It was the ninth season under senior coach Chris Scott, with Joel Selwood appointed as club captain for an eight successive year.

Geelong (known as the Cats) participated in the 2019 JLT Community Series as part of their pre-season schedule, and the club's regular season began on 22 March against Collingwood at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

The Cats also fielded a reserves team in the Victorian Football League (VFL), where they were defeated in an elimination final by Port Melbourne.

[2] Joel Selwood was appointed the club's captain for an eighth successive season, with Patrick Dangerfield and Harry Taylor sharing the role of vice-captain.

[25] Gaelic footballer Stefan Okunbor was recruited to the club from Ireland as a Category B rookie, and was joined by Blake Schlensog, a graduate from Geelong's "Next Generation Academy".

[40][41] Geelong participated in the 2019 JLT Community Series as part of their pre-season schedule, playing in two games against West Coast and Essendon.

[42] Geelong began the regular season on 22 March against Collingwood at the MCG; despite featuring six new players in their team lineup, the Cats narrowly won the game by seven points.

[45][46] Playing against arch-rival Hawthorn on Easter Monday, Geelong overcame match-day injuries to midfielder Brandan Parfitt and ruckman Esava Ratugolea to post a 23-point win.

[48] Geelong's score of 21.7 (133) against Western Bulldogs in round 9 was their highest of the season, with the Cats recording eleven individual goalkickers in their win.

[51] After successfully appealing the suspension at the AFL Tribunal, Ablett was involved in an almost identical incident the following week with North Melbourne's Sam Wright, but was not penalised.

[51] A fortnight later, Ablett was suspended for the first time in his 331-game career when he accepted a one-match suspension for punching the jaw of Gold Coast midfielder Anthony Miles.

[51] Heading into their bye in round 13, Geelong were placed first on the league's ladder with an 11–1 win–loss record; notably the Cats had played each team that had qualified for the previous season's final series.

[46][50] Geelong were defeated by Port Adelaide in their first match following their week off; it was the eighth consecutive year the Cats had lost after a mid-season bye.

[63] The reserves team finished the regular season with a 11–7 win–loss record and placed sixth on the league's ladder, qualifying for the finals series as a result.