The 2024 Adelaide Football Club season was the club's 34th season of senior competition in the Australian Football League (AFL).

It was the Crows' second season captained by Jordan Dawson and their fifth year coached by Matthew Nicks. The senior men's season, held between March 16 and August 24, finished with only 8 wins from 23 matches, with the team failing to qualify for finals. The women's side played their ninth season in the AFLW in 2024, for the first time under co-captains Sarah Allan and Ebony Marinoff. The Crows won 8 of their 11 matches, but lost a preliminary final for the third consecutive year. The reserves side played their tenth season in the SANFL in 2024, and their first captained by Jack Madgen. After 8 wins, the SANFL side narrowly missed out on finals only a year after consecutive preliminary finals exits.

Overview +Adelaide's 2024 season overviewLeagueCaptainCoachHome groundW-D-LLadderFinalsBest and fairestLeading goalkickerAFLJordan DawsonMatthew NicksAdelaide Oval8-1-1415thDNQJordan Dawson, Ben KeaysDarcy Fogarty (41)AFLWSarah Allan, Ebony MarinoffMatthew ClarkeNorwood Oval, Unley Oval8-0-34thPreliminary finalsEbony MarinoffCaitlin Gould (20)SANFLJack MadgenMichael Godden8-0-106thDNQKieran StrachanLachlan Gollant (29)

Kits Manufacturer: O'Neills Sponsors: Toyota, Hungry Jack's, Crypto.com

Men's squad <noinclude>

Coaching staff RoleNameNotesRef.Head coachMatthew NicksAssistant coachesScott Burns (forwards)Senior assistantNathan Van Berlo (midfielders)Jack Hombsch (defence)Sam Baulderstone (rucks)Development coachesMarco Bello Head of developmentMichael GoddenCurrent head coach of Adelaide's SANFL team.Andrew McPhersonChelsea RandallCurrent player with Adelaide's women's team.Matthew WrightAcademy development

Squad changes The following off-season changes were made to the squad prior to the 2024 season.

Out No.NamePositionNew ClubviaRef. 3Key defender / utilitySt Kilda City (SFNL)Retirement11WingmanRetirement39Key defenderRestricted free agent23Small forwardTrade21MidfielderBox Hill (VFL)Delisted6Midfielder (VFL)Delisted36DefenderDelisted42Small forwardNorth Adelaide (SANFL)Delisted38Key defenderDelisted17Half-back / wingmanDelisted

In No.NamePositionPrevious clubviaRef.21Key forward / utilityGold CoastTrade6Key defender / utilityClaremontNo. 8, 2023 national draft,11MidfielderSandringham DragonsNo. 21, 2023 national draft22Medium defenderMurray BushrangersNo. 27, 2023 national draft17Half-back / wingmanNo. 9, 2024 rookie draft38Key defenderNo. 20, 2024 rookie draft36Medium defenderMonaghan GAACategory B rookie signing

Men's AFL season

Pre-season matches +Adelaide's 2024 practice match and AFL Community Series fixturesDate and local timeOpponentScoresVenueHomeAwayResultFriday, 23 February (5:00 pm) 14.9 (93) 14.9 (93)Alberton OvalSaturday, 2 March (2:40 pm) 17.15 (117) 7.8 (50)Richmond Oval

