# 2012 AFL season

The 2012 AFL season was the 116th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest-level senior Australian rules football competition in Australia.
The season featured eighteen clubs, with addition of the newly established Greater Western Sydney Giants, which was based in Western Sydney and split its home games between Sydney and Canberra.
The season ran from 24 March until 29 September, and comprised a 22-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top eight clubs.
The premiership was won by the Sydney Swans for the fifth time, after it defeated Hawthorn by ten points in the 2012 AFL Grand Final.

## Pre-season
### Draft

The 2011 National Draft was held on 24 November in Sydney, making it only the second time it was held out of Melbourne. This is due to the entry of Greater Western Sydney.

### NAB Cup

Adelaide won the 2012 pre-season competition following a 34-point win over the West Coast Eagles at AAMI Stadium. It was their second pre-season cup premiership.
| | 2012 NAB Cup Grand Final | 2012 NAB Cup Grand Final | 2012 NAB Cup Grand Final | | |
| Saturday, 17 March (7:10 pm) | Adelaide | def. | West Coast | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 27,376) | Report |
| | 0.2.2 (14) 1.3.6 (33) 2.6.13 (67) 2.10.17 (95) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 2.0.2 (20) 2.1.6 (30) 2.4.7 (49) 2.5.13 (61) | Umpires: McBurney, McInerney, Mollison, Dalgleish Michael Tuck Medal: Bernie Vince Television broadcast: Fox Footy | Umpires: McBurney, McInerney, Mollison, Dalgleish Michael Tuck Medal: Bernie Vince Television broadcast: Fox Footy |

## Premiership season

The fixture for this season was officially announced on 28 October 2011. Some of the features of the fixture included:
* Each team played twenty-two matches over twenty-three rounds.
* Each team had one bye, located between rounds 11 and 13. This is similar in practice to the split round concept, which (prior to 2011) saw one of the mid-season rounds played over two weeks, giving each team one week off.
* Due to concern over one-sided matches featuring the two newest teams (Gold Coast and Greater Western Sydney), their fixtures were adjusted so that they played each of the top five teams from 2011 only once.
* For the first time, each Victorian team travelled interstate at least five times, and each team travelled to Perth at least once.
* Blundstone Arena, Blacktown International Sportspark and Škoda Stadium hosted home and away matches for the first time in 2012.
* As had been the case since 2010, the final round of matches was given a floating fixture. Exact dates were determined later in the season with a view to giving likely finalists the longest possible break ahead of their first final.
The addition of a ninth match in each round, and the new television rights deal requiring most matches to be shown live, influenced the scheduling of matches, and changed some traditional match starting times. In typical rounds, where nine matches were played between Friday and Sunday, the changes were:
* Friday night matches began at 7:50 pm EST instead of 7:40 pm, or 8:40 pm EST when played in South Australia or Western Australia.
* Saturday afternoon matches began at 1:40 pm EST and 1:45 pm/2:10 pm EST.
* A regular Saturday match was scheduled beginning at 4:40 pm EST – which was either a twilight match on the east coast, or an afternoon match in Perth.
* Saturday night matches began at 7:40 pm EST instead of 7:10 pm.
* The second Sunday afternoon match began at 3:15 pm instead of the traditional 2:10 pm. This change was to allow the Seven Network to show the match live into Victoria, and use it as a lead-in to its struggling 6:00 pm news bulletin.

### Rule changes

Following two high profile goal umpiring errors in the previous three years' grand finals, in which goals were awarded to Tom Hawkins (Geelong, 2009) and Sharrod Wellingham (Collingwood, 2011) for shots which hit the post, video score reviews were introduced to AFL games for the first time. A score review could be initiated by the field umpire, at his own discretion or on request by the goal umpire, and television broadcast footage would be reviewed for visual evidence to overturn an on-field goal umpiring decision.

### Round 1

| | Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 1 | | |
| Saturday, 24 March (7:20 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 5.7 (37) | def. by | Sydney 14.16 (100) | ANZ Stadium (crowd: 38,203) | Report |
| Thursday, 29 March (7:45 pm) | Richmond 12.9 (81) | def. by | Carlton 18.17 (125) | MCG (crowd: 78,285) | Report |
| Friday, 30 March (7:50 pm) | Hawthorn 20.17 (137) | def. | Collingwood 16.19 (115) | MCG (crowd: 78,464) | Report |
| Saturday, 31 March (1:45 pm) | Melbourne 11.12 (78) | def. by | Brisbane Lions 17.17 (119) | MCG (crowd: 33,473) | Report |
| Saturday, 31 March (3:45 pm) | Gold Coast 10.8 (68) | def. by | Adelaide 19.23 (137) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 12,790) | Report |
| Saturday, 31 March (4:45 pm) | Fremantle 16.9 (105) | def. | Geelong 15.11 (101) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 34,601) | Report |
| Saturday, 31 March (7:45 pm) | North Melbourne 15.12 (102) | def. by | Essendon 14.20 (104) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 45,699) | Report |
| Sunday, 1 April (1:10 pm) | Western Bulldogs 12.15 (87) | def. by | West Coast 21.10 (136) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 24,977) | Report |
| Sunday, 1 April (4:10 pm) | Port Adelaide 13.11 (89) | def. | St Kilda 13.7 (85) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 21,179) | Report |
| This round marked the debut of Greater Western Sydney in the AFL. For the first time since 2006, the AFL season opened outside of Victoria, and for the first time ever, in Sydney. The first match between Greater Western Sydney and Sydney was the only match in the first weekend, with the conventional Thursday night season-opening match between Carlton and Richmond opening the remainder of the round the following weekend. Sydney won its first round 1 match since 2005. ||||||

### Round 2

| | Round 2 | Round 2 | Round 2 | | |
| Thursday, 5 April (7:40 pm) | Brisbane Lions 9.9 (63) | def. by | Carlton 23.16 (154) | The Gabba (crowd: 25,920) | Report |
| Saturday, 7 April (1:45 pm) | Essendon 16.15 (111) | def. | Port Adelaide 13.8 (86) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 34,118) | Report |
| Saturday, 7 April (2:10 pm) | Sydney 14.10 (94) | def. | Fremantle 12.9 (81) | SCG (crowd: 22,242) | Report |
| Saturday, 7 April (2:40 pm) | West Coast 25.16 (166) | def. | Melbourne 9.4 (58) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 35,674) | Report |
| Saturday, 7 April (7:10 pm) | Adelaide 11.16 (82) | def. | Western Bulldogs 9.10 (64) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 34,021) | Report |
| Saturday, 7 April (7:40 pm) | Collingwood 12.13 (85) | def. | Richmond 8.16 (64) | MCG (crowd: 57,268) | Report |
| Sunday, 8 April (1:10 pm) | North Melbourne 28.15 (183) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 8.6 (54) | Blundstone Arena (crowd: 11,127) | Report |
| Sunday, 8 April (4:40 pm) | St Kilda 21.13 (139) | def. | Gold Coast 7.5 (47) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 21,032) | Report |
| Monday, 9 April (3:10 pm) | Geelong 14.8 (92) | def. | Hawthorn 13.12 (90) | MCG (crowd: 69,231) | Report |
| West Coast recorded its largest ever winning margin against Melbourne, winning by 108 points. The match between North Melbourne and Greater Western Sydney was the first AFL game to be played at Blundstone Arena in Hobart, Tasmania. North Melbourne recorded its largest winning margin in any match (129 points) since round 2, 1996. ||||||

### Round 3

| | Round 3 | Round 3 | Round 3 | | |
| Friday, 13 April (7:50 pm) | Carlton 18.14 (122) | def. | Collingwood 9.8 (62) | MCG (crowd: 84,259) | Report |
| Saturday, 14 April (1:45 pm) | Richmond 20.13 (133) | def. | Melbourne 11.8 (74) | MCG (crowd: 49,826) | Report |
| Saturday, 14 April (1:40 pm) | Port Adelaide 12.11 (83) | def. by | Sydney 16.9 (105) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 19,032) | Report |
| Saturday, 14 April (2:40 pm) | Fremantle 8.16 (64) | def. | Brisbane Lions 5.5 (35) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 33,473) | Report |
| Saturday, 14 April (7:40 pm) | Western Bulldogs 5.10 (40) | def. by | St Kilda 15.13 (103) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 28,971) | Report |
| Saturday, 14 April (7:40 pm) | Gold Coast 13.10 (88) | def. by | Essendon 15.15 (105) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 17,069) | Report |
| Sunday, 15 April (1:10 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 10.9 (69) | def. by | West Coast 23.12 (150) | Blacktown ISP (crowd: 6,875) | Report |
| Sunday, 15 April (3:15 pm) | Hawthorn 21.14 (140) | def. | Adelaide 12.12 (84) | MCG (crowd: 33,524) | Report |
| Sunday, 15 April (4:40 pm) | North Melbourne 20.11 (131) | def. | Geelong 16.18 (114) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 29,630) | Report |
| The match between Greater Western Sydney and West Coast was the first and, as of 2023, only AFL match played at Blacktown International Sportspark. ||||||

