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The Australian Football League (AFL) grand final between Brisbane and Fremantle drew an average audience of 4.52 million viewers, surpassing the National Rugby League (NRL) grand final between the Roosters and Newcastle, which had an average of 4.29 million viewers. The NRL game was still the second-highest rated in history for the league, behind last year’s match with 4.46 million viewers. Additionally, the article mentions that the NRL has announced it remains Australia's most-watched sporting code based on cumulative season audience figures, despite the AFL grand final ratings victory.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
The AFL claimed victory in TV ratings for the most-watched grand final of the season after drawing an average audience of 4.52 million viewers during Brisbane's win over Fremantle on September 26 at the MCG. This surpassed the NRL’s recent grand final between the Roosters and Newcastle, which had an average of 4.29 million viewers despite being a thrilling match that went down to the final play. The NRL game was still the second-highest-rated in league history after last year's Broncos-Storm clash with 4.46 million viewers. This year’s NRL grand final buildup was overshadowed by concerns over pre-game entertainment, which eventually featured a tribute to retiring Rabbitohs star Jai Arrow and former Wallaby Nathan Charles, both diagnosed with motor neurone disease earlier this year.
Written for “AFL Grand Final Ratings” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
The AFL has claimed the mantle as this season’s most-watched sporting grand final after trumping Sunday’s NRL decider by about 230,000 viewers.
asserted
AFL → claim → viewers
The Roosters’ thrilling 19-18 defeat of Newcastle drew an average audience of 4.29 million for broadcasters Nine (publishers of this masthead), according to Voz viewership figures released on Monday by TV ratings agency OzTAM.
uncertain
defeat → draw → OzTAM
With Newcastle’s fairytale run to their first grand final in 25 years and the game going down to the final play, the audience figures were the second highest in NRL history, behind only last year’s record average of 4.46 million for the Broncos-Storm thriller.
asserted
figures → go → thriller
But this year’s all-NSW decider still fell short of the AFL’s cross-country grand final between Brisbane and Fremantle on September 26 at the MCG.
asserted
decider → fall → MCG
That iconic clash also made history with a record-breaking 4.52 million average audience.
asserted
clash → make → audience
This year’s NRL grand final build-up was dominated by consternation around the game’s pre-game entertainment, which was ultimately filled by a musical tribute to retiring Rabbitohs star Jai Arrow and former Wallaby Nathan Charles, who were both diagnosed with motor neurone disease earlier this year.
asserted
who → dominate → disease
Australian artists Amy Shark, The Screaming Jets’ Dave Gleeson and Grinspoon’s Phil Jamieson performed a medley of songs before kick-off in the grand final.
asserted
artists → perform → final
OzTAM figures indicated an average of 2.25 million viewers tuned in for the pre-game show, which fell in the prime Sunday evening time slot.
asserted
which → indicate → slot
There were rave reviews for Kylie Minogue’s performance at the AFL decider, but it drew an average of 1.86 million viewers for the Saturday afternoon slot.
asserted
it → be → slot
The strong TV audience for this year’s grand final came as the NRL on Monday proclaimed on social media that “for the sixth consecutive year, the NRL was Australia’s #1 most-watched sporting code”, citing cumulative average audience figures across the NRL season.
asserted
NRL → come → season
In July, the NRL sealed a record $5.3 billion, seven-year media rights deal with broadcasters, including Nine Entertainment, Foxtel and New Zealand TV network Sky, until 2034.
asserted
NRL → seal → 2034
With one last magic moment, DCE shows he’ll be a Hull of a big loss for the NRL
- NRL grand final player ratings: Who shone brightest on league’s biggest day
- Despite heartbreaking result, Knights remain the people’s choice
asserted
Knights → show → result
- ‘It’s been a sin bin all year’: The Ponga shot on Radley that left Roosters furious
asserted
that → leave → Roosters
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