OUR ESTEEMED team of journalists have peered into football's crystal ball and come up with their prognostications for season 2026.

Brisbane is again the overwhelming favourites to win another premiership, while West Coast is the clear favourite to finish bottom of the ladder.

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At an individual level, Nick Daicos, Jagga Smith and Charlie Curnow are the popular choices to win the major awards, while plenty of eyes are on St Kilda heading into a massive season.

Spooky or just kooky? Read 'em and weep (or laugh).

Damian Barrett

Premier: Fremantle
Runner-up: Geelong
Wooden spoon: West Coast
Moving up: Sydney
Set to fall: Adelaide
Club under the most pressure (and why): St Kilda. You can't spend that much money on players from other clubs and not reach finals
Will the big-spending Saints win a final?: No
Brownlow Medal: Chad Warner
Coleman Medal: Mitch Georgiades
AFL Rising Star: Daniel Annable
Recruit of the year: Will Hayward
Surprise All-Australian: Murphy Reid
Who should headline the Grand Final entertainment?: Icehouse and Def Leppard
Headline you'll see: Merrett wants out
Headline you won't see: North Melbourne: We gave 'Clarko' too much power
Big call: Nick Daicos to place, but not win, in a fourth consecutive Brownlow 

Barrett's ladder prediction

1. Fremantle
2. Geelong
3. Brisbane
4. Collingwood
5. Sydney
6. Gold Coast
7. Hawthorn
8. Adelaide
9. Carlton
10. Western Bulldogs

11. Port Adelaide
12. St Kilda
13. Greater Western Sydney
14. Melbourne
15. Essendon
16. North Melbourne
17. Richmond
18. West Coast

Gemma Bastiani

Premier: Brisbane for the three-peat repeat
Runner-up: Western Bulldogs
Wooden spoon: West Coast
Moving up: Sydney
Set to fall: GWS (the injuries will prove too hard to come back from)
Club under the most pressure (and why): St Kilda - Made all the off season moves to become a legitimate contender, now is the chance to see if it pays off
Will the big-spending Saints win a final?: No
Brownlow Medal: Marcus Bontempelli (finally)
Coleman Medal: Charlie Curnow
AFL Rising Star: Jagga Smith
Recruit of the year: Christian Petracca
Surprise All-Australian: Dan Houston
Who should headline the Grand Final entertainment?: Billie Eilish
Headline you'll see: It's not just Jagga: Carlton finally a reliable competitor across the park
Headline you won't see: Swans regret splashing out for Charlie Curnow
Big call: The Hawks will fall away due to a lack of midfield consistency

Bastiani's ladder prediction

1. Brisbane
2. Western Bulldogs
3. Sydney
4. Gold Coast
5. Geelong
6. St Kilda
7. Melbourne
8. Carlton
9. Adelaide
10. Fremantle
11. Greater Western Sydney
 
12. Hawthorn
13. Port Adelaide
14. Collingwood
15. Essendon
16. Richmond
17. North Melbourne 
18. West Coast

Riley Beveridge

Premier: Brisbane
Runner up: Western Bulldogs
Wooden spoon: West Coast
Moving up: Western Bulldogs
Set to fall: Collingwood
Club under the most pressure (and why): Fremantle. It has to happen eventually. One of the best, if not the very best list in the competition
Will the big-spending Saints win a final?: No
Brownlow Medal: Noah Anderson
Coleman Medal: Riley Thilthorpe
AFL Rising Star: Jagga Smith
Recruit of the year: Will Hayward
Surprise All-Australian: Lawson Humphries
Who should headline the Grand Final entertainment: Dua Lipa
Headline you'll see: More lethal than Lethal's? Lions repeat three-peat again
Headline you won't see: The Butters Ban: Fans, media agree to stop talking about Zak
Big call: The Giants make a preliminary final from 10th on the ladder

Beveridge's ladder prediction

1. Brisbane
2. Western Bulldogs
3. Fremantle
4. Gold Coast
5. Hawthorn
6. Geelong
7. Adelaide
8. Sydney
9. Collingwood
10. Greater Western Sydney
 
