Australian sporting calendar 2026, All the major events, key dates to mark in your diary
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2026 is another massive year for sport, with Australian teams and athletes well represented as always. Here are all the key dates you need to know.
With the FIFA World Cup, AFC Asian Cup, Winter Olympic Games and Commonwealth Games, 2026 promises to be another massive year for sport, with Australian teams and athletes well represented as always.
The Sporting News provides a summary of all the key dates and match-ups to mark in your 2026 diary.
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Cricket, Men’s Test Matches
England. Fifth Ashes Test. SCG. 4-8 January.
Bangladesh. 2 Tests (home series). Winter.
South Africa. 3 Tests (away series). September-October.
New Zealand. 4 Tests (home series). November-January.
Australian Open Tennis (Melbourne)
Opening Round Starts. Sunday 8 January.
Women’s Singles Final. Saturday, 31 January.
Men’s Singles Final. Sunday, 1 February.
Tennis Majors
French Open. Sunday, 24 May to Sunday, 7 June.
Wimbledon. Monday, 29 June to Sunday, 12 July.
US Open. Sunday, 30 August to Sunday, 13 September.
Cricket, Men’s T20 World Cup (India & Sri Lanka)
Opening Match. Saturday, 7 February.
Final. Monday, 9 March.
Winter Olympics, Milano Cortina (Italy)
Opening Ceremony. Friday, 6 February.
Closing Ceremony. Sunday, 22 February.
Football, AFC Women’s Asian Cup (Australia)
Matildas Game 1. Philippines. Sunday, 1 March (Perth).
Matildas Game 2. IR Iran. Thursday, 5 March (Gold Coast).
Matildas Game 3. Korea Republic. Sunday, 8 March (Sydney).
Final. Saturday, 21 March (Sydney).
AFL
State of Origin. Western Australia vs. Victoria. Saturday, 14 February (Optus Stadium).
AFL Opening Match. Thursday, 5 March. Sydney vs. Carlton (SCG).
AFL Gather Round. Thursday, 9 April to Sunday, 12 April (South Australia).
AFL Grand Final. Saturday, 26 September (MCG).
NRL
World Club Challenge. Hull KR vs. Brisbane Broncos. 19 February (MKM Stadium).
NRL Opening Round, Las Vegas. Sunday, 1 March.
Magic Round. Thursday, 14 May to Sunday, 17 May (Suncorp Stadium).
State of Origin Game I. Wednesday, 27 May (Accor Stadium).
State of Origin Game II. Wednesday, 17 June (MCG).
State of Origin Game III. Wednesday, 8 July (Suncorp Stadium).
NRL Grand Final. Sunday, 4 October (Accor Stadium).
Golf
US Masters. Thursday, 9 April to Sunday 12 April (Augusta, Georgia).
US PGA. Thursday, 14 May 14 to Sunday, 17 May (Aronimink, Pennsylvania).
US Open. Thursday, 18 June to Sunday, 21 May (Shinnecock Hills, NY).
British Open. Thursday, 16 July to Sunday, 19 July (Royal Birkdale).
Presidents Cup. Tuesday, 22 September to Sunday, 27 September (Medinah Country Club, Illinois).
Australian Open. Thursday, 3 December to Sunday, 6 December (Kingston Heath).
Rugby League World Cup (Australia, PNG)
Kangaroos Game 1. New Zealand. Thursday, 15 October June (Sydney).
Kangaroos Game 2. Fiji. Sunday, 25 October (Brisbane).
Kangaroos Game 3. Cook Islands. Saturday, 31 October (Townsville).
Final. Sunday, 15 November (Brisbane).
Football, FIFA World Cup Cup (USA, Canada, Mexico)
Socceroos Game 1. UEFA Qualifier. Saturday, 13 June (Vancouver).
Socceroos Game 2. USA. Friday, 19 June (Seattle).
Socceroos Game 3. Paraguay. Thursday, 25 June (San Francisco).
Final. Sunday, 19 July (New Jersey).
Commonwealth Games, Glasgow (Scotland)
Opening Ceremony. Thursday, 23 July.
Closing Ceremony. Sunday, 2 August.
Rugby Union, Super Rugby Pacific
Opening Matches. Friday, 13 February.
Super Round. Friday 24, April to Sunday, 26 April (Christchurch).
Final. Saturday, June 20.
Rugby Union, Wallabies Tests
Ireland. Saturday, 4 July (Allianz Stadium).
France. Saturday, 11 July (Suncorp Stadium).
Italy. Saturday, 18 July (HBF Park).
Japan. Saturday, 8 August (Higashi-Osaka).
Japan. Saturday, 15 August (Queensland Country Bank Stadium)
Argentina. Saturday, 29 August (Estadio 23 de Agosto).
Argentina. Saturday, 5 September (Estadio Malvinas Argentinas).
South Africa. Sunday, 27 September (Optus Stadium).
New Zealand. Saturday, 10 October (Eden Park).
New Zealand. Saturday, 17 October. (Accor Stadium).
England. Sunday, 8 November (Twickenham).
Scotland. Sunday, 15 November (Murrayfield).
Wales. Saturday, 21 November (Cardiff).
Bathurst 1000
Thursday, October 8 to Sunday, 11 October.
Formula 1
Australian Grand Prix, Melbourne. Sunday, 8 March (Opening race).
Monaco Grand Prix, Monte Carlo. Sunday, 7 June.
Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, UAE. Sunday, 6 December (Final race).
Horse Racing
Golden Slipper. Saturday, 21 March (Rosehill).
The Everest. Saturday, 17 October (Royal Randwick).
WS Cox Plate. Saturday, 24 October (Flemington).
Melbourne Cup. Tuesday, 3 November (Flemington).