### Round 4

| | Round 4 | Round 4 | Round 4 | | |
| Friday, 20 April (7:50 pm) | St Kilda 11.13 (79) | def. by | Fremantle 14.8 (92) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 30,172) | Report |
| Saturday, 21 April (1:45 pm) | Carlton 11.13 (79) | def. by | Essendon 15.19 (109) | MCG (crowd: 73,172) | Report |
| Saturday, 21 April (2:10 pm) | Collingwood 14.13 (97) | def. | Port Adelaide 10.13 (73) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 30,741) | Report |
| Saturday, 21 April (4:10 pm) | Adelaide 13.18 (96) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 7.8 (50) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 28,261) | Report |
| Saturday, 21 April (7:40 pm) | Brisbane Lions 17.9 (111) | def. | Gold Coast 6.10 (46) | The Gabba (crowd: 21,980) | Report |
| Saturday, 21 April (5:40 pm) | West Coast 5.21 (51) | def. | Hawthorn 5.16 (46) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 40,080) | Report |
| Sunday, 22 April (1:10 pm) | Geelong 11.9 (75) | def. | Richmond 9.11 (65) | Simonds Stadium (crowd: 21,952) | Report |
| Sunday, 22 April (3:15 pm) | Sydney 17.11 (113) | def. | North Melbourne 10.17 (77) | SCG (crowd: 21,049) | Report |
| Sunday, 22 April (4:40 pm) | Melbourne 9.13 (67) | def. by | Western Bulldogs 13.10 (88) | MCG (crowd: 33,565) | Report |
| The match between Carlton and Essendon was the 2,500th senior VFL/AFL match hosted by the Melbourne Cricket Ground. ||||||

### Round 5

| | Round 5 | Round 5 | Round 5 | | |
| Wednesday, 25 April (2:40 pm) | Collingwood 11.14 (80) | def. | Essendon 11.13 (79) | MCG (crowd: 86,932) | Report |
| Friday, 27 April (6:45 pm) | Fremantle 7.15 (57) | def. by | Carlton 10.5 (65) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 38,847) | Report |
| Saturday, 28 April (1:45 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 9.8 (62) | def. by | Western Bulldogs 15.14 (104) | Manuka Oval (crowd: 9,128) | Report |
| Saturday, 28 April (4:40 pm) | North Melbourne 17.25 (127) | def. | Gold Coast 13.15 (93) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 17,680) | Report |
| Saturday, 28 April (7:40 pm) | Melbourne 10.6 (66) | def. by | St Kilda 12.12 (84) | MCG (crowd: 24,798) | Report |
| Saturday, 28 April (7:45 pm) | Brisbane Lions 4.17 (41) | def. by | Geelong 12.7 (79) | The Gabba (crowd: 15,528) | Report |
| Sunday, 29 April (1:10 pm) | Hawthorn 10.9 (69) | def. by | Sydney 16.10 (106) | Aurora Stadium (crowd: 19,217) | Report |
| Sunday, 29 April (3:15 pm) | Richmond 14.13 (97) | def. by | West Coast 16.11 (107) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 28,448) | Report |
| Sunday, 29 April (4:10 pm) | Adelaide 16.14 (110) | def. | Port Adelaide 14.7 (91) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 41,649) | Report |
| Adam Goodes played his 304th club game for Sydney, to become the club games record holder for South Melbourne/Sydney. ||||||

### Round 6

| | Round 6 | Round 6 | Round 6 | | |
| Friday, 4 May (7:50 pm) | Western Bulldogs 11.11 (77) | def. by | Collingwood 15.8 (98) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 38,155) | Report |
| Saturday, 5 May (1:40 pm) | Essendon 19.15 (129) | def. | Brisbane Lions 9.8 (62) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 36,361) | Report |
| Saturday, 5 May (1:45 pm) | Geelong 17.17 (119) | def. | Melbourne 11.10 (76) | Simonds Stadium (crowd: 18,010) | Report |
| Saturday, 5 May (4:40 pm) | Gold Coast 14.3 (87) | def. by | Fremantle 14.10 (94) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 11,670) | Report |
| Saturday, 5 May (7:40 pm) | Sydney 14.10 (94) | def. by | Adelaide 15.9 (99) | SCG (crowd: 23,969) | Report |
| Saturday, 5 May (7:40 pm) | St Kilda 13.10 (88) | def. by | Hawthorn 18.15 (123) | MCG (crowd: 42,289) | Report |
| Sunday, 6 May (1:10 pm) | Carlton 15.20 (110) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 6.7 (43) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 28,201) | Report |
| Sunday, 6 May (2:45 pm) | Port Adelaide 8.6 (54) | def. by | Richmond 13.13 (91) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 18,552) | Report |
| Sunday, 6 May (2:40 pm) | West Coast 17.18 (120) | def. | North Melbourne 15.5 (95) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 37,202) | Report |

### Round 7

| | Round 7 | Round 7 | Round 7 | | |
| Friday, 11 May (7:50 pm) | Melbourne 6.13 (49) | def. by | Hawthorn 15.25 (115) | MCG (crowd: 36,430) | Report |
| Saturday, 12 May (12:45 pm) | Adelaide 19.8 (122) | def. | Geelong 10.12 (72) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 35,535) | Report |
| Saturday, 12 May (1:40 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 13.16 (94) | def. | Gold Coast 9.13 (67) | Manuka Oval (crowd: 8,603) | Report |
| Saturday, 12 May (4:40 pm) | Richmond 13.13 (91) | def. | Sydney 8.14 (62) | MCG (crowd: 40,352) | Report |
| Saturday, 12 May (7:40 pm) | Brisbane Lions 8.10 (58) | def. by | Collingwood 17.14 (116) | The Gabba (crowd: 27,926) | Report |
| Saturday, 12 May (7:40 pm) | Essendon 16.17 (113) | def. | West Coast 7.10 (52) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 43,260) | Report |
| Sunday, 13 May (1:10 pm) | North Melbourne 12.11 (83) | def. by | Western Bulldogs 15.11 (101) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 20,885) | Report |
| Sunday, 13 May (2:40 pm) | Fremantle 12.15 (87) | def. | Port Adelaide 7.5 (47) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 30,079) | Report |
| Monday, 14 May (7:40 pm) | St Kilda 19.8 (122) | def. | Carlton 14.14 (98) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 38,823) | Report |
| Greater Western Sydney recorded its first ever win in an AFL match. ||||||

### Round 8

| | Round 8 | Round 8 | Round 8 | | |
| Friday, 18 May (7:50 pm) | Collingwood 14.12 (96) | def. | Geelong 11.18 (84) | MCG (crowd: 75,650) | Report |
| Saturday, 19 May (1:15 pm) | Port Adelaide 14.11 (95) | def. | North Melbourne 14.9 (93) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 14,508) | Report |
| Saturday, 19 May (2:10 pm) | Hawthorn 17.17 (119) | def. | Fremantle 9.9 (63) | Aurora Stadium (crowd: 12,959) | Report |
| Saturday, 19 May (4:40 pm) | Sydney 21.12 (138) | def. | Melbourne 5.7 (37) | SCG (crowd: 20,818) | Report |
| Saturday, 19 May (7:10 pm) | Western Bulldogs 9.18 (72) | def. | Gold Coast 4.10 (34) | TIO Stadium (crowd: 8,724) | Report |
| Saturday, 19 May (7:50 pm) | Essendon 19.14 (128) | def. | Richmond 15.19 (109) | MCG (crowd: 80,900) | Report |
| Sunday, 20 May (1:10 pm) | Brisbane Lions 19.18 (132) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 5.10 (40) | The Gabba (crowd: 16,049) | Report |
| Sunday, 20 May (3:15 pm) | Carlton 8.7 (55) | def. by | Adelaide 19.10 (124) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 35,917) | Report |
| Sunday, 20 May (2:40 pm) | West Coast 18.13 (121) | def. | St Kilda 13.13 (91) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 38,174) | Report |
| Sydney recorded its largest winning margin in any match since round 7, 2006. Adelaide won its first match in Victoria since round 22, 2009, ending a losing streak of fifteen games. ||||||

