchair football, more than 90 players across nine mixed teams will compete for the coveted title, marking the second consecutive year each state and territory is represented, along with a team from the Returned Services League of Australia (RSL).
A ‘lightning carnival’ format consisting of 37 games will take place over the first two days, with the top five teams progressing to division one and the remaining four teams placed into division two, with the championships culminating in grand finals on Sunday.
Since DSA established the carnival in 2016, South Australia has won four division one titles (2016-2019), while Victoria took home its inaugural crown in 2022, and as the reigning champ, will be looking to defend its premiership.
An ‘All Star Game’ will also feature on the final day of the event, with wheelchair footballers from the championships battling it out with some famous faces including GWS GIANTS captain, Toby Greene, Western Bulldog forward, Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, Wheelchair Rugby Paralympic gold medallist, Ryley Batt OAM, actor Samuel Johnson OAM, and the AFL’s Executive General Manager of Game Development, Rob Auld.
Click here for the full media release.
Event Details
2023 Toyota Wheelchair AFL National Championships
When: Thursday 2 – Sunday 5 November 2023
Sessions: Approximately 10am – 4:30pm each day
Where: State Netball & Hockey Centre, 10 Brens Drive, Parkville, VIC 3052
Tickets: Free entry
Watch: On Saturday and Sunday, stream all the action on Kayo Freebies, AFL Website and the AFL Inclusion Facebook page.
Fixture and results: Click here
Past Winners
| Year | Host City | Div 1 winner | Div 2 winner |
| 2016 | Melbourne | South Australia | - |
| 2017 | Melbourne | South Australia | - |
| 2018 | Melbourne | South Australia | - |
| 2019 | Adelaide | South Australia | - |
| 2020 and 2021 | Not held | ||
| 2022 | Melbourne | Victoria | ADF |
About Wheelchair AFL
The game is played between two teams of five, plus interchange players.
The field is a rectangular indoor court divided into thirds (like netball), with AFL goal posts at either end of the field.
Players are assigned to the position of either a defender, midfielder or forward, with the forwards the only players who are able to score.
Similar to AFL Nines, tackling occurs by touching a player in possession either on their body or wheelchair.
There is no kicking of the ball – a handball is equivalent to a kick.
An underarm throw below shoulder height is comparable to a handball.
The 2023 Toyota Wheelchair AFL National Championships is part of the AFL's Diversity and Inclusion program and follows the recent 2023 Toyota AFL National Inclusion Carnival, held in Queensland a few weeks ago.