11. Carlton
12. Port Adelaide
13. St Kilda
14. Essendon
15. North Melbourne
16. Melbourne
17. Richmond
18. West Coast

Sarah Black

Premier: Brisbane
Runner-up: Gold Coast
Wooden spoon: West Coast
Moving up: Sydney
Set to fall: Geelong
Club under the most pressure (and why): North Melbourne. Alastair Clarkson is now in his fourth year, and the club has won just 20 games in the past six seasons - an average of 3.3 per year
Will the big-spending Saints win a final?: No
Brownlow Medal: Nick Daicos
Coleman Medal: Sam Darcy
AFL Rising Star: Zeke Uwland
Recruit of the year: Brody Mihocek
Surprise All-Australian: Josh Weddle
Who should headline the Grand Final entertainment?: Let's continue with the throwback acts and aim as high as possible - Queen
Headline you'll see: History repeats: Brisbane salutes for another three-peat
Headline you won't see: Wildcard winners create finals havoc
Big call: The death of Vic bias - not one Victorian side will make the preliminary final stage

Black's ladder prediction

1. Brisbane
2. Gold Coast
3. Adelaide
4. Sydney
5. Fremantle
6. Hawthorn
7. Greater Western Sydney
8. Western Bulldogs
9. Geelong
10. Collingwood

11. Carlton
12. St Kilda
13. Essendon
14. Melbourne
15. Port Adelaide
16. Richmond
17. North Melbourne
18. West Coast

Nat Edwards

Premier: Brisbane
Runner-up: Gold Coast
Wooden spoon: West Coast
Moving up: Sydney Swans
Set to fall: Greater Western Sydney
Club under the most pressure (and why): St Kilda - with all the big off-season moves, this club needs to make finals in 2026.
Will the big-spending Saints win a final?: No
Brownlow Medal: Nick Daicos
Coleman Medal: Charlie Curnow
AFL Rising Star: Jagga Smith
Recruit of the year: Charlie Curnow
Surprise All-Australian: Nick Watson
Who should headline the Grand Final entertainment?: HUNTR/X … the whole MCG belting out Golden or Soda Pop. What more could you want?
Headline you'll see: Butters: The AFL's new $2 million-man
Headline you won't see: Premiership hangover hits Lions hard
Big call: Nick Watson to kick 50 goals in 2026

Edwards' ladder prediction

1. Brisbane
2. Fremantle
3. Geelong
4. Sydney
5. Gold Coast
6. Adelaide
7. Hawthorn
8. Western Bulldogs
9. St Kilda
10. Collingwood

11. Greater Western Sydney
12. Carlton
13. Melbourne
14. Port Adelaide
15. Essendon
16. North Melbourne
17. Richmond
18. West Coast

Josh Gabelich

Premier: Brisbane
Runner-up: Fremantle
Wooden spoon: West Coast
Moving up: Sydney
Set to fall: Collingwood
Club under the most pressure (and why): St Kilda. Spent big in the off-season. Now need to make inroads back up the ladder and return to September.
Will the big-spending Saints win a final?: Yes
Brownlow Medal: Errol Gulden
Coleman Medal: Sam Darcy
AFL Rising Star: Jagga Smith
Recruit of the year: Christian Petracca
Surprise All-Australian: Josh Treacy
Who should headline the Grand Final entertainment?: Robbie Williams
Headline you'll see: Another superstar forward firing in Sydney
Headline you won't see: Wildcard ride ends in premiership after finishing 10th
Big call: Lachie Neale to finish on the Brownlow podium again

Gabelich's ladder prediction

1. Brisbane 
2. Fremantle
3. Sydney
4. Gold Coast
5. Hawthorn
6. Adelaide
7. Geelong
8. Western Bulldogs
9. St Kilda
10. Greater Western Sydney

11. Collingwood
12. Port Adelaide
13. Melbourne
14. Carlton
15. North Melbourne
16. Richmond
17. Essendon 
18. West Coast

Nathan Schmook

Premier: Brisbane 
Runner-up: Fremantle 
Wooden spoon: West Coast  
Moving up: Sydney 
Set to fall: Collingwood 
Club under the most pressure (and why): Greater Western Sydney. Expected to contend with the list it has built, but injuries to key players could make for a difficult start and a year of chasing. 
Will the big-spending Saints win a final?: No, but expect them to climb into wildcard weekend. 
Brownlow Medal: Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera 
Coleman Medal: Mitch Georgiades 
AFL Rising Star: Jagga Smith 
Recruit of the year: Christian Petracca 
Surprise All-Australian: Heath Chapman 
Who should headline the Grand Final entertainment?: Foo Fighters 
Headline you'll see: Butters' value skyrockets with Brownlow podium finish 
Headline you won't see: WA footy getting over Reids 
Big call: A trifecta of young forwards in the Coleman Medal (Georgiades, 24, Darcy, 22, Treacy, 23)