### Round 9

| | Round 9 | Round 9 | Round 9 | | |
| Friday, 25 May (7:50 pm) | Western Bulldogs 11.9 (75) | def. by | Geelong 14.11 (95) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 29,118) | Report |
| Saturday, 26 May (1:45 pm) | Richmond 21.11 (137) | def. | Hawthorn 10.15 (75) | MCG (crowd: 51,617) | Report |
| Saturday, 26 May (2:10 pm) | Gold Coast 10.10 (70) | def. by | Port Adelaide 17.16 (118) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 12,416) | Report |
| Saturday, 26 May (4:40 pm) | St Kilda 16.15 (111) | def. | Sydney 12.11 (83) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 34,737) | Report |
| Saturday, 26 May (7:10 pm) | Adelaide 6.11 (49) | def. by | Collingwood 10.15 (75) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 44,238) | Report |
| Saturday, 26 May (7:40 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 7.11 (53) | def. by | Essendon 18.11 (119) | Škoda Stadium (crowd: 11,887) | Report |
| Sunday, 27 May (1:10 pm) | North Melbourne 17.10 (112) | def. | Brisbane Lions 15.6 (96) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 19,988) | Report |
| Sunday, 27 May (3:15 pm) | Carlton 15.17 (107) | def. | Melbourne 6.13 (49) | MCG (crowd: 28,371) | Report |
| Sunday, 27 May (2:40 pm) | West Coast 11.18 (84) | def. | Fremantle 5.6 (36) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 40,905) | Report |
| The match between Greater Western Sydney and Essendon was the first AFL match played at Škoda Stadium, the primary home ground for Greater Western Sydney. ||||||

### Round 10

| | Round 10 | Round 10 | Round 10 | | |
| Friday, 1 June (7:50 pm) | St Kilda 16.17 (113) | def. by | Richmond 18.13 (121) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 49,337) | Report |
| Saturday, 2 June (1:45 pm) | Geelong 19.12 (126) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 9.7 (61) | Simonds Stadium (crowd: 17,243) | Report |
| Saturday, 2 June (2:10 pm) | Hawthorn 27.12 (174) | def. | North Melbourne 9.5 (59) | Aurora Stadium (crowd: 16,143) | Report |
| Saturday, 2 June (2:40 pm) | Fremantle 12.10 (82) | def. by | Adelaide 17.9 (111) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 31,392) | Report |
| Saturday, 2 June (7:10 pm) | Port Adelaide 14.15 (99) | def. | Carlton 6.9 (45) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 24,476) | Report |
| Saturday, 2 June (7:40 pm) | Essendon 6.16 (52) | def. by | Melbourne 8.10 (58) | MCG (crowd: 42,987) | Report |
| Sunday, 3 June (1:10 pm) | Brisbane Lions 16.6 (102) | def. | West Coast 15.10 (100) | The Gabba (crowd: 15,546) | Report |
| Sunday, 3 June (3:15 pm) | Sydney 20.12 (132) | def. | Western Bulldogs 5.10 (40) | SCG (crowd: 13,505) | Report |
| Sunday, 3 June (4:40 pm) | Collingwood 23.11 (149) | def. | Gold Coast 7.10 (52) | MCG (crowd: 36,913) | Report |
| Richmond defeated St Kilda for the first time since round 4, 2003, ending a 14-game winless streak against St Kilda. Hawthorn recorded its largest ever victory over North Melbourne, by 115 points. Lance Franklin (Hawthorn) scored 13 goals, the most by any player in a match since Scott Cummings (West Coast) kicked 14 goals in round 5, 2000. Sydney recorded its lowest home crowd of 13,505 since round 2, 1996. Gary Ablett's 53 disposals (Gold Coast) equalled Greg Williams' (Sydney) record set in 1989. This was later surpassed by Tom Mitchell who recorded 54 disposals in 2018. ||||||

### Round 11

| | Round 11 | Round 11 | Round 11 | | |
| Friday, 8 June (7:50 pm) | Carlton 11.19 (85) | def. by | Geelong 14.13 (97) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 47,632) | Report |
| Saturday, 9 June (1:40 pm) | Richmond 9.12 (66) | def. by | Fremantle 12.6 (78) | MCG (crowd: 43,801) | Report |
| Saturday, 9 June (4:40 pm) | Gold Coast 7.7 (49) | def. by | St Kilda 21.18 (144) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 12,534) | Report |
| Saturday, 9 June (7:40 pm) | Essendon 11.16 (82) | def. by | Sydney 13.8 (86) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 42,785) | Report |
| Sunday, 10 June (4:10 pm) | Port Adelaide 9.8 (62) | def. by | Hawthorn 16.12 (108) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 26,638) | Report |
| Monday, 11 June (3:15 pm) | Melbourne 13.9 (87) | def. by | Collingwood 19.15 (129) | MCG (crowd: 64,250) | Report |
| | Bye Adelaide, Brisbane Lions, Greater Western Sydney, North Melbourne, West Coast, Western Bulldogs | Bye Adelaide, Brisbane Lions, Greater Western Sydney, North Melbourne, West Coast, Western Bulldogs | Bye Adelaide, Brisbane Lions, Greater Western Sydney, North Melbourne, West Coast, Western Bulldogs | | |
| Essendon had the chance to win the game by kicking a goal after the siren after a late comeback. Courtenay Dempsey, who had marked the ball on the 50-metre line two seconds before the siren went, chose to play on while the siren went, which resulted in the Sydney win. Fremantle won its first game at the Melbourne Cricket Ground since round 4, 2007, ending a ten-match losing streak at the venue. ||||||

### Round 12

| | Round 12 | Round 12 | Round 12 | | |
| Thursday, 14 June (5:40 pm) | West Coast 10.19 (79) | def. | Carlton 10.9 (69) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 34,224) | Report |
| Friday, 15 June (8:10 pm) | Adelaide 17.13 (115) | def. | St Kilda 16.15 (111) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 36,394) | Report |
| Saturday, 16 June (2:10 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 12.2 (74) | def. by | Richmond 11.20 (86) | Škoda Stadium (crowd: 7,358) | Report |
| Saturday, 16 June (7:40 pm) | Gold Coast 12.8 (80) | def. by | North Melbourne 11.21 (87) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 10,170) | Report |
| Sunday, 17 June (1:10 pm) | Hawthorn 19.21 (135) | def. | Brisbane Lions 11.4 (70) | MCG (crowd: 35,492) | Report |
| Sunday, 17 June (4:40 pm) | Western Bulldogs 13.17 (95) | def. | Port Adelaide 8.9 (57) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 16,036) | Report |
| | Bye Collingwood, Essendon, Fremantle, Geelong, Melbourne, Sydney | Bye Collingwood, Essendon, Fremantle, Geelong, Melbourne, Sydney | Bye Collingwood, Essendon, Fremantle, Geelong, Melbourne, Sydney | | |

### Round 13

| | Round 13 | Round 13 | Round 13 | | |
| Friday, 22 June (7:50 pm) | Sydney 12.8 (80) | def. | Geelong 11.8 (74) | SCG (crowd: 27,400) | Report |
| Saturday, 23 June (1:40 pm) | Western Bulldogs 7.14 (56) | def. by | Brisbane Lions 18.6 (114) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 20,146) | Report |
| Saturday, 23 June (4:40 pm) | Collingwood 12.13 (85) | def. | West Coast 12.10 (82) | MCG (crowd: 62,957) | Report |
| Saturday, 23 June (5:40 pm) | Fremantle 14.5 (89) | def. by | Essendon 17.11 (113) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 34,567) | Report |
| Sunday, 24 June (3:15 pm) | Melbourne 20.15 (135) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 9.3 (57) | MCG (crowd: 20,070) | Report |
| Sunday, 24 June (4:40 pm) | North Melbourne 17.19 (121) | def. | Adelaide 13.11 (89) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 18,866) | Report |
| | Bye Carlton, Gold Coast, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide, Richmond, St Kilda | Bye Carlton, Gold Coast, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide, Richmond, St Kilda | Bye Carlton, Gold Coast, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide, Richmond, St Kilda | | |

### Round 14

| | Round 14 | Round 14 | Round 14 | | |
| Friday, 29 June (7:50 pm) | Carlton 10.10 (70) | def. by | Hawthorn 18.12 (120) | MCG (crowd: 65,047) | Report |
| Saturday, 30 June (1:45 pm) | Collingwood 15.17 (107) | def. | Fremantle 12.6 (78) | MCG (crowd: 44,891) | Report |
| Saturday, 30 June (1:40 pm) | Adelaide 17.4 (106) | def. | Richmond 13.9 (87) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 33,780) | Report |
| Saturday, 30 June (2:40 pm) | West Coast 25.16 (166) | def. | Gold Coast 5.10 (40) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 34,592) | Report |
| Saturday, 30 June (7:40 pm) | Sydney 19.18 (132) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 5.8 (38) | ANZ Stadium (crowd: 22,565) | Report |
| Saturday, 30 June (7:40 pm) | Essendon 21.14 (140) | def. | Western Bulldogs 8.8 (56) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 40,824) | Report |
| Sunday, 1 July (1:10 pm) | Geelong 14.15 (99) | def. | Port Adelaide 8.13 (61) | Simonds Stadium (crowd: 13,736) | Report |
| Sunday, 1 July (3:15 pm) | Brisbane Lions 18.14 (122) | def. | Melbourne 8.13 (61) | The Gabba (crowd: 22,114) | Report |
| Sunday, 1 July (4:40 pm) | St Kilda 15.13 (103) | def. by | North Melbourne 21.10 (136) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 33,106) | Report |

