Non-Victorian premiers and four tied for the Brownlow as Collingwood tipped to fall: 2026 AFL predictions

The 2026 AFL season is here. And with that comes the somewhat outlandish predictions, as just about every footy fan delves into their psyche to put forward their forecasts.

Could Brisbane win again? Or will there be a new champion?

Do West Coast remain on the bottom of the ladder? Or can Andrew McQualter raise the proud club from the bottom of the barrel?

Here, the Zero Hanger team have tipped their premiers, top 10, wooden spooners, Brownlow winners, Coleman medallists, Rising Star recipients, All-Australian smokeys and more for the season ahead.

2026 AFL Predictions

Daniel Harford

Premiers: Brisbane
Runners-Up: Fremantle
Top 10: Brisbane, Fremantle, Sydney, Gold Coast, Adelaide, Geelong, Hawthorn, Western Bulldogs, GWS, St Kilda
Wooden Spoon: West Coast
Brownlow Medal: Caleb Serong
Coleman Medal: Sam Darcy
Rising Star Award: Alix Tauru
Biggest Riser: Sydney
Greatest Fall: Collingwood
All-Australian Smokey: Brody Mihocek
Major 2026 headline: "Six Points" breaks Youtube streaming record
Best recruit of 2026: Charlie Curnow

Mark Stevens

Premiers: Brisbane
Runners-Up: Fremantle
Top 10: Brisbane, Fremantle, Gold Coast, Sydney, Adelaide, Bulldogs, St Kilda, Hawthorn, Geelong, Collingwood
Wooden Spoon: West Coast
Brownlow Medal: Marcus Bontempelli
Coleman Medal: Charlie Curnow
Rising Star Award: Jagga Smith
Biggest Riser: Sydney
Greatest Fall: Collingwood
All-Australian Smokey: Joel Freijah
Major 2026 headline: Twilight Zone: AFL pulls trigger on GF change
Best recruit of 2026: Charlie Curnow

Aidan Cellini

Premiers: Brisbane
Runners-up: Sydney
Top 10: Brisbane, Gold Coast, Geelong, Sydney, Hawthorn, Fremantle, Adelaide, Western Bulldogs, GWS, Collingwood
Wooden Spoon: West Coast
Brownlow Medal: Caleb Serong
Coleman Medal: Ben King
Rising Star Award: Jagga Smith
Biggest Riser: Sydney
Greatest Fall: Adelaide
All-Australian smokey: Murphy Reid
Major 2026 headline: AFL move Grand Final timeslot to twilight
Best recruit of 2026: Charlie Curnow

Mitch Keating

Premiers: Brisbane
Runners-Up: Gold Coast
Top 10: Brisbane, Gold Coast, Fremantle, Adelaide, Geelong, Sydney, Hawthorn, GWS, Western Bulldogs, St Kilda
Wooden Spoon: West Coast
Brownlow Medal: Nick Daicos
Coleman Medal: Sam Darcy
Rising Star Award: Jagga Smith
Biggest Riser: Sydney
Greatest Fall: Collingwood
All-Australian Smokey: Lawson Humphries
Major 2026 headline: Non-Vic clubs decide the final four
Best recruit of 2026: Charlie Curnow

Jonty Ralphsmith

Premiers: Gold Coast
Runners-Up: Brisbane
Top 10: Brisbane, Gold Coast, Fremantle, Sydney, Adelaide, Western Bulldogs, Geelong, St Kilda, Collingwood, Essendon
Wooden Spoon: West Coast
Brownlow Medal: Nick Daicos
Coleman Medal: Josh Treacy
Rising Star Award: Jagga Smith
Biggest Riser: Essendon
Greatest Fall: Port Adelaide
All-Australian Smokey: Darcy Parish
Major 2026 headline: AFL forced to tweak rules after Opening Round farce
Best recruit of 2026: Brandon Starcevich

Harrison Mcllwaine

Premiers: Brisbane
Runners-Up: Sydney
Top 10: Fremantle, Sydney, Western Bulldogs, Gold Coast, Brisbane, Hawthorn, Adelaide, Geelong, St Kilda, Collingwood
Wooden Spoon: West Coast
Brownlow Medal: Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera 
Coleman Medal: Charlie Curnow
Rising Star Award: Jagga Smith
Biggest Riser: Sydney
Greatest Fall: Collingwood
All-Australian Smokey: Patrick Lipinski
Major 2026 headline: Obsession with speed of game leads to an unmitigated injury crisis
Best recruit of 2026: Sam Flanders

Nick Splitter

Premiers: Brisbane
Runners-Up: Gold Coast
Top 10: Suns, Dockers, Lions, Cats, Swans, Bulldogs, Saints, Crows, Hawks, Giants
Wooden Spoon: Richmond
Brownlow Medal: Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera
Coleman Medal: Charlie Curnow
Rising Star Award: Jagga Smith
Biggest Riser: St Kilda
Greatest Fall: Collingwood
All-Australian Smokey: Josh Rachele
Major 2026 headline: Nathan Buckley named inaugural Devils coach
Best recruit of 2026: Christian Petracca

Phoenix Trinidad

Premiers: Fremantle
Runners-Up: Brisbane
Top 10: Brisbane, Sydney, Fremantle, Gold Coast, Geelong, Bulldogs, Adelaide, Hawthorn, St Kilda, Melbourne
Wooden Spoon: North Melbourne
Brownlow Medal: Marcus Bontempelli
Coleman Medal: Charlie Curnow
Rising Star Award: Jagga Smith
Biggest Riser: Sydney
Greatest Fall: Collingwood
All-Australian Smokey: Caleb Windsor
Major 2026 headline: AFL Announces controversial Grand Final time change
Best recruit of 2026: Clayton Oliver

Totals

Premiers: Brisbane 6, Gold Coast, Fremantle
Wooden Spoon: West Coast 6, Richmond, North Melbourne
Brownlow: Nick Daicos 2, Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera 2, Marcus Bontempelli 2, Caleb Serong 2
Coleman: Charlie Curnow 4, Sam Darcy 2, Ben King, Josh Treacy
Rising Star: Jagga Smith 7, Alix Tauru