Schmook's ladder prediction

1. Brisbane 
2. Fremantle 
3. Geelong 
4. Gold Coast 
5. Sydney 
6. Western Bulldogs
7. Adelaide 
8. Hawthorn
9. Port Adelaide
10. St Kilda 
 
11. Collingwood 
12. Greater Western Sydney 
13. Carlton 
14. Essendon 
15. Melbourne 
16. North Melbourne 
17. Richmond 
18. West Coast

Callum Twomey

Premier: Brisbane
Runner-up: Sydney
Wooden spoon: West Coast
Moving up: Sydney
Set to fall: Collingwood
Club under the most pressure (and why): North Melbourne – the Roos have the talent, now at least eight wins must be on the agenda for the first time since 2019. 
Will the big-spending Saints win a final?: Yes
Brownlow Medal: Nick Daicos
Coleman Medal: Charlie Curnow
AFL Rising Star: Jagga Smith
Recruit of the year: Charlie Curnow
Surprise All-Australian: Murphy Reid
Who should headline the Grand Final entertainment?: Justin Timberlake
Headline you'll see: Clubs call for interchange cap to lift with five on the bench
Headline you won't see: AFL makes early Grand Final timeslot decision
Big call: Sam Darcy kicks a 13-goal haul – and 'Huddo' is there to call it

Twomey's ladder prediction

1. Brisbane
2. Sydney
3. Gold Coast
4. Western Bulldogs
5. Fremantle
6. Geelong
7. St Kilda
8. Hawthorn
9. Adelaide
10. Collingwood

11. Greater Western Sydney
12. Carlton
13. Melbourne
14. Port Adelaide
15. Essendon
16. North Melbourne
17. Richmond
18. West Coast

Michael Whiting

Premier: Brisbane
Runner-up: Fremantle
Wooden spoon: West Coast
Moving up: Sydney
Set to fall: Collingwood
Club under the most pressure (and why): Fremantle. All the pieces are in place for a serious tilt at the premiership. Just one finals win under Justin Longmuir – time to deliver on the potential
Will the big-spending Saints win a final?: No.
Brownlow Medal: Nick Daicos
Coleman Medal: Ben King
AFL Rising Star: Jagga Smith
Recruit of the year: Charlie Curnow
Surprise All-Australian: Mac Andrew
Who should headline the Grand Final entertainment?: Justin Timberlake
Headline you'll see: Sam Darcy emerging as the best player in the game
Headline you won't see: Contract talks weighing down Zak Butters' performance
Big call: We'll see an all non-Victorian preliminary final weekend

Whiting's ladder prediction

1. Brisbane
2. Fremantle
3. Sydney
4. Gold Coast
5. Geelong
6. Western Bulldogs
7. Adelaide
8. Hawthorn
9. Greater Western Sydney
10. St Kilda

11. Collingwood
12. North Melbourne
13. Melbourne
14. Carlton
15. Port Adelaide
16. Essendon
17. Richmond
18. West Coast

Combined votes

Premier
Brisbane – 8
Fremantle – 1

Runner-up
Fremantle – 3
Gold Coast – 2
Western Bulldogs – 2
Geelong – 1
Sydney – 1

Wooden spoon
West Coast – 9

Moving up
Sydney – 8
Western Bulldogs – 1

Set to fall
Collingwood – 5
Greater Western Sydney – 2
Adelaide – 1
Geelong – 1

Club under the most pressure
St Kilda - 4
Fremantle - 2
North Melbourne - 2
Greater Western Sydney - 1

Will the big-spending Saints win a final?
Yes - 2
No - 7

Who will win the Brownlow Medal?
Nick Daicos – 4
Chad Warner – 1
Marcus Bontempelli – 1
Noah Anderson – 1
Errol Gulden – 1
Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera – 1

Who will win the Coleman Medal?
Charlie Curnow – 3
Sam Darcy – 2
Mitch Georgiades – 2
Riley Thilthorpe – 1
Ben King – 1

Who will win the AFL Rising Star?
Jagga Smith – 7
Daniel Annable – 1
Zeke Uwland – 1

Who will be the recruit of the year?
Charlie Curnow – 3
Christian Petracca – 3
Will Hayward – 2
Brody Mihocek – 1