Celebrations, laughter and loud music – the fifth instalment of AFLW Pride Round is set to be the best version yet.

The rainbow flag will be out in force around the country this week as the AFLW celebrates the competition's annual Pride Round.  

Held from October 8-13, week seven marks the fifth time the League will hold a dedicated round that celebrates and supports diversity and inclusion of LGBTQIA+ communities in Australian Football, acknowledging their contributions to the strength and growing success of the League.

As part of this year's Pride Round, a rainbow will feature on the Sherrin for the second consecutive year, while all 18 clubs will wear specially designed Pride guernseys.

AFLW field and boundary umpires will wear rainbow-coloured sweatbands and goal umpires will swap their traditional white flags for the Pride flag.

AFL Executive General Manager Inclusion and Social Policy Tanya Hosch said Pride Round is a powerful vehicle for inclusion.

"AFLW Pride Round is a time for everyone. Players, fans, allies, to come together and embrace diversity that strengthens our game," she said.

"The AFL knows that we still have a lot more work to do to be as fully inclusive as possible. We know that there's still a lot of people from the LGBTQIA+ communities who don't feel welcomed at sport or in our code. We want to change that; we must change that.

"The AFLW community has been breaking boundaries for many years and I'd like to acknowledge the leadership of past and present players in sharing their stories, their personal stories and journeys of that themselves and their families and their partners and the engagement of AFLW clubs to make this possible and to make this round a really complete celebration.

"We know that research tells us that an alarming 80 per cent of participants in Australian sport have witnessed or experienced homophobia. A recent study also found that young people in the LGBTQIA+ community are only half as likely to be part of a sporting club, as young people who are not a part of that community.

"When you think about how important sport is, what it contributes to social cohesion and general wellness, it's a terrible thing that there’s so many young people who are feeling that they can’t be a part of a sporting club or community."

AFLW general manager Emma Moore said the competition was looking to continue to be a leader in the inclusion space throughout the sporting industry.

"Women's football has been breaking barriers for many years and we're proud to build on the work of the many trailblazers who have come before us," Moore said.

"Recognising people as they are, increasing that visibility and celebrating people’s heart in our game and in our community, I think sends a really important message. It's something that we know makes a difference."

Hosch was full of pride for the work the competition continues to do, which is led by the AFLW playing group.

"We say in W all the time, you can't be what you can’t see," she said.

"Setting up this platform for one round is the least that we can do and hopefully it's the start of a lot more work that we can build on.

"I'm extremely proud. I feel as though the players have really led the way, the clubs have really supported the players to lead the way, so what we're doing is really creating a platform for that to be fully celebrated."

Western Bulldogs jet Issy Grant said she was proud of her club for "being brave" and being right at the forefront of the push towards inclusion.

"I think something that we value not just as a club but as a playing group is bravery and being one of the first clubs to put their hand up and support something like that, that's brave," Grant said.

Hosch believes a men's version of Pride Round might be included some time in the future.

"I wouldn't rule it out," she said.

"We’re often criticised for having too many rounds … it can feel quite crowded. But I definitely wouldn't rule it out and I wouldn't be surprised if one day we do have a round."

Pride Round kicks off on Tuesday night when St Kilda hosts Greater Western Sydney at Kinetic Stadium at 7.15pm AEDT.