AFL partners relinquish ground signage to support Sir Doug Nicholls Round

The AFL has confirmed that AFL partners will once again relinquish their ground signage on all AFL grounds for Sir Doug Nicholls Round as the football industry celebrates the excellence and the contribution of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to the game of Australian Rules

Premier partner Toyota, major partners Telstra and AAMI, and official partner rebel will donate their on-field signage space worth millions of dollars in advertising throughout Rounds 10 and 11 of the 2025 Toyota AFL Premiership Season to make room for First Nations’ symbols of cultural importance.

In place of the partners’ iconic logos will be traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander symbols and flags, as well as the GO Foundation which champions education opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth.

The only on ground partner signage will be the official AFL and Toyota competition lock-up logo.

On the 50metre arc fans will see traditional representation of Aboriginal men in an art context in place of the Telstra logo, an Aboriginal symbol representing a gathering/meeting place will replace the AAMI logo in the centre circle, and in the goal square will be the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags replacing rebel’s goal square branding.

The 2025 theme for the round “Past Legacies, Future Legends” will be placed on top of the competition lock-up logo, in lieu of the Toyota and Football ‘Oh What a Feeling’ tagline.

On the ground and around the stadium LEDs will include the names of the Traditional Owners of the land on which the match is played.

At the request of Toyota, in place of the Toyota 3D logo will be the GO Foundation logo – a foundation established by former AFL greats Adam Goodes and Michael O’Loughlin

AFL Executive General Manager Customer and Commercial Bec Haagsma said it was important to bring together all parts of the football industry in celebration of the round.

Haagsma noted “we thank our valued partners Toyota, AAMI, Telstra and rebel for coming together with the broader AFL community in support of the Sir Doug Nicholls Rounds celebrations, one of the biggest and most important occasions on the AFL calendar.

“Supporting and elevating First Nations symbols of cultural importance by swapping their grass signage is a significant gesture from our partners once again and we thank and acknowledge their ongoing commitment in support of the occasion.”

Season 2025 marks the nineteenth year the AFL has held the dedicated round and is the tenth year it has been named in honour of Sir Doug Nicholls.

For more information on the 2025 Sir Doug Nicholls Round, visit indigenous.afl

Image. The rebel goal square signage will be replaced with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags throughout Sir Doug Nicholls Round. Credit: AFL Photos