Port Adelaide has reportedly made it clear to Victorian clubs that they will match any offer presented to star free agent Zak Butters, which will force potentially one of the biggest trades in the game’s history.
On top of that, the star midfielder will effectively have his pick of the Victorian sides if he chooses to leave, and the bidding war will likely see him earn around $2m per season.
With both of those things in mind, it’s worth stopping and noting that this will likely be the highest cost to acquire a player a team has ever had to make.
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Zak Butters of the Power in action. AFL Photos via Getty Images
Sydney in the 2025 trade period handed Carlton three first round picks and forward Will Hayward for Charlie Curnow, whose five-year contract sits reportedly around $1m per season.
A team like the Western Bulldogs, who is seen as the frontrunner for Butters given he grew up supporting the club, might have to hand over the same level of trade package, while forking over an extra $1m per season over eight or nine years.
They’re not one-to-one situations, however. Curnow was contracted to Carlton, giving the Blues significant leverage in trade negotiations.
Butters is a restricted free agent meaning the Power can match any offer sheet presented to them, and force him to request a trade, but at the end of the day he is still out of contract.
We saw this play out in 2020, with GWS matching Geelong’s free agency offer for star key forward Jeremy Cameron.
The Cats’ offer was well over $1m per season, but the Giants matched and forced them to the trade table.
In the end, Geelong handed over picks 13, 15 and 20 to GWS for Cameron and picks 24 and 27 in the following draft. The price was three first round picks, but with the caveat that they got some decent selections back the other way.
The Butters trade will be similar in that the Dogs, or any team, will still need to pay a premium for him, but the fact that he is out of contract limits Port’s leverage.
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Zak Butters in the AAMI Community Series. Getty
On the flip side, the draft has never been more compromised in the era of academy selections and the looming introduction of Tasmania.
The Power will be well within their rights to ask for more, given any draft picks in 2027 and 2028 will slide down the order to accommodate the Devils.
We saw Essendon knock back Hawthorn’s offer of three first round picks and young midfielder Henry Hustwaite for Zach Merrett, citing these exact concerns about the value of those picks.
So, a trade in the vicinity of three first round picks; and a contract in the vicinity of $2m per season, likely over the remainder of the 25-year-old’s career.
It will, without a doubt, be the single most paid to bring in a player in the game’s history.
It might not be the single biggest trade ever. He might not be the outright highest paid player in the competition in 2027, but the combination of the two is where it gets eye-watering.
For context, teams can only trade picks up to two years in the future. You are effectively giving up all available first round picks and nearly 11 per cent of your salary cap for the one player.
Zak Butters representing Victoria in State of Origin. Â AFL Photos via Getty Images
Caroline Wilson reported on Wednesday night that Geelong is one team that is potentially baulking on the colossal amount they may need to hand over to make this happen, while the Bulldogs remain committed to getting it done.
GWS chief Dave Matthews has publicly stated that he doesn’t think it’s possible to win a premiership with a player earning 11 per cent of your salary cap. When you have to list 45 players, he believes it is too big of a burden to carry.
You can certainly understand any team getting cold feet, regardless of the quality of the player.
And that’s something that’s not in dispute amongst all of this.
Butters is undoubtedly one of the game’s best midfielders. He made the All-Australian team in 2023 and 2024 (he should have made it in 2025 too just quietly), he has won Port Adelaide’s best and fairest three consecutive seasons and he was the AFL Coaches Association player of the year in 2023.
But it is unquestionably a lot of assets and resources to dedicate to just one player.
It all becomes moot if he makes the shock call to recommit to Port Adelaide, of course.
Connor Rozee is injured. AFL Photos via Getty Images
However, former Adelaide captain Rory Sloane believes the significant hamstring injury suffered by Power skipper Connor Rozee will seriously hurt their ability to play finals.
That will in turn make it harder to convince Butters to stay.
“The injury to Port Adelaide captain Connor Rozee is going to be the straw that broke the camel’s back for Zak Butters,” Sloane told Nine’s Footy Classified.
“This is a horrific injury to the most pivotal player in Port’s side.
“For Zak to have any chance of staying, Port needs to show improvement this year. If they show a little bit, there might be a glimmer of hope for Zak to stay.
“Connor is the biggest loss to that side. He is their instigator, he is their link man, he is their ball user, it’s a huge loss to them.”
Sloane urged Rozee to use his time on the sidelines do whatever possible to convince Butters to stick around.
“If I’m Connor Rozee now and I’ve got 14 weeks or so on my hands, I’m going around to Zak Butters every night and going ‘mate, what can I do to keep you’,” Sloane said.
“You’d be doing everything you can with a bit of spare time to keep Butters.”