### Round 15

| | Round 15 | Round 15 | Round 15 | | |
| Friday, 6 July (7:50 pm) | Collingwood 8.14 (62) | def. by | Carlton 12.13 (85) | MCG (crowd: 75,755) | Report |
| Saturday, 7 July (1:45 pm) | North Melbourne 13.6 (84) | def. by | West Coast 12.14 (86) | Blundstone Arena (crowd: 14,113) | Report |
| Saturday, 7 July (2:10 pm) | Melbourne 11.12 (78) | def. by | Richmond 13.23 (101) | MCG (crowd: 46,773) | Report |
| Saturday, 7 July (4:40 pm) | Sydney 16.14 (110) | def. | Brisbane Lions 9.9 (63) | SCG (crowd: 19,419) | Report |
| Saturday, 7 July (7:10 pm) | Port Adelaide 8.10 (58) | def. by | Adelaide 17.14 (116) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 34,829) | Report |
| Saturday, 7 July (7:40 pm) | St Kilda 21.7 (133) | def. | Essendon 8.14 (62) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 45,838) | Report |
| Sunday, 8 July (1:10 pm) | Hawthorn 28.25 (193) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 4.7 (31) | MCG (crowd: 26,518) | Report |
| Sunday, 8 July (3:15 pm) | Gold Coast 13.18 (96) | def. by | Geelong 15.20 (110) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 15,824) | Report |
| Sunday, 8 July (2:40 pm) | Fremantle 14.11 (95) | def. | Western Bulldogs 8.9 (57) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 30,420) | Report |
| Kade Simpson (Carlton) sustained a broken jaw against Collingwood, which resulted in the end of a streak of 158 consecutive matches played, the longest active streak in the competition at the time. Greater Western Sydney suffered its heaviest ever defeat, losing by 162 points. ||||||

### Round 16

| | Round 16 | Round 16 | Round 16 | | |
| Friday, 13 July (7:50 pm) | North Melbourne 24.5 (149) | def. | Carlton 14.12 (96) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 46,423) | Report |
| Saturday, 14 July (1:45 pm) | Melbourne 12.11 (83) | def. by | Fremantle 18.9 (117) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 13,284) | Report |
| Saturday, 14 July (1:40 pm) | Port Adelaide 11.11 (77) | def. by | Essendon 19.13 (127) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 17,344) | Report |
| Saturday, 14 July (4:40 pm) | Richmond 13.10 (88) | def. by | Gold Coast 13.12 (90) | Cazaly's Stadium (crowd: 10,961) | Report |
| Saturday, 14 July (7:40 pm) | Brisbane Lions 14.8 (92) | def. by | St Kilda 16.9 (105) | The Gabba (crowd: 19,228) | Report |
| Saturday, 14 July (7:40 pm) | Geelong 10.19 (79) | def. by | Collingwood 17.8 (110) | MCG (crowd: 61,717) | Report |
| Sunday, 15 July (1:10 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 8.11 (59) | def. by | Adelaide 27.16 (178) | Škoda Stadium (crowd: 7,669) | Report |
| Sunday, 15 July (3:15 pm) | Western Bulldogs 6.8 (44) | def. by | Hawthorn 17.14 (116) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 24,754) | Report |
| Sunday, 15 July (2:40 pm) | West Coast 10.9 (69) | def. by | Sydney 18.13 (121) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 39,152) | Report |
| Gold Coast's win ended a twenty-one match losing streak, and gave Gold Coast its first win for the season after fourteen losses; it was the longest losing streak by any team since Fitzroy lost twenty-one matches from 1995 to 1996. Gold Coast's previous win, in round 17, 2011, was also against Richmond in Cairns. The two-point win was completed in dramatic circumstances when rugby league convert Karmichael Hunt kicked a goal after the siren to win the match. West Coast lost its first match at Patersons Stadium since round 3, 2011, ending an eighteen-match winning streak at the venue. ||||||

### Round 17

| | Round 17 | Round 17 | Round 17 | | |
| Friday, 20 July (7:50 pm) | Geelong 20.14 (134) | def. | Essendon 10.7 (67) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 50,066) | Report |
| Saturday, 21 July (1:45 pm) | Collingwood 13.13 (91) | def. by | Hawthorn 21.12 (138) | MCG (crowd: 83,714) | Report |
| Saturday, 21 July (1:40 pm) | Adelaide 19.10 (124) | def. | West Coast 11.9 (75) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 40,724) | Report |
| Saturday, 21 July (4:40 pm) | Gold Coast 5.18 (48) | def. by | Brisbane Lions 8.11 (59) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 16,550) | Report |
| Saturday, 21 July (7:10 pm) | Melbourne 8.8 (56) | def. by | Port Adelaide 12.12 (84) | TIO Stadium (crowd: 6,714) | Report |
| Saturday, 21 July (7:40 pm) | Western Bulldogs 12.12 (84) | def. by | Carlton 16.6 (102) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 24,615) | Report |
| Sunday, 22 July (1:10 pm) | Sydney 15.15 (105) | def. | St Kilda 10.16 (76) | SCG (crowd: 26,834) | Report |
| Sunday, 22 July (3:15 pm) | Richmond 14.15 (99) | def. by | North Melbourne 15.13 (103) | MCG (crowd: 47,432) | Report |
| Sunday, 22 July (2:40 pm) | Fremantle 18.24 (132) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 5.7 (37) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 28,767) | Report |

### Round 18

| | Round 18 | Round 18 | Round 18 | | |
| Friday, 27 July (7:50 pm) | Essendon 12.14 (86) | def. by | Hawthorn 27.18 (180) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 44,899) | Report |
| Saturday, 28 July (1:45 pm) | Geelong 15.12 (102) | def. | Adelaide 11.9 (75) | Simonds Stadium (crowd: 18,377) | Report |
| Saturday, 28 July (2:10 pm) | North Melbourne 19.13 (127) | def. | Melbourne 11.7 (73) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 20,816) | Report |
| Saturday, 28 July (4:40 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 7.12 (54) | def. by | Collingwood 26.18 (174) | Škoda Stadium (crowd: 8,102) | Report |
| Saturday, 28 July (7:40 pm) | Gold Coast 8.6 (54) | def. by | Sydney 19.12 (126) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 11,169) | Report |
| Saturday, 28 July (7:40 pm) | Carlton 14.11 (95) | def. | Richmond 13.13 (91) | MCG (crowd: 46,013) | Report |
| Sunday, 29 July (12:40 pm) | Port Adelaide 6.12 (48) | def. by | Fremantle 11.9 (75) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 14,583) | Report |
| Sunday, 29 July (3:15 pm) | St Kilda 16.22 (118) | def. | Western Bulldogs 6.6 (42) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 23,498) | Report |
| Sunday, 29 July (2:40 pm) | West Coast 28.7 (175) | def. | Brisbane Lions 12.5 (77) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 35,767) | Report |
| Collingwood's score of 26.18 (174) was its highest since round 9, 1990. ||||||

### Round 19

| | Round 19 | Round 19 | Round 19 | | |
| Friday, 3 August (7:50 pm) | Hawthorn 17.14 (116) | def. by | Geelong 18.10 (118) | MCG (crowd: 65,287) | Report |
| Saturday, 4 August (1:45 pm) | Western Bulldogs 8.13 (61) | def. by | North Melbourne 18.7 (115) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 21,599) | Report |
| Saturday, 4 August (2:10 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 16.11 (107) | def. | Port Adelaide 10.13 (73) | Škoda Stadium (crowd: 6,811) | Report |
| Saturday, 4 August (2:40 pm) | Fremantle 17.11 (113) | def. | West Coast 6.12 (48) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 39,694) | Report |
| Saturday, 4 August (7:40 pm) | Brisbane Lions 12.12 (84) | def. by | Richmond 20.12 (132) | The Gabba (crowd: 22,311) | Report |
| Saturday, 4 August (7:40 pm) | Collingwood 12.19 (91) | def. | St Kilda 13.7 (85) | MCG (crowd: 57,873) | Report |
| Sunday, 5 August (1:10 pm) | Melbourne 16.12 (108) | def. | Gold Coast 9.12 (66) | MCG (crowd: 18,097) | Report |
| Sunday, 5 August (3:15 pm) | Carlton 10.11 (71) | def. by | Sydney 14.9 (93) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 36,942) | Report |
| Sunday, 5 August (4:10 pm) | Adelaide 16.8 (104) | def. | Essendon 15.10 (100) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 40,030) | Report |
| Geelong defeated Hawthorn after Tom Hawkins kicked the winning goal after the siren. Kevin Sheedy (Greater Western Sydney) contested his 1000th senior VFL/AFL sanctioned game, becoming the first person to do so. The total includes premiership matches, pre-season and night matches, state representative matches, and national representative matches under international rules. Greater Western Sydney ended a ten-game losing streak with its win against Port Adelaide. The day after Port Adelaide's loss to Greater Western Sydney, the club determined that the tenures of Brett Duncanson as president and Matthew Primus as coach would both be terminated at the end of the season; Primus opted to step down immediately, and was replaced by Garry Hocking as caretaker coach. ||||||

