Two matches were played as curtain raisers to AFL premiership matches, USA vs South Africa at Stadium Australia and the IC Grand Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

On 1 July 2011, the AFL confirmed the 18 men's teams that would participate in the 2011 International Cup:[1] 17 of these clubs represented single nations, and one (the Peres Team for Peace) represented both Israel and the Palestinian Territories.

As well as the above Men's teams, for the first time in the history of the tournament, there was also a Women's competition, with five teams participating:[1] Before the tournament, the 18 clubs were seeded into six groups of three, ranked based on previous performance in International Cups, or in the case of the newer teams, at the discretion of the AFL:[2] The first round of matches was played with modified rules, most significantly the reduction of game length to two-quarters, in the same manner as the 2011 NAB Cup.

In the opening round of the Women's International Cup, the five teams played each other once, over the course of 10 days.

At the conclusion of Round 1, Australia, the lowest ranked team in the competition based on points and percentage, was eliminated and finished in 5th place.