One of the most important events on the AFL calendar is mere days away. <\/p>\n
The 2024 AFL national draft beckons, with young guns set to have their footy dreams realised, and clubs poised to take their next list-building steps to propel premiership tilts.<\/p>\n
From start times to a bidding system explainer, plus the biggest burning questions and which clubs could take the top prospects, here\u2019s everything you need to know in our 2025 AFL Draft Ultimate Guide!<\/p>\n
Watch exclusive live coverage of the 2025 Telstra AFL Draft on Kayo Sports 19-20 Nov | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.<\/a><\/p>\n WHAT’S GAMBLING REALLY COSTING YOU? Set a deposit limit. For Free and confidential support call 1800 858 858 or visit gamblinghelponline.org.au.<\/p>\n WHEN IS THE 2025 AFL DRAFT, WHAT TIME DOES IT START, AND HOW CAN I WATCH?<\/p>\n The 2025 AFL national draft will be staged across two days, beginning on Wednesday, November 19 and concluding on Thursday, November 20. Coverage of both nights starts at 7pm (AEDT). <\/p>\n The first round will be held on Wednesday, November 20. Twenty-three picks