### Round 20

| | Round 20 | Round 20 | Round 20 | | |
| Friday, 10 August (6:40 pm) | West Coast 16.6 (102) | def. | Geelong 15.7 (97) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 37,812) | Report |
| Saturday, 11 August (1:45 pm) | St Kilda 16.11 (107) | def. | Melbourne 12.10 (82) | MCG (crowd: 23,464) | Report |
| Saturday, 11 August (1:40 pm) | Adelaide 17.17 (119) | def. | Fremantle 14.7 (91) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 35,027) | Report |
| Saturday, 11 August (4:40 pm) | Gold Coast 16.13 (109) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 12.7 (79) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 14,657) | Report |
| Saturday, 11 August (7:40 pm) | Carlton 17.11 (113) | def. | Brisbane Lions 10.17 (77) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 25,977) | Report |
| Saturday, 11 August (7:40 pm) | Sydney 9.16 (70) | def. by | Collingwood 12.6 (78) | ANZ Stadium (crowd: 45,827) | Report |
| Sunday, 12 August (1:10 pm) | Hawthorn 24.15 (159) | def. | Port Adelaide 13.9 (87) | Aurora Stadium (crowd: 14,431) | Report |
| Sunday, 12 August (3:15 pm) | Richmond 22.18 (150) | def. | Western Bulldogs 12.8 (80) | MCG (crowd: 28,286) | Report |
| Sunday, 12 August (4:40 pm) | Essendon 11.10 (76) | def. by | North Melbourne 15.10 (100) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 42,674) | Report |
| Gold Coast recorded its first ever win at its primary home ground, Metricon Stadium, after losing its first seventeen matches there from 2011 to 2012. ||||||

### Round 21

| | Round 21 | Round 21 | Round 21 | | |
| Friday, 17 August (7:50 pm) | Geelong 18.15 (123) | def. | St Kilda 11.15 (81) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 38,169) | Report |
| Saturday, 18 August (1:45 pm) | Essendon 8.12 (60) | def. by | Carlton 24.12 (156) | MCG (crowd: 59,381) | Report |
| Saturday, 18 August (2:10 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 9.5 (59) | def. by | Melbourne 11.18 (84) | Manuka Oval (crowd: 7,561) | Report |
| Saturday, 18 August (2:40 pm) | Fremantle 13.16 (94) | def. | Richmond 11.6 (72) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 32,721) | Report |
| Saturday, 18 August (7:40 pm) | Brisbane Lions 13.17 (95) | def. | Adelaide 12.13 (85) | The Gabba (crowd: 18,979) | Report |
| Saturday, 18 August (7:40 pm) | Collingwood 8.13 (61) | def. by | North Melbourne 13.13 (91) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 44,956) | Report |
| Sunday, 19 August (12:40 pm) | Port Adelaide 6.14 (50) | def. by | West Coast 14.14 (98) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 13,683) | Report |
| Sunday, 19 August (3:15 pm) | Western Bulldogs 13.7 (85) | def. by | Sydney 26.11 (167) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 19,396) | Report |
| Sunday, 19 August (4:40 pm) | Hawthorn 19.15 (129) | def. | Gold Coast 10.5 (65) | MCG (crowd: 23,098) | Report |
| Port Adelaide recorded its lowest ever home crowd of 13,683 at AAMI Stadium. Sydney recorded its highest score since round 15, 2007. ||||||

### Round 22

| | Round 22 | Round 22 | Round 22 | | |
| Friday, 24 August (7:50 pm) | Richmond 13.24 (102) | def. | Essendon 8.9 (57) | MCG (crowd: 47,590) | Report |
| Saturday, 25 August (1:45 pm) | St Kilda 25.13 (163) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 5.5 (35) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 17,327) | Report |
| Saturday, 25 August (1:40 pm) | Port Adelaide 14.9 (93) | def. by | Brisbane Lions 16.8 (104) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 13,953) | Report |
| Saturday, 25 August (4:40 pm) | Sydney 14.11 (95) | def. by | Hawthorn 15.12 (102) | SCG (crowd: 31,167) | Report |
| Saturday, 25 August (7:40 pm) | Gold Coast 15.8 (98) | def. | Carlton 11.20 (86) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 15,251) | Report |
| Saturday, 25 August (5:40 pm) | West Coast 15.17 (107) | def. | Collingwood 8.10 (58) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 40,527) | Report |
| Sunday, 26 August (1:10 pm) | Geelong 16.11 (107) | def. | Western Bulldogs 11.7 (73) | Simonds Stadium (crowd: 18,047) | Report |
| Sunday, 26 August (3:15 pm) | North Melbourne 12.7 (79) | def. by | Fremantle 20.12 (132) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 26,482) | Report |
| Sunday, 26 August (4:40 pm) | Melbourne 11.15 (81) | def. by | Adelaide 22.18 (150) | MCG (crowd: 18,450) | Report |
| St Kilda recorded its third highest winning margin in its history The half time margin of 93 points was also St Kilda's biggest half time lead in its history. Following the loss to Gold Coast, Brett Ratten was sacked as Carlton coach, effective at the end of the season. ||||||

### Round 23

| | Round 23 | Round 23 | Round 23 | | |
| Friday, 31 August (7:50 pm) | Hawthorn 14.11 (95) | def. | West Coast 10.10 (70) | MCG (crowd: 50,023) | Report |
| Saturday, 1 September (1:45 pm) | Geelong 17.10 (112) | def. | Sydney 11.12 (78) | Simonds Stadium (crowd: 20,045) | Report |
| Saturday, 1 September (1:40 pm) | Adelaide 22.21 (153) | def. | Gold Coast 9.8 (62) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 35,463) | Report |
| Saturday, 1 September (4:40 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 11.11 (77) | def. by | North Melbourne 16.9 (105) | Škoda Stadium (crowd: 6,696) | Report |
| Saturday, 1 September (5:40 pm) | Fremantle 14.17 (101) | def. | Melbourne 5.10 (40) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 32,687) | Report |
| Saturday, 1 September (7:40 pm) | Essendon 10.12 (72) | def. by | Collingwood 14.20 (104) | MCG (crowd: 56,491) | Report |
| Sunday, 2 September (1:10 pm) | Carlton 12.19 (91) | def. by | St Kilda 16.10 (106) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 31,393) | Report |
| Sunday, 2 September (3:15 pm) | Richmond 16.10 (106) | drew with | Port Adelaide 16.10 (106) | MCG (crowd: 27,893) | Report |
| Sunday, 2 September (4:40 pm) | Brisbane Lions 19.14 (128) | def. | Western Bulldogs 9.7 (61) | The Gabba (crowd: 18,289) | Report |
| Hawthorn secured the minor premiership for the first time since 1989. Greater Western Sydney's points-for total of 1270 was the lowest ever in a 22-match home-and-away season, beating the previous lowest of 1452 set by Fitzroy in 1996. It was the lowest in any season since North Melbourne scored 1266 points in twenty games set in 1968. Greater Western Sydney's percentage of 46.17 was the lowest since St Kilda's 45.39 in 1955. ||||||

