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2026 AFL draft

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2026 AFL draft
General information
Dates26 May 2026 – Mid-season Draft
19–20 November 2026 – National Draft
23 November 2026 – Rookie Draft
LocationMarvel Stadium
NetworkFox Footy
Sponsored byNational Australia Bank
Overview
LeagueAFL
← 2025
2027 →

The 2026 AFL draft will consist of the various periods where the 18 clubs in the Australian Football League (AFL) can trade and recruit players during and following the completion of the 2026 AFL season.

Key dates

[edit]
Table of key dates
Event Date(s)
Mid-season rookie draft 26 May 2026
Free agency period Restricted and Unrestricted: 2–9 October 2026
Delisted: October–November 2026
Trade period 5–14 October 2026
National draft 19–20 November 2026
Pre-Season and Rookie draft 23 November 2026
Pre-season supplemental selection period December 2026 – March 2027

2026 mid-season rookie draft

[edit]

The mid-season draft was held after the conclusion of round 11 of the 2026 AFL season on 26 May.[1]

Mid-season draft selections
Rd Pick Player Club Recruited from Pick due to
Club League
1 1 Jaxon Artemis Essendon Tasmania VFL Brayden Fiorini long-term injury
2 Kye Annand Richmond Geelong VFL Josh Gibcus long-term injury
3 Oliver Francou West Coast North Adelaide SANFL Deven Robertson long-term injury
4 Flynn Riley Carlton Carlton VFL Matt Carroll long-term injury
5 Xavier Bamert Port Adelaide North Melbourne VFL Ivan Soldo retirement
6 Oliver Griffin North Melbourne Sandringham Dragons Talent League Blake Thredgold long-term injury
7 Campbell Lake St Kilda Southport VFL Passed selection at the 2025 Rookie Draft
8 Harrison Coe Collingwood Frankston VFL Reef McInnes long-term injury
9 Caleb May Western Bulldogs West Adelaide SANFL Sam Darcy long-term injury
10 Hugo Hall-Kahan Adelaide Williamstown VFL Passed selection at the 2025 Rookie Draft
11 Lukas Cooke Melbourne Woodville-West Torrens SANFL Tom Campbell retirement
12 Max Beattie Hawthorn Woodville-West Torrens SANFL Passed selection at the 2025 Rookie Draft
2 13 Marcus Herbert West Coast Geelong VFL Jacob Newton long-term injury
14 Alex van Wyk Port Adelaide North Adelaide SANFL Ollie Lord long-term injury
15 Liam Puncher Collingwood Woodville-West Torrens SANFL Oscar Steene long-term injury
16 Joel Fitzgerald Melbourne Williamstown VFL Jai Culley long-term injury
3 17 Passed Port Adelaide — — Josh Sinn long-term injury
18 Mitch Podhajski Collingwood Coburg VFL Jamie Elliott long-term injury
19 Max Mapley Melbourne Tasmania VFL Shane McAdam retirement


Player movements

[edit]

Previous trades

[edit]
Table of previously traded selections
Rd Orig. Club New Club Acquired via Ref
1 Gold Coast Melbourne Christian Petracca trade [2]
Sydney Carlton Charlie Curnow and Will Hayward trade [3]
2 North Melbourne Carlton pick swap
Gold Coast Carlton pick swap
Greater Western Sydney Hawthorn pick swap
St Kilda Hawthorn via West Coast (Liam Ryan trade)
on-traded to Hawthorn (pick swap)		 [4]
Carlton Port Adelaide Corey Durdin and Ben Ainsworth trade [5]
Melbourne Greater Western Sydney via Gold Coast (Christian Petracca trade)
on-traded to Greater Western Sydney (pick swap)		 [2]
3 Essendon Adelaide via Gold Coast Brayden Fiorini trade
on-traded to Adelaide (pick swap)		 [6]
Gold Coast Port Adelaide pick swap
Greater Western Sydney Melbourne Clayton Oliver trade [7]
Carlton Sydney Oliver Florent trade [8]
Collingwood Sydney Jack Buller trade [9]
Melbourne Brisbane Lions via Collingwood Brodie Mihocek trade
on-traded to Brisbane Lions (pick swap)		 [10]
Hawthorn Brisbane Lions pick swap
Brisbane Lions Carlton pick swap
Sydney West Coast via Hawthorn (Jai Serong trade)
on-traded to West Coast (pick swap)		 [11]
4 Greater Western Sydney Collingwood pick swap
Western Bulldogs West Coast pick swap
Melbourne Hawthorn Changkuoth Jiath trade [12]
Adelaide North Melbourne Finnbar Maley trade [13]
Hawthorn Sydney Jai Serong trade [11]
Sydney Collingwood Jack Buller trade [9]
5 Richmond Gold Coast pick swap

