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Overseas AFL players flock to Vic

More than 900 Aussie rules football players from across the world have converged on Melbourne for the 2014 AFL International Cup.

The 15-day carnival includes 18 men's and seven women's teams from 18 different countries.

"I'm really pleased that we're taking this great game, this great indigenous Australian game, to the world," Victorian Premier Denis Napthine told a crowd at Federation Square gathered for the cup's launch on Saturday.

"With over 100,000 participants across the world in 30 countries, and with this 2014 International AFL Cup, we're seeing the growth of AFL football throughout the world."

Participating countries comprise Canada, China, Fiji, Finland, France, Indonesia, Ireland, Great Britain, India, Japan, Nauru, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, South Africa, Sweden, Tonga and the USA.

Teams are made up of amateur players who are nationals of their representative country, and expatriate Australians do not qualify.

The cup will be decided over 62 matches to be played in both Melbourne and regional Victoria.

The men's grand final will be the curtain-raiser for an AFL match between Hawthorn and Geelong on August 23 at the MCG, while the women's final will be played at the nearby Punt Road Oval.