## Win/loss table

| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | F1 | F2 | F3 | GF | Ladder |
| Adelaide | GCS +69 | WB +18 | Haw -56 | GWS +46 | PA +19 | Syd +5 | Geel +50 | Carl +69 | Coll -26 | Frem +29 | X | StK +4 | NM -32 | Rich +19 | PA +58 | GWS +119 | WCE +49 | Geel -27 | Ess +4 | Frem +28 | BL -10 | Melb +69 | GCS +91 | Syd -29 | Frem +10 | Haw -5 | X | 2 |
| Brisbane Lions | Melb +41 | Carl -91 | Frem -29 | GCS +65 | Geel -39 | Ess -67 | Coll -58 | GWS +92 | NM -16 | WCE +2 | X | Haw -65 | WB +58 | Melb +61 | Syd -47 | StK -13 | GCS +11 | WCE -98 | Rich -48 | Carl -36 | Adel +10 | PA +11 | WB +67 | X | X | X | X | 13 |
| Carlton | Rich +44 | BL +91 | Coll +60 | Ess -30 | Frem +8 | GWS +67 | StK -24 | Adel -69 | Melb +58 | PA -54 | Geel -12 | WCE -10 | X | Haw -50 | Coll +23 | NM -53 | WB +18 | Rich +4 | Syd -22 | BL +36 | Ess +96 | GCS -12 | StK -15 | X | X | X | X | 10 |
| Collingwood | Haw -22 | Rich +21 | Carl -60 | PA +24 | Ess +1 | WB +21 | BL +58 | Geel +12 | Adel +26 | GCS +97 | Melb +42 | X | WCE +3 | Frem +29 | Carl -23 | Geel +31 | Haw -47 | GWS +120 | StK +6 | Syd +8 | NM -30 | WCE -49 | Ess +32 | Haw -38 | WCE +13 | Syd -26 | X | 4 |
| Essendon | NM +2 | PA +25 | GCS +17 | Carl +30 | Coll -1 | BL +67 | WCE +61 | Rich +19 | GWS +66 | Melb -6 | Syd -4 | X | Frem +24 | WB +84 | StK -71 | PA +50 | Geel -67 | Haw -94 | Adel -4 | NM -24 | Carl -96 | Rich -45 | Coll -32 | X | X | X | X | 11 |
| Fremantle | Geel +4 | Syd -13 | BL +29 | StK +13 | Carl -8 | GCS +7 | PA +40 | Haw -56 | WCE -48 | Adel -29 | Rich +12 | X | Ess -24 | Coll -29 | WB +38 | Melb +34 | GWS +95 | PA +27 | WCE +65 | Adel -28 | Rich +22 | NM +53 | Melb +61 | Geel +16 | Adel -10 | X | X | 7 |
| Geelong | Frem -4 | Haw +2 | NM -17 | Rich +10 | BL +38 | Melb +43 | Adel -50 | Coll -12 | WB +20 | GWS +65 | Carl +12 | X | Syd -6 | PA +38 | GCS +14 | Coll -31 | Ess +67 | Adel +27 | Haw +2 | WCE -5 | StK +42 | WB +34 | Syd +34 | Frem -16 | X | X | X | 6 |
| Gold Coast | Adel -69 | StK -92 | Ess -17 | BL -65 | NM -34 | Frem -7 | GWS -27 | WB -38 | PA -48 | Coll -97 | StK -95 | NM -7 | X | WCE -126 | Geel -14 | Rich +2 | BL -11 | Syd -72 | Melb -42 | GWS +30 | Haw -64 | Carl +12 | Adel -91 | X | X | X | X | 17 |
| GWS Giants | Syd -63 | NM -129 | WCE -81 | Adel -46 | WB -42 | Carl -67 | GCS +27 | BL -92 | Ess -66 | Geel -65 | X | Rich -12 | Melb -78 | Syd -94 | Haw -162 | Adel -119 | Frem -95 | Coll -120 | PA +34 | GCS -30 | Melb -25 | StK -128 | NM -28 | X | X | X | X | 18 |
| Hawthorn | Coll +22 | Geel -2 | Adel +56 | WCE -5 | Syd -37 | StK +35 | Melb +66 | Frem +56 | Rich -62 | NM +115 | PA +46 | BL +65 | X | Carl +50 | GWS +162 | WB +72 | Coll +47 | Ess +94 | Geel -2 | PA +72 | GCS +64 | Syd +7 | WCE +25 | Coll +38 | X | Adel +5 | Syd -10 | 1 |
| Melbourne | BL -41 | WCE -108 | Rich -59 | WB -21 | StK -18 | Geel -43 | Haw -66 | Syd -101 | Carl -58 | Ess +6 | Coll -42 | X | GWS +78 | BL -61 | Rich -23 | Frem -34 | PA -28 | NM -54 | GCS +42 | StK -25 | GWS +25 | Adel -69 | Frem -61 | X | X | X | X | 16 |
| North Melbourne | Ess -2 | GWS +129 | Geel +17 | Syd -36 | GCS +34 | WCE -25 | WB -18 | PA -2 | BL +16 | Haw -115 | X | GCS +7 | Adel +32 | StK +33 | WCE -2 | Carl +53 | Rich +4 | Melb +54 | WB +54 | Ess +24 | Coll +30 | Frem -53 | GWS +28 | WCE -96 | X | X | X | 8 |
| Port Adelaide | StK +4 | Ess -25 | Syd -22 | Coll -24 | Adel -19 | Rich -37 | Frem -40 | NM +2 | GCS +48 | Carl +54 | Haw -46 | WB -38 | X | Geel -38 | Adel -58 | Ess -50 | Melb +28 | Frem -27 | GWS -34 | Haw -72 | WCE -48 | BL -11 | Rich 0 | X | X | X | X | 14 |
| Richmond | Carl -44 | Coll -21 | Melb +59 | Geel -10 | WCE -10 | PA +37 | Syd +29 | Ess -19 | Haw +62 | StK +8 | Frem -12 | GWS +12 | X | Adel -19 | Melb +23 | GCS -2 | NM -4 | Carl -4 | BL +48 | WB +70 | Frem -22 | Ess +45 | PA 0 | X | X | X | X | 12 |
| St Kilda | PA -4 | GCS +92 | WB +63 | Frem -13 | Melb +18 | Haw -35 | Carl +24 | WCE -30 | Syd +28 | Rich -8 | GCS +95 | Adel -4 | X | NM -33 | Ess +71 | BL +13 | Syd -29 | WB +76 | Coll -6 | Melb +25 | Geel -42 | GWS +128 | Carl +15 | X | X | X | X | 9 |
| Sydney | GWS +63 | Frem +13 | PA +25 | NM +36 | Haw +37 | Adel -5 | Rich -29 | Melb +101 | StK -28 | WB +92 | Ess +4 | X | Geel +6 | GWS +94 | BL +47 | WCE +52 | StK +29 | GCS +72 | Carl +22 | Coll -8 | WB +82 | Haw -7 | Geel -34 | Adel +29 | X | Coll +26 | Haw +10 | 3 |
| West Coast | WB +49 | Melb +108 | GWS +81 | Haw +5 | Rich +10 | NM +25 | Ess -61 | StK +30 | Frem +48 | BL -2 | X | Carl +10 | Coll -3 | GCS +126 | NM +2 | Syd -52 | Adel -49 | BL +98 | Frem -65 | Geel +5 | PA +48 | Coll +49 | Haw -25 | NM +96 | Coll -13 | X | X | 5 |
| Western Bulldogs | WCE -49 | Adel -18 | StK -63 | Melb +21 | GWS +42 | Coll -21 | NM +18 | GCS +38 | Geel -20 | Syd -92 | X | PA +38 | BL -58 | Ess -84 | Frem -38 | Haw -72 | Carl -18 | StK -76 | NM -54 | Rich -70 | Syd -82 | Geel -34 | BL -67 | X | X | X | X | 15 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | F1 | F2 | F3 | GF | Ladder |
| + | Win | | Qualified for finals |
| - | Loss | X | Bye |
| | Draw | | Eliminated |
Bold – Home game X – Bye Opponent for round listed above margin

## Ladder

2012 AFL ladder :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | D | PF | PA | PP | Pts | |
| 1 | Hawthorn | 22 | 17 | 5 | 0 | 2679 | 1733 | 154.6 | 68 | Finals series |
| 2 | Adelaide | 22 | 17 | 5 | 0 | 2428 | 1833 | 132.5 | 68 | Finals series |
| 3 | Sydney (P) | 22 | 16 | 6 | 0 | 2290 | 1629 | 140.6 | 64 | Finals series |
| 4 | Collingwood | 22 | 16 | 6 | 0 | 2123 | 1823 | 116.5 | 64 | Finals series |
| 5 | West Coast | 22 | 15 | 7 | 0 | 2244 | 1807 | 124.2 | 60 | Finals series |
| 6 | Geelong | 22 | 15 | 7 | 0 | 2209 | 1886 | 117.1 | 60 | Finals series |
| 7 | Fremantle | 22 | 14 | 8 | 0 | 1956 | 1691 | 115.7 | 56 | Finals series |
| 8 | North Melbourne | 22 | 14 | 8 | 0 | 2359 | 2097 | 112.5 | 56 | Finals series |
| 9 | St Kilda | 22 | 12 | 10 | 0 | 2347 | 1903 | 123.3 | 48 | |
| 10 | Carlton | 22 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 2079 | 1925 | 108.0 | 44 | |
| 11 | Essendon | 22 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 2091 | 2090 | 100.0 | 44 | |
| 12 | Richmond | 22 | 10 | 11 | 1 | 2169 | 1943 | 111.6 | 42 | |
| 13 | Brisbane Lions | 22 | 10 | 12 | 0 | 1904 | 2092 | 91.0 | 40 | |
| 14 | Port Adelaide | 22 | 5 | 16 | 1 | 1691 | 2144 | 78.9 | 22 | |
| 15 | Western Bulldogs | 22 | 5 | 17 | 0 | 1542 | 2301 | 67.0 | 20 | |
| 16 | Melbourne | 22 | 4 | 18 | 0 | 1580 | 2341 | 67.5 | 16 | |
| 17 | Gold Coast | 22 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 1509 | 2481 | 60.8 | 12 | |
| 18 | Greater Western Sydney | 22 | 2 | 20 | 0 | 1270 | 2751 | 46.2 | 8 | |