Free agency

[edit]
2026 AFL free agency period signings
Player Free agent type Recruited from New club Compensation Notes Ref
Joel Amartey Unrestricted Sydney Carlton Second round [14]
Toby Greene Unrestricted Greater Western Sydney Geelong Second round [15]
Kieren Briggs Unrestricted Greater Western Sydney Richmond Third round [16]
Lachie Neale Unrestricted Brisbane Lions Collingwood Second round [17]
Jordon Butts Unrestricted Adelaide Western Bulldogs Second round [18]

Trades

[edit]
Table of trades
Clubs involved Trade Ref
Collingwood
Greater Western Sydney		 to Collingwood (from Greater Western Sydney)
to Greater Western Sydney (from Collingwood)
  • pick No. 75
 [19]
Gold Coast
Collingwood		 to Gold Coast (from Collingwood)
to Collingwood (from Gold Coast)
  • pick No. 65
 [20]
Hawthorn
Essendon		 to Hawthorn (from Essendon)
to Essendon (from Hawthorn)
  • pick No. 15
  • pick No. 25
  • 2028 second round pick (Hawthorn)
 [21]


List changes

[edit]

Retirements

[edit]
Table key
R Rookie listed player
B Category B Rookie listed player
Table of player retirements
Name Club Notes Ref
James Harmes Western Bulldogs [22]
Steven May Melbourne [23]
Ivan Soldo Port Adelaide [24]
Tom Campbell Melbourne [25]
Shane McAdam [26]
Taylor Adams Sydney [27]
Jamie Cripps West Coast [28]
Nathan Broad Richmond [29]
Tom McDonald Melbourne [30]
Taylor Walker Adelaide [31]
Dion Prestia Richmond Retired but keen to play on [32]
Steele Sidebottom Collingwood [33]
Nick Holman Gold Coast [34]
Dougal Howard St Kilda [35]
Jake Melksham Melbourne [36]
Sam Switkowski Fremantle [37]
Tom Liberatore Western Bulldogs [38]
Adam Treloar Not offered a contract and retired. [39]
Rhys Stanley Geelong [40]
Jake Kolodjashnij Medically retired over concussion issues [41]

Delistings

[edit]
Table of player delistings
Table key
R Rookie listed player
B Category B Rookie listed player
Name Club Notes Ref
Bobby Hill Collingwood Club and player mutually agreed to part ways. [42]
Tyson Stengle Geelong [43]
Matt Duffy B Carlton Returned to Ireland [44]
Jackson Mead Port Adelaide [45]
Will Lorenz
Mani Liddy
Xavier Walsh
Benny Barrett
Jacob Moss
Harry Barnett West Coast [46]
Harvey Johnston
Caleb Graham Gold Coast [47]
Asher Eastham
Cooper Bell
Liam Fawcett Richmond [48]
Kaleb Smith
Paddy Dow St Kilda [49]
Isaac Keeler
Patrick Said
Tyler Brockman West Coast [50]
Bailey Scott North Melbourne [51]
Callum Coleman-Jones
Robert Hansen Jr.
Brayden George
Wil Parker Collingwood [52]
Lachie Sullivan
Mitch Podhajski
Joel Cochran
Iliro Smit
Jakob Ryan
Kalani White Melbourne [53]
Jack Henderson
Aidan Johnson
Andy Moniz-Wakefield
Riley Onley
Oskar Baker Western Bulldogs [54]
Harvey Gallagher
Lachlan Smith
Zac Walker
Zac Williams Carlton [55]
Elijah Hollands
Lewis Young
Flynn Young
Lachie Fogarty
Jordan Boyd
Harry Charleson
Lucas Camporeale [56]
Ben Camporeale
Jade Gresham Essendon [57]
Matt Guelfi
Elijah Tsatas
Saad El-Hawli
Liam McMahon
Chayce Jones Adelaide [58]
Lachlan Sholl
Tyler Welsh
Jed Bews Geelong [59]
George Stevens
Keighton Matofai-Forbes
Henry Hustwaite Hawthorn [60]
Bodie Ryan
James Blanck
Cody Anderson
Jaime Uhr-Henry
Sam Sturt Fremantle [61]
Bailey Banfield
Ollie Murphy
Ryda Luke

Essendon concessions

[edit]

Due to the club's poor on-field results since 2025, the AFL announced draft concessions for Essendon[62] which included:

  • Two extra Category A Rookie list spots.


