‘We have explored every avenue’: AFL calls off grand final parade for second year

For the second straight year there will be no parade in the lead-up to the AFL grand final due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The grand finalists have traditionally driven through the streets of Melbourne with large crowds looking on, but coronavirus has put paid to those plans once.

The AFL made the announcement with two weeks left in the home-and-away season, before four weeks of finals footy.

Traditional AFL grand final host city Melbourne is currently locked down and 2020 host Brisbane has only just come out of lockdown.

The AFL said the grand final parade, and other events during the “Footy Festival” that happens around the season decider, had been called off “due to the ongoing certainty” caused by coronavirus.

“We are really saddened that we are unable to deliver footy fans two of our annual lead-up events to the grand final,” the AFL’s customer and commercial general manager, Kylie Rogers, said.

“Our priority throughout the last 18 months has always been the health and wellbeing of the community and [that] remains our number one priority.

“On behalf of the AFL, I would like to thank the Victorian state government, the City of Melbourne, our corporate partners, clubs and most importantly our incredible members and footy fans for their understanding.”

In 2020, Queensland hosted what the AFL called a Footy Festival, although the parade was not held.

Ms Rogers did, however, say the AFL was looking forward to staging the parade in Melbourne in 2022.

“We will continue to adjust our thinking as required and once again provide fans an iconic part of grand final week in Melbourne when it is safe to do so,” she said.

“Our team at the AFL continues to work extremely hard on completing the home-and-away season and delivering fans an epic and memorable month of AFL finals.”

The AFL’s contract to play the grand final at the MCG was last year extended by one year to 2058 after it was decided the Gabba was chosen to host the 2020 clash between Richmond and Geelong.

Source: AFL NEWS ABC