### Ladder progression

| Team ╲ Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| Hawthorn | 4 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 24 | 28 | 32 | 32 | 36 | 40 | 44 | 48 | 52 | 52 | 56 | 60 | 64 | 68 |
| Adelaide | 4 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 28 | 28 | 32 | 32 | 36 | 36 | 40 | 44 | 48 | 52 | 52 | 56 | 60 | 60 | 64 | 68 |
| Sydney | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 28 | 32 | 32 | 36 | 40 | 44 | 48 | 52 | 56 | 60 | 60 | 64 | 64 | 64 |
| Collingwood | 0 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 28 | 32 | 36 | 36 | 40 | 44 | 44 | 48 | 48 | 52 | 56 | 60 | 60 | 60 | 64 |
| West Coast | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 28 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 36 | 36 | 40 | 44 | 44 | 44 | 48 | 48 | 52 | 56 | 60 | 60 |
| Geelong | 0 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 32 | 36 | 36 | 40 | 44 | 48 | 48 | 52 | 56 | 60 |
| Fremantle | 4 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 28 | 32 | 36 | 40 | 44 | 44 | 48 | 52 | 56 |
| North Melbourne | 0 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 28 | 28 | 32 | 36 | 40 | 44 | 48 | 52 | 52 | 56 |
| St Kilda | 0 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 16 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 28 | 32 | 32 | 36 | 36 | 40 | 40 | 44 | 48 |
| Carlton | 4 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 28 | 28 | 32 | 36 | 36 | 40 | 44 | 44 | 44 |
| Essendon | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 28 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 36 | 40 | 40 | 44 | 44 | 44 | 44 | 44 | 44 | 44 | 44 |
| Richmond | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 32 | 36 | 36 | 40 | 42 |
| Brisbane Lions | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 32 | 36 | 40 |
| Port Adelaide | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 22 |
| Western Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
| Melbourne | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 16 | 16 | 16 |
| Gold Coast | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 12 |
| Greater Western Sydney | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |

## Finals series

| Qualifying and elimination finals | Qualifying and elimination finals | Qualifying and elimination finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Preliminary finals | Preliminary finals | Preliminary finals | Grand final | Grand final | Grand final |
| Fri, 7 Sep, MCG | Fri, 7 Sep, MCG | Fri, 7 Sep, MCG | | | | | | | | | |
| 1 | Hawthorn | 20.15 (135) | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Collingwood | 15.7 (97) | Sat, 15 Sep, MCG | Sat, 15 Sep, MCG | Sat, 15 Sep, MCG | | | | |
| | | | Collingwood | Collingwood | 10.13 (73) | | | | |
| Sun, 9 Sep, Patersons | Sun, 9 Sep, Patersons | Sun, 9 Sep, Patersons | West Coast | West Coast | 9.6 (60) | Sat, 22 Sep, MCG | Sat, 22 Sep, MCG | Sat, 22 Sep, MCG | | | |
| 5 | West Coast | 24.18 (162) | | | | Hawthorn | Hawthorn | 13.19 (97) | |
| 8 | North Melbourne | 9.12 (66) | | | | Adelaide | Adelaide | 14.8 (92) | Sat, 29 Sep, MCG | Sat, 29 Sep, MCG | Sat, 29 Sep, MCG |
| | | | | | | | | | Hawthorn | Hawthorn | 11.15 (81) |
| Sat, 8 Sep, MCG | Sat, 8 Sep, MCG | Sat, 8 Sep, MCG | | | | Fri, 21 Sep, ANZ Stadium | Fri, 21 Sep, ANZ Stadium | Fri, 21 Sep, ANZ Stadium | Sydney | Sydney | 14.7 (91) |
| 6 | Geelong | 11.14 (80) | | | | Sydney | Sydney | 13.18 (96) | | |
| 7 | Fremantle | 14.12 (96) | Fri, 14 Sep, AAMI Stadium | Fri, 14 Sep, AAMI Stadium | Fri, 14 Sep, AAMI Stadium | Collingwood | Collingwood | 10.10 (70) | | |
| | | | Adelaide | Adelaide | 12.9 (81) | | | | | | |
| Sat, 8 Sep, AAMI Stadium | Sat, 8 Sep, AAMI Stadium | Sat, 8 Sep, AAMI Stadium | Fremantle | Fremantle | 11.5 (71) | | | | | |
| 2 | Adelaide | 5.12 (42) | | | | | | | | | |
| 3 | Sydney | 11.5 (71) | | | | | | | | |

### Week one

| | Qualifying Finals | Qualifying Finals | Qualifying Finals | | |
| Friday, 7 September (7:50 pm) | Hawthorn 20.15 (135) | def. | Collingwood 15.7 (97) | MCG (crowd: 85,625) | Report |
| Saturday, 8 September (2:45 pm) | Adelaide 5.12 (42) | def. by | Sydney 11.5 (71) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 44,869) | Report |
| | Elimination Finals | Elimination Finals | Elimination Finals | | |
| Saturday, 8 September (7:45 pm) | Geelong 11.14 (80) | def. by | Fremantle 14.12 (96) | MCG (crowd: 44,460) | Report |
| Sunday, 9 September (1:15 pm) | West Coast 24.18 (162) | def. | North Melbourne 9.12 (66) | Patersons Stadium (crowd: 41,790) | Report |
| Adelaide recorded its lowest ever score at AAMI Stadium. ||||||

### Week two

| | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | | |
| Friday, 14 September (8:15 pm) | Adelaide 12.9 (81) | def. | Fremantle 11.5 (71) | AAMI Stadium (crowd: 31,742) | Report |
| Saturday, 15 September (7:45 pm) | Collingwood 10.13 (73) | def. | West Coast 9.6 (60) | MCG (crowd: 65,483) | Report |

### Week three

| | Preliminary Finals | Preliminary Finals | Preliminary Finals | | |
| Friday, 21 September (7:45 pm) | Sydney 13.18 (96) | def. | Collingwood 10.10 (70) | ANZ Stadium (crowd: 57,156) | Report |
| Saturday, 22 September (5:15 pm) | Hawthorn 13.19 (97) | def. | Adelaide 14.8 (92) | MCG (crowd: 69,146) | Report |
| Sydney defeated Collingwood for the first time since round 13, 2005, breaking an eleven-game losing streak. ||||||

### Week four

| | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | | |
| Saturday, 29 September (2:30 pm) | Hawthorn | def. by | Sydney | MCG (crowd: 99,683) | Report |
| | 4.5 (29) 4.6 (30) 9.10 (64) 11.15 (81) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 1.4 (10) 7.4 (46) 10.5 (65) 14.7 (91) | Umpires: Simon Meredith, Brett Rosebury, Matt Stevic Norm Smith Medal: Ryan O'Keefe Television broadcast: Seven Network, Fox Footy (Replay) National anthem: Marina Prior | Umpires: Simon Meredith, Brett Rosebury, Matt Stevic Norm Smith Medal: Ryan O'Keefe Television broadcast: Seven Network, Fox Footy (Replay) National anthem: Marina Prior |

## Awards

* The Norm Smith Medal was awarded to Ryan O'Keefe of Sydney, who got 28 disposals.
* The Brownlow Medal was originally awarded to Jobe Watson of Essendon, who received 30 votes. On 11 November 2016, Watson relinquished the medal in the wake of the Essendon supplements saga. It was subsequently re-awarded jointly to Sam Mitchell of Hawthorn and Trent Cotchin of Richmond, who received 26 votes each, on 15 November 2016.
* The AFL Rising Star was awarded to Daniel Talia of Adelaide, who received 43 votes.
* The Coleman Medal was awarded to Jack Riewoldt of Richmond, who kicked 65 goals during the home and away season.
* The McClelland Trophy was awarded to Hawthorn.
* The Wooden Spoon was "awarded" to Greater Western Sydney.
* The AFL Players Association awards were as follows:
** The Leigh Matthews Trophy was awarded to Gary Ablett of Gold Coast, for being the Most Valuable Player throughout the premiership season.
** The Robert Rose Award went to Joel Selwood of Geelong and Beau Waters of West Coast, for being the Most Courageous Players throughout the premiership season.
** The Best Captain award went to Jobe Watson of Essendon.
** The Best First-Year Player award was won by Jeremy Cameron of Greater Western Sydney.
* The AFL Coaches Association Awards were as follows:
** The Player of the Year Award was given to Trent Cotchin of Richmond, who received 107 votes.
** The Allan Jeans Senior Coach of the Year Award was given to John Longmire of Sydney.
** The Assistant Coach of the Year Award was given to Peter Sumich of Fremantle.
** The Best Young Player Award was given to Dyson Heppell of Essendon.
* The inaugural Jim Stynes Community Leadership Award was awarded to Daniel Jackson of Richmond.

### Coleman Medal

* Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the player led the Coleman that round.
* Underlined numbers indicates the player did not play that round.
| | Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | Total |
| 1 | Jack Riewoldt | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 65 |
| 2 | Tom Hawkins | 4 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 62 |
| 2 | Matthew Pavlich | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 62 |
| 4 | Lance Franklin | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 59 |
| 5 | Drew Petrie | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 57 |
| 6 | Stephen Milne | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 56 |
| 7 | Taylor Walker | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 53 |
| 8 | Travis Cloke | 2 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 50 |
| 9 | Eddie Betts | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 48 |
| 10 | Jonathan Brown | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 47 |

### Best and fairest

| Club | Award name | Player |
| Adelaide | Malcolm Blight Medal | Scott Thompson |
| Brisbane Lions | Merrett–Murray Medal | Joel Patfull |
| Carlton | John Nicholls Medal | Heath Scotland |
| Collingwood | Copeland Trophy | Dayne Beams |
| Essendon | Crichton Medal | Jobe Watson |
| Fremantle | Doig Medal | Ryan Crowley |
| Geelong | Carji Greeves Medal | Tom Hawkins |
| Gold Coast | Club Champion | Gary Ablett, Jr. |
| Greater Western Sydney | Kevin Sheedy Medal | Callan Ward |
| Hawthorn | Peter Crimmins Medal | Sam Mitchell |
| Melbourne | Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Medal | Nathan Jones |
| North Melbourne | Syd Barker Medal | Andrew Swallow |
| Port Adelaide | John Cahill Medal | Kane Cornes |
| Richmond | Jack Dyer Medal | Trent Cotchin |
| St Kilda | Trevor Barker Award | Lenny Hayes |
| Sydney | Bob Skilton Medal | Josh Kennedy |
| West Coast | Club Champion Award | Scott Selwood |
| Western Bulldogs | Charles Sutton Medal | Matthew Boyd |

### Player milestones

| Name | Club | Milestone | Round |
| Shaun Burgoyne | Hawthorn | 200 AFL games | Round 3 |
| Dustin Fletcher | Essendon | 350 AFL games | Round 3 |
| Jonathan Brown | Brisbane Lions | 500 AFL goals | Round 4 |
| Simon Black | Brisbane Lions | 300 AFL games | Round 5 |
| Stephen Milne | St Kilda | 500 AFL goals | Round 5 |
| Matthew Pavlich | Fremantle | 500 AFL goals | Round 7 |
| Chris Newman | Richmond | 200 AFL games | Round 8 |
| Lenny Hayes | St Kilda | 250 AFL games | Round 9 |
| Martin Mattner | Sydney | 200 AFL games | Round 9 |
| Ryan Hargrave | Western Bulldogs | 200 AFL games | Round 10 |
| David Wojcinski | Geelong | 200 AFL games | Round 11 |
| Nick Riewoldt | St Kilda | 500 AFL goals | Round 11 |
| Quinten Lynch | West Coast | 200 AFL games | Round 13 |
| Luke McPharlin | Fremantle | 200 AFL games | Round 13 |
| Daniel Kerr | West Coast | 200 AFL games | Round 15 |
| Stephen Milne | St Kilda | 250 AFL games | Round 15 |
| Chad Cornes | Greater Western Sydney | 250 AFL games | Round 15 |
| Lance Franklin | Hawthorn | 500 AFL goals | Round 15 |
| Kevin Sheedy | Greater Western Sydney | 900 VFL/AFL games as player or coach | Round 15 |
| Matthew Boyd | Western Bulldogs | 200 AFL games | Round 16 |
| Brendon Goddard | St Kilda | 200 AFL games | Round 18 |
| Joel Corey | Geelong | 250 AFL games | Round 18 |
| Brad Green | Melbourne | 250 AFL games | Round 18 |
| Ryan O'Keefe | Sydney | 250 AFL games | Round 19 |
| Luke Hodge | Hawthorn | 200 AFL games | Round 20 |
| Domenic Cassisi | Port Adelaide | 200 AFL games | Round 20 |
| Luke Power | Greater Western Sydney | 300 AFL games | Round 21 |
| Dean Cox | West Coast | 250 AFL games | Elimination finals |
| Jude Bolton | Sydney | 300 AFL games | Preliminary finals |

## Club leadership

| Club | Coach | Captain(s) | Vice-captain(s) | Leadership group |
| Adelaide | Brenton Sanderson | Nathan van Berlo | Scott Thompson | Patrick Dangerfield, Rory Sloane, Ben Rutten |
| Brisbane Lions | Michael Voss | Jonathan Brown | Daniel Merrett, Tom Rockliff, Jed Adcock, Josh Drummond | |
| Carlton | Brett Ratten | Chris Judd | | Andrew Carrazzo, Bryce Gibbs, Michael Jamison, Marc Murphy, Jordan Russell, Kade Simpson, Jarrad Waite |
| Collingwood | Nathan Buckley | Nick Maxwell | Scott Pendlebury | Luke Ball, Travis Cloke, Harry O'Brien, Heath Shaw, Dale Thomas |
| Essendon | James Hird | Jobe Watson | | Mark McVeigh (vc), Heath Hocking, Michael Hurley, Brent Stanton, David Zaharakis |
| Fremantle | Ross Lyon | Matthew Pavlich | | Hayden Ballantyne, Matt de Boer, David Mundy, Luke McPharlin, Aaron Sandilands |
| Gold Coast | Guy McKenna | Gary Ablett | Nathan Bock | Karmichael Hunt, Andrew McQualter, Michael Rischitelli, Zac Smith, David Swallow |
| Greater Western Sydney | Kevin Sheedy | Phil Davis, Luke Power, Callan Ward | | Dean Brogan, Chad Cornes, Setanta Ó hAilpín, Rhys Palmer, Tom Scully |
| Geelong | Chris Scott | Joel Selwood | Jimmy Bartel | Joel Corey, Corey Enright, Steve Johnson, James Kelly, Harry Taylor |
| Hawthorn | Alastair Clarkson | Luke Hodge | Jordan Lewis, Jarryd Roughead | Lance Franklin, Sam Mitchell |
| Melbourne | Mark Neeld | Jack Grimes, Jack Trengove | | Clint Bartram, Mitch Clark, James Frawley, Colin Garland, Mark Jamar, Nathan Jones |
| North Melbourne | Brad Scott | Andrew Swallow | Drew Petrie, Jack Ziebell | Brent Harvey, Daniel Wells |
| Port Adelaide | Matthew Primus (Rds 1–19); Garry Hocking (Rds 19–23) | Domenic Cassisi | | Travis Boak, Hamish Hartlett, Jay Schulz, Jackson Trengove |
| Richmond | Damien Hardwick | Chris Newman | Trent Cotchin | Brett Deledio, Daniel Jackson, Jack Riewoldt |
| St Kilda | Scott Watters | Nick Riewoldt | | Nick Dal Santo, Sam Fisher, Brendon Goddard, James Gwilt, Ben McEvoy, Leigh Montagna, Adam Schneider |
| Sydney | John Longmire | Adam Goodes, Jarrad McVeigh | | Jude Bolton, Kieren Jack, Jarred Moore, Ryan O'Keefe, Ted Richards, Rhyce Shaw, Nick Smith |
| West Coast | John Worsfold | Darren Glass | Beau Waters | Dean Cox, Andrew Embley, Shannon Hurn, Josh Kennedy, Mark LeCras, Matt Priddis, Matt Rosa, Adam Selwood, Scott Selwood |
| Western Bulldogs | Brendan McCartney | Matthew Boyd | | Daniel Cross, Daniel Giansiracusa, Robert Murphy, Dale Morris |

## Club membership

2012 AFL membership figures :
| Club | Members | Change from 2011 | % change from 2011 |
| Adelaide | 45,105 | 1,415 | 3.04% |
| Brisbane Lions | 20,762 | 1,576 | 7.06% |
| Carlton | 45,800 | 2,009 | 4.59% |
| Collingwood | 72,688 | 892 | 1.24% |
| Essendon | 47,708 | 2,567 | 5.11% |
| Fremantle | 42,918 | 1,057 | 2.40% |
| Geelong | 40,205 | 779 | 1.98% |
| Gold Coast | 11,204 | 2,855 | 20.31% |
| Greater Western Sydney | 10,241 | — | — |
| Hawthorn | 60,841 | 4,488 | 7.96% |
| Melbourne | 35,459 | 1,478 | 4.00% |
| North Melbourne | 33,423 | 3,509 | 11.73% |
| Port Adelaide | 35,543 | 1,081 | 2.95% |
| Richmond | 53,027 | 5,372 | 11.27% |
| St Kilda | 35,440 | 3,836 | 9.77% |
| Sydney | 29,873 | 2,767 | 9.78% |
| West Coast | 57,377 | 3,337 | 6.18% |
| Western Bulldogs | 30,007 | 2,019 | 6.30% |
| Total | 707,621 | 7,937 | 1.13% |

## Coach changes

| Coach | Club | Date | Notes | Caretaker | New coach |
| Matthew Primus | Port Adelaide | 6 August 2012 | Sacked following the round 19 loss to Greater Western Sydney. | Garry Hocking | Ken Hinkley |
| Brett Ratten | Carlton | 30 August 2012 | Sacked following Carlton's elimination from finals contention in round 22, effective at the end of the season. | N/A | Mick Malthouse |