The Wiggles kick off new Grand Final Friday tradition at AFL Grand Final Parade via Seeker Agency

Seeker Agency recently partnered with the AFL to evolve the 2026 Toyota AFL Grand Final Parade into a bigger fan experience, with The Wiggles opening proceedings at Melbourne Park before leading the Parade in their Wiggles-branded Toyota HiLux Big Red Utes.

The new opening performance formed part of the AFL’s ambition to continue evolving the Parade into a bigger Grand Final Friday experience for families, visitors and football fans across all 18 clubs.

With Melbourne Park marking the start of the route, the AFL saw an opportunity to create a major opening moment that would give fans a reason to arrive early and set the energy for the entire Parade.

Taking cues from the scale and theatre of some of the world’s most recognisable parades, the performance was designed to land both live and on broadcast, creating a clear moment that signalled the official start of the Parade.

The Wiggles became the first act to fill that role, with Anthony and Lucia, Simon and Caterina, Tsehay and Evie, Lachy and John joined by Dorothy the Dinosaur, Wags the Dog, Captain Feathersword and the Tree of Wisdom for a high-energy performance before joining the procession.

The AFL hopes the opening performance will become a new Grand Final Friday tradition, giving fans another reason to make Melbourne Park part of their day and creating anticipation around who will open the Parade each year.

Across Melbourne Park and Birrarung Marr, the broader experience was also expanded with live entertainment, food, big screens, AFL Play activations and dedicated Club Precincts, creating more reasons for fans to arrive early and stay connected to the action throughout the morning.

Seeker Agency partnered with the AFL on the experience strategy and delivery, helping bring the AFL’s ambition to life across the opening performance, precincts, entertainment and fan engagement along the route.

Says Peta Webster, General Manager Commercial, AFL: “The Toyota AFL Grand Final Parade is one of the great traditions of Grand Final week and we saw an opportunity to keep building on what that experience could be for fans. We wanted Grand Final Friday to feel like a celebration for the whole football community, not only supporters of the two teams playing the next day.

“Music has become such an important part of major sporting events and The Wiggles gave us a uniquely Australian way to kick off the day. We’d love to see the opening performance become part of the tradition, with fans looking forward to who will open the Parade each year.”

Says Brad Hampel, Founder and CEO, Seeker Group: “The AFL had a clear ambition to keep raising the bar for fans and create an experience that starts well before the motorcade reaches them. Our role was to help bring that ambition to life across the full fan journey, from the opening performance through to the precincts, screens and entertainment along the route. The aim was to create something people didn’t just watch, but actively wanted to be part of.”

The Parade travelled from John Cain Arena through Melbourne Park and Birrarung Marr, across William Barak Bridge and into Yarra Park before finishing at Footy Fest, with representatives from across the AFL community taking part in the motorcade.

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