{"id":130490,"date":"2020-03-18T16:16:52","date_gmt":"2020-03-18T23:16:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=130490"},"modified":"2020-03-18T16:44:46","modified_gmt":"2020-03-18T23:44:46","slug":"aussie-rules-kicks-off-2020-season-thurs-richmond-hosts-carlton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/aussie-rules-kicks-off-2020-season-thurs-richmond-hosts-carlton\/","title":{"rendered":"Aussie Rules Football Kicks Off 2020 Season Thursday as Defending Champs Richmond Hosts Carlton (VIDEO)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Starting on Thursday, sports fans seeking live action instead of a classic replay are in luck. The only catch is, you\u2019ll need to stay up late \u2013 or get up early \u2013 to watch.<\/p>\n

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The Richmond Tigers begin the defense of their Australian Rules Football title on Thursday. (Image: Richmond Football Club\/AFL)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Australian Rules Football (AFL) kicks off its season Thursday when the defending champion Richmond Tigers host the Carlton Blues at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The match will air in the US on FS2, starting at 4 a.m. ET.<\/p>\n

The AFL\u2019s starting the season is a bit of a controversy, as most major professional sporting leagues elsewhere around the world chose to suspend activities because of the coronavirus pandemic. Concerns were heightened in Australia, where earlier this week, the government put into place measures that restrict crowd sizes in an effort to contain the outbreak.<\/p>\n

Gillon McLachlan, the league\u2019s chief executive, said AFL officials came to the decision after consulting with the teams, the country\u2019s chief medical officer, and top government authorities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe also embark on this journey with clear instruction from the government that all industry and all parts of society need to keep moving forward, and we simply cannot stand still,” McLachlan said.<\/p>\n

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Still, league officials implemented some proactive measures for this season. For starters, the games will go on without fans in the stands to abide by the government’s crowd restrictions. Quarters will last just 16 minutes, as opposed to their usual 20. The regular season, if played in its entirety, will consist of 17 games, meaning everyone would play each other just once.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

While some of us who grew up on ESPN\u2019s overnight programming in the 1980s may remember the rules for the fast-paced game, the video below from the AFL will give you a quick primer.<\/p>\n