Tasmania concessions

[edit]

As part of Tasmania's entry into the AFL in 2028, they have been provided with several draft concessions, including being able to sign up to eight 17-year-olds in each of 2026 and 2027, with a maximum of 12 total across the two years and being able to sign Tasmanian players from the 2026 draft class.[63]

Table of Tasmania concession signings
Player Recruited From League Ref
Axel Walsh East Perth WAFL [64]
Angus Brown Sandringham Dragons Talent League
Riley Stratford Sandringham Dragons Talent League
Griffin Barker Western Jets Talent League
Jake Miller Western Jets Talent League
Nate Jenkins Calder Cannons Talent League
Baxter Sruk Eastern Ranges Talent League
Hugh McCallum Tasmania Devils VFL


2026 national draft

[edit]
Table of national draft selections
Round Pick Player Club Recruited from Notes
Club League
1 1 Essendon
2 Richmond
3 West Coast
4 Port Adelaide
5 North Melbourne
6 Melbourne ←Gold Coast (2025)
7 Greater Western Sydney
8 St Kilda
9 Collingwood
10 Melbourne
11 Carlton
12 Western Bulldogs
13 Adelaide
14 Geelong
15 Essendon ←Hawthorn
16 Carlton ←Sydney (2025)
17 Fremantle
18 Brisbane Lions
2 19 Essendon
20 Richmond
21 West Coast
22 Port Adelaide
23 Carlton ←North Melbourne (2025)
24 Carlton ←Gold Coast (2025)
25 Essendon ←Hawthorn←Greater Western Sydney (2025)
26 Greater Western Sydney Free Agency compensation pick (Greene)
27 Hawthorn ←West Coast (2025)←St Kilda (2025)
28 Collingwood
29 Greater Western Sydney ←Gold Coast (2025)←Melbourne (2025)
30 Port Adelaide ←Carlton (2025)
31 Western Bulldogs
32 Adelaide
33 Adelaide Free Agency compensation pick (Butts)
34 Geelong
35 Hawthorn
36 Sydney
37 Sydney Free Agency compensation pick (Amartey)
38 Fremantle
39 Brisbane Lions
40 Brisbane Lions Free Agency compensation pick (Neale)
3 41 Adelaide ←Gold Coast (2025)←Essendon (2025)
42 Richmond
43 West Coast
44 Port Adelaide
45 North Melbourne
46 Port Adelaide ←Gold Coast (2025)
47 Melbourne ←Greater Western Sydney (2025)
48 Greater Western Sydney Free Agency compensation pick (Briggs)
49 St Kilda
50 Sydney ←Collingwood (2025)
51 Brisbane Lions ←Collingwood (2025)←Melbourne (2025)
52 Sydney ←Carlton (2025)
53 Western Bulldogs
54 Adelaide
55 Geelong
56 Brisbane Lions ←Hawthorn (2025)
57 West Coast ←Hawthorn (2025)←Sydney (2025)
58 Fremantle
59 Carlton ←Brisbane Lions (2025)
4 60 Essendon
61 Richmond
62 West Coast
63 Port Adelaide
64 North Melbourne
65 Collingwood ←Gold Coast
66 Collingwood ←Greater Western Sydney (2025)
67 St Kilda
68 Collingwood
69 Hawthorn ←Melbourne (2025)
70 Carlton
71 West Coast ←Western Bulldogs (2025)
72 North Melbourne ←Adelaide (2025)
73 Geelong
74 Sydney ←Hawthorn (2025)
75 Greater Western Sydney ←Collingwood←Sydney (2025)
76 Fremantle
77 Brisbane Lions
5 78 Essendon
79 Gold Coast ←Richmond (2025)
80 West Coast
81 Port Adelaide
82 North Melbourne
83 Gold Coast
84 Greater Western Sydney
85 St Kilda
86 Collingwood
87 Melbourne
88 Carlton
89 Western Bulldogs
90 Adelaide
91 Geelong
92 Hawthorn
93 Sydney
94 Fremantle
95 Brisbane Lions

2026 rookie draft

[edit]

Category B Rookie selections

[edit]

The AFL introduced an additional Category B rookie spot for all clubs to be able to draft an Indigenous player to their lists for the 2027 season. Previously, clubs could only list up to two Category B rookie players, however they will be able to sign a third player, provided the player is of Indigenous or First Nations background.[65]

