The Australian Football League will stage an exhibition match in London for the first time in six years when the Western Bulldogs meet Port Adelaide in November.
The Aussie Rules game, to be played at The Oval on November 3, will be the first time London has seen AFL football since 2006.
“A large Australian expatriate community in England, primarily centred in London, retains strong links to their clubs at home,” said AFL general manager of national and international development Andrew Dillon
Port Adelaide chief executive Keith Thomas said the club would also use the game as a chance to visit leading international sporting organisations, including a camp at the Australian Sport Commission European Training Centre in Italy.
AFL Europe hosts an annual competition for its affiliated leagues and it is expected the best two countries will play a curtain raiser before the Bulldogs-Port Adelaide match.
The AFL began playing matches internationally in the 1980s.
Games have been staged in New Zealand, the USA, South Africa, and Canada, and in Shanghai in 2010 as part of the World Expo.