Regular season +Adelaide's 2024 AFL season fixtureRoundDate and local timeOpponentHomeAwayResultVenueAttendanceLadder positionScores 0Bye1Saturday, 16 March () 8.12 (60) 8.6 (54) Carrara Stadium (A) 11,466 10th 2Friday, 22 March () 11.11 (77) 14.12 (96) Adelaide Oval (H) 44,758 13th 3Friday, 29 March () 9.15 (69) 4.10 (34) Perth Stadium (A) 51,037 15th Thursday, 4 April () 8.15 (63) 10.18 (78) Adelaide Oval (N) 48,020 15th 5Saturday, 13 April () 14.14 (98) 16.4 (100) Docklands Stadium (A) 46,284 14th 6Friday, 19 April () 11.9 (75) 10.18 (78) Adelaide Oval (H) 46,700 15th 7Saturday, 27 April () 12.9 (81) 20.18 (138) Bellerive Oval (A) 4,727 12th 8Thursday, 2 May () 12.6 (78) 5.18 (48) Adelaide Oval (H) 52,106 12th 9Sunday, 12 May () 13.12 (90) 13.12 (90) 40,278 12th 10Saturday, 18 May () 12.6 (78) 11.8 (74) Melbourne Cricket Ground (A) 63,935 13th 11Sunday, 26 May () 21.11 (137) 5.8 (38) Adelaide Oval (H) 40,965 12th 12Saturday, 1 Jun () 16.11 (106) 12.8 (80) Melbourne Cricket Ground (A) 36,086 14th 13Thursday, 6 June () 10.11 (71) 12.7 (79) Adelaide Oval (H) 37,342 15th 14Saturday, 15 June () 10.7 (67) 16.13 (109) 41,535 15th 15Bye 15th Bye 16Saturday, 29 June () 13.16 (94) 12.6 (78) Adelaide Oval (H) 29,802 14th 17Sunday, 7 July () 14.13 (97) 13.8 (86) The Gabba (A) 30,183 15th 18Saturday, 13 July () 10.11 (71) 5.9 (39) Adelaide Oval (H) 34,549 14th 19Friday, 19 July () 17.11 (113) 17.13 (115) Docklands Stadium (A) 36,020 14th 20Sunday, 28 July () 8.10 (58) 19.10 (124) Adelaide Oval (H) 41,823 15th 21Saturday, 3 August ()13.12 (90)13.7 (85)Kardinia Park (A)28,00015th 22Sunday, 11 August () 17.9 (111) 9.18 (72) Adelaide Oval (H) 39,177 15th 23Saturday, 17 August () 11.14 (80) 8.10 (58) Adelaide Oval (A) 52,459 15th 24Saturday, 24 August () 18.13 (121) 13.12 (90) Sydney Cricket Ground (A) 36,491 15th

Round 1 Adelaide lost their first game of the 2024 AFL season to by 6 points in wet weather conditions. Gold Coast led for the entire match and Adelaide looked very poor, until a late fourth-quarter comeback spearheaded by Josh Rachele and former Sun Izak Rankine gave the Crows a glimpse of hope. Chris Burgess played his first game for the club after being traded from Gold Coast to Adelaide in the 2023 trade period.

Round 2 Round 2 marked Adelaide's first game scheduled on a Friday in almost two years. Adelaide came into this game as favourites, despite losing their opening game and winning theirs. However, Adelaide lost by 19 points with another late comeback falling short due to wasted chances in front of goal.

Round 3 This was Adelaide's first time playing against Fremantle in Perth since 2019. Competitive for most of the game, Adelaide were overrun in the final quarter to lose by 35 points.

Round 4 For the second consecutive year, Adelaide hosted the opening game of Gather Round, this time hosting . The final margin of 15 points was flattering to the Crows, who were comprehensively defeated across the ground thanks to former Crow Simon Goodwin's coaching. Christian Petracca was the best player on the ground, while young Jake Soligo was impressive for Adelaide.

Round 5 Adelaide won their first game of the season in round 5, largely credited to Matthew Nicks and the variety in his midfield, rotating players such as Jordan Dawson and Rory Laird out and Jake Soligo and Izak Rankine in. Lachlan Gollant was substituted off for the fourth quarter and replaced by Sam Berry, who kicked the winning goal with just over a minute of regulation time remaining. This was Adelaide's first win in Melbourne since 2021.

Round 6 For the third time in less than a year, a late non-decision from the umpires cost Adelaide a chance at winning the game (the first against , and the second most famously against ). The morning following the game, the AFL conceded that a free kick should have been awarded to Taylor Walker for a tackle laid on Sam Draper, giving Walker a chance to kick a goal after the siren and win the game. Walker acknowledged that the umpiring decision was frustrating, but also concedes that the Crows' performance was "unacceptable".

Round 7

Round 8 Draftee Dan Curtin made his long-awaited AFL debut, while Smith and Butts returned from injury. Prior to the game, the all-time Showdown record was tied at 27 apiece. The game commemorated Rory Sloane, who had announced his retirement earlier in the week. Adelaide's home attendance of 52,106 was their biggest home attendance since 2016.

Round 9 The last three minutes were played with scores level, and the game ended in a draw — the second of the 2024 AFL season. It was Adelaide's first draw since 2017 (which was against at the MCG), their first at home, and the third in their history. It was Brisbane's first since 2009.

Round 10 Izak Rankine, who designed the Indigenous guernsey worn, starred with 30 disposals and a late goal of the year contender dribbled from the boundary, but a Jordan De Goey set shot was the winning score for . With less than 30 seconds left, Rankine kicked the ball inside the forward 50, but was pinged for running too far. Controversy stirred as fans began to think it was the fourth game-costing decision in less than a year, but Fox Footy measured that Rankine did indeed run farther than his allocated 15 meters.

Round 11 Kuwarna dominated this match, and despite the effort and talent of number-one draft pick Harley Reid, Kuwarna dominated until the final siren, falling short of a 100-point margin by mere seconds.

Round 12 kicked the first four goals of the game, and the Crows were not able to regain a lead, extending their winless streak at the MCG (starting in 2017 and spanning nine games) until at least 2025. Matthew Nicks described the loss as "as bad as we've played all year".

Round 13 Debutant Billy Dowling, James Borlase, and Strachan all kicked their first AFL goals, but five goals in a row for the 17th-seeded Richmond in the third quarter was too much to overcome. The performance resulted in heavy scrutiny towards Matthew Nicks and the entire club. Leigh Montagna agreed with coach Nicks' comments that the Crow's performance was "clearly lacking confident after a disappointing showing."

Round 14 Joel Amartey of the Swans, whose previous best goal tally was four, kicked four in the second quarter to keep the Swans in the contest going into half time. He kicked another four in the third quarter, effectively leaving Adelaide behind in the contest. Amartey finished with a career-best nine goals, the most any player had kicked in a game up to that point in the season.

Round 15 Bye

Round 16 Following the mid-season bye, coach Nicks was confident for the clash against bogey-team , who the Crows had only beaten once up to this point of Nicks' four-year tenure. When defender Chayce Jones suffered an injury at training the day before the game, a late change was made to include Zac Taylor in the game day squad for his debut. He was the substitute, and came on for Brayden Cook at three-quarter-time.

Round 17 An incident involving Izak Rankine and Brandon Starcevich of the in the first quarter resulted in a concussion to Starcevich and a four-match ban to Rankine. Adelaide fell short despite a late charge, resulting in another close finish between the two clubs.

Round 18 Adelaide stormed home on a rainy Adelaide night over , who scored just one goal in the second half. Riley Thilthorpe, in his first game since being injured pre-season, kicked two final-quarter goals to seal the game.

Round 19 Zac Taylor kicked his first AFL goal as one of eight consecutive second-quarter goals for Adelaide. Essendon responded with the next five goals in a high-scoring affair. Ben Keays, who kicked a career-best five goals, assisted Josh Rachele in kicking a last-minute goal to lead by four points. Adelaide won by two points in an upset victory to keep their slim hopes for finals qualification alive.

Round 20

Round 21

Round 22

Round 23

Round 24

Ladder

Men's summary Awards and Milestones

AFL Awards 2024 22under22 team – Josh Rachele

Jim Stynes Community Leadership Award – Reilly O'Brien

AFL Award nominations

AFLPA MVP Nominees – Jordan Dawson, Ben Keays, Izak Rankine AFLPA Best First-Year Player Nominee – Dan Curtin AFLPA Best Captain Nominee – Jordan Dawson AFLPA Most Courageous Player Nominee – Max Michalanney

2024 AFL Rising Star Nomination – Luke Nankervis (Round 13)

2024 22under22 44 man squad – Max Michalanney 2024 22under22 44 man squad – Jake Soligo

Milestones

Debuts Round 1: Chris Burgess (club debut) Round 8: Daniel Curtin (AFL debut) Round 13: Billy Dowling (AFL debut) Round 16: Zac Taylor (AFL debut) Round 18: Hugh Bond (AFL debut)

Games Round 2: Lachlan Murphy (100 games) Round 3: Brodie Smith (250 games) Round 5: Jordan Dawson (50 club games) Round 7: Mitch Hinge (50 career games) Round 8: Matt Crouch (150 games) Round 13: Jake Soligo (50 games) Round 17: Sam Berry (50 games) Round 17: Josh Rachele (50 games) Round 18: Nick Murray (50 games) Round 18: Ben Keays (100 club games) Round 21: Riley Thilthorpe (50 games)