Table of Category B rookie selections
Name Club Origin Note Date Signed Ref
Oliver Purcell Hawthorn UTS Balmain Tigers (AWPL) Three-year non-registered player (water polo) 5 October 2026 [66]
Patrick Carr Richmond UT Tyler Patriots (NCAA) Three-year non-registered player (basketball) 28 May 2026 [67]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ Twomey, Callum (16 May 2025). "The list of nominees for the 2026 Mid-Season Rookie Draft". AFL.com.au.
  2. 1 2 "Trac gets his move: Demons star joins Suns". afl.com.au. 15 October 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  3. ↑ "Swans win the race to land star Blue in blockbuster trade". afl.com.au. 15 October 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  4. ↑ "Flyin' Ryan lands at Moorabbin". saints.com.au. 9 October 2025. Retrieved 9 October 2025.
  5. ↑ "Suns small forward traded to Carlton, Blue joins Port". afl.com.au. 10 October 2025. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  6. ↑ "Fiorini to don the sash". essendonfc.com.au. 14 October 2025. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
  7. ↑ "Saints mid lands at Demons in late trade move". afl.com.au. 15 October 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  8. ↑ "Florent time: Ollie becomes a Blue". carltonfc.com.au. 15 October 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  9. 1 2 "Pies complete pick swaps deal in bid to land Swan". afl.com.au. 14 October 2025. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
  10. ↑ "Premiership Pie boosts Dees' forward stocks as deal done". afl.com.au. 9 October 2025. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  11. 1 2 "Swans land in-demand Hawks defender". afl.com.au. 15 October 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  12. ↑ "Demons add speedy Hawk to bolster defensive stocks". afl.com.au. 15 October 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  13. ↑ "High-flying Roos forward traded to Crows". afl.com.au. 15 October 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  14. ↑ "New Blue: Tall forward joins Carlton from Sydney". afl.com.au. 2 October 2026. Retrieved 2 October 2026.
  15. ↑ "Giants star completes move to Cats as free agent". afl.com.au. 2 October 2026. Retrieved 2 October 2026.
  16. ↑ "Tigers land Giant to bolster ruck stocks". afl.com.au. 2 October 2026. Retrieved 2 October 2026.
  17. ↑ "Compensation pick revealed for Lions as star mid joins third club with Pies move". afl.com.au. 2 October 2026. Retrieved 2 October 2026.
  18. ↑ "Crows defender joins Bulldogs, compensation pick locked in". afl.com.au. 3 October 2026. Retrieved 3 October 2026.
  19. ↑ "Pies agree deal with Giants for former Coleman Medal winner". afl.com.au. 5 October 2026. Retrieved 5 October 2026.
  20. ↑ "Trade agreed for Pies champion as Suns protect compo pick". afl.com.au. 5 October 2026. Retrieved 5 October 2026.
  21. ↑ "Merrett FINALLY gets trade wish after Hawks hand Bombers three picks". afl.com.au. 5 October 2026. Retrieved 5 October 2026.
  22. ↑ Twomey, Callum (10 February 2026). "Bulldogs mid and flag Demon calls time on 174-game career". afl.com.au. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  23. ↑ O'Connor, Alison (1 March 2026). "Premiership Demon announces sudden retirement after recent off-field issues". afl.com.au. Retrieved 1 March 2026.
  24. ↑ Smith, Martin (27 April 2026). "Premiership ruck retires after 10-year career across two clubs". afl.com.au. Retrieved 27 April 2026.
  25. ↑ "Four-club ruck calls time on decorated career". afl.com.au. 15 May 2026. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  26. ↑ "Retirement - Shane McAdam calls time". melbournefc.com.au. 25 May 2026. Retrieved 25 May 2026.
  27. ↑ Smith, Martin (22 June 2026). "Three-club Swan calls it quits after latest injury blow". afl.com.au. Retrieved 22 June 2026.
  28. ↑ Smith, Martin (30 June 2026). "Premiership Eagle calls time after latest injury blow". afl.com.au. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  29. ↑ "Thank you, Nathan Broad" (Press release). Richmond Tigers. 4 August 2026. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
  30. ↑ McIlwaine, Harrison (4 August 2026). "Premiership pieces to depart Demons at season's end". Zero Hanger. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
  31. ↑ "Crows veteran to call time at end of 2026 season". afl.com.au. 10 August 2026. Retrieved 10 August 2026.
