Anzac Day 2026 – The Anzac Spirit Lives Here
MEDIA RELEASE
The Returned & Services League of Australia (RSL) is calling on all Australians to come together this Anzac Day to honour the service and sacrifice of past and present veterans, and to recognise that the Anzac Spirit continues to shape the nation today.
This Anzac Day, Saturday, 25 April 2026, marks 111 years since Australian and New Zealand soldiers landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula. The RSL is inviting every Australian to find their own way to honour that legacy, and to carry the Anzac Spirit forward.
A Tradition That Belongs to Us All
Anzac Day is more than a commemoration of service and sacrifice. It’s an opportunity to stand united and to reflect on what truly matters.
RSL Australia National President, Peter Tinley AM said: “the Anzac Spirit doesn’t just live in history. It lives in the choices we make today, the way we treat each other, and the unity we show when we come together.
“Each Anzac Day, we honour not only what was, but what still is: the spirit that has shaped us, the spirit that lives with us, and in us,” Peter Tinley said.
Honouring Service Across Generations
The RSL’s ‘The ANZAC Spirit Lives Here’ campaign (anzacspirit.com.au) recognises that our nation’s story of service stretches far and wide and for well over a century. From Gallipoli to the Gulf, from Tobruk to Tarin Kowt, and includes the thousands of Australians who have served in peacekeeping missions. Every generation of veterans is part of an unbroken bond.
“The RSL exists to serve all veterans and their families: those who fought in the Second World War, those who served in Vietnam, those who have served in peacekeeping missions around the world, those who have returned from Afghanistan and Iraq, and those in uniform today. The golden thread connecting them all is service to our nation,” Peter Tinley said.
“Our responsibility is not only to honour the fallen, but to fiercely advocate for and support the living,” Peter Tinley said.
How Australians Can Mark Anzac Day
Thousands of Anzac Day services will take place across the nation. Whether you attend a dawn service, attend a march, pause at home in quiet reflection, or share stories with family and friends. Every act of remembrance matters. No matter how you commemorate, RSL Australia asks only that you do.
Australians can also support the ANZAC Appeal (anzacappeal.com.au) or purchase a badge to help raise funds that provide critical services to veterans and their families through essential support programs, advocacy, and care that makes a real difference.