  32. ↑ "Updated Prestia keen to play on despite 'retirement' announcement". afl.com.au. 13 August 2026. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  33. ↑ "Magpies legend to retire at the end of the season". afl.com.au. 13 August 2026. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  34. ↑ "Veteran Sun to retire after 11 seasons at two clubs". afl.com.au. 18 August 2026. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  35. ↑ "Dougal Howard to hang up the boots". afl.com.au. 19 August 2026. Retrieved 19 August 2026.
  36. ↑ "Veteran Demons forward to retire at season's end". afl.com.au. 24 August 2026. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  37. ↑ "Dockers forward announces shock retirement on eve of finals". 26 August 2026. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  38. ↑ "Veteran Bulldogs midfielder announces retirement after stellar career". afl.com.au. 8 September 2026. Retrieved 8 September 2026.
  39. ↑ "Bulldog calls time after 263 games across three clubs". afl.com.au. 9 September 2026. Retrieved 9 September 2026.
  40. ↑ "Premiership Cat calls time on career after 18 seasons". afl.com.au. 21 September 2026. Retrieved 21 September 2026.
  41. ↑ "Cats premiership defender medically retired at 31". afl.com.au. 29 September 2026. Retrieved 29 September 2026.
  42. ↑ "Flag hero to exit Magpies after club and player agree to terms". afl.com.au. 30 July 2026. Retrieved 30 July 2026.
  43. ↑ "Geelong Cats Statement: Tyson Stengle". geelongcats.com.au. 31 July 2026. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
  44. ↑ "Blues rookie returning to Ireland after three years". afl.com.au. 13 August 2026. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  45. ↑ "Power axe six players as off-season of change looms". afl.com.au. 25 August 2026. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  46. ↑ "West Coast ruck, defender delisted as Eagles make more changes". afl.com.au. 25 August 2026. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  47. ↑ "Academy graduate among three Suns delisted". afl.com.au. 26 August 2026. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  48. ↑ "Tigers delist defender, forward as list changes continue". afl.com.au. 26 August 2026. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  49. ↑ "Former top-three pick among three Saints delisted". afl.com.au. 27 August 2026. Retrieved 27 August 2026.
  50. ↑ "Former Hawks forward delisted after three seasons with Eagles". afl.com.au. 27 August 2026. Retrieved 27 August 2026.
  51. ↑ "Father-son recruit, former Tiger among four Roos axed". afl.com.au. 28 August 2026. Retrieved 28 August 2026.
  52. ↑ "Ex-cricketer and mid-season rookie among six Magpies delisted". afl.com.au. 1 September 2026. Retrieved 1 September 2026.
  53. ↑ "Untried father-son tall among five Demons cut after season ends". afl.com.au. 2 September 2026. Retrieved 4 September 2026.
  54. ↑ "Former Demon among four Bulldogs delisted after season ends". afl.com.au. 8 September 2026. Retrieved 8 September 2026.
  55. ↑ "Blues delist seven players, including two-club veteran". afl.com.au. 9 September 2026. Retrieved 9 September 2026.
  56. ↑ "Father-son products delisted by Blues as changes continue". afl.com.au. 10 September 2026. Retrieved 10 September 2026.
  57. ↑ "Former top-10 pick, free agent among five Bombers delisted". afl.com.au. 15 September 2026. Retrieved 15 September 2026.
  58. ↑ "Former top-10 pick, father-son among trio cut from Crows". afl.com.au. 17 September 2026. Retrieved 17 September 2026.
  59. ↑ "Latest News Cats Announce List Changes Following 2026 AFL Season". geelongcats.com.au. 23 September 2026. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  60. ↑ "Hawks confirm five departures as off-season list changes begin". afl.com.au. 24 September 2026. Retrieved 24 September 2026.
  61. ↑ "Utility among four Dockers delisted after Grand Final loss". afl.com.au. 29 September 2026. Retrieved 29 September 2026.
  62. ↑ "Bombers get assistance package after two wins in 36 games". afl.com.au. Telstra Media. 22 September 2026. Retrieved 22 September 2026.
  63. ↑ "Tassie father-son rules locked in as AFL confirms list concessions". afl.com.au. 19 May 2026. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  64. ↑ "Devils confirm first AFL player signings on historic night in Hobart". afl.com.au. 29 September 2026. Retrieved 29 September 2026.
  65. ↑ "AFL set to add dedicated list spot for Indigenous players in bid to boost numbers". afl.com.au. 9 July 2026. Retrieved 4 September 2026.
  66. ↑ "Hawks shark water polo international as Category B rookie". afl.com.au. 5 October 2026. Retrieved 5 October 2026.
  67. ↑ "Richmond signs Patrick Carr as Category B Rookie". richmondfc.com.au. 28 May 2026. Retrieved 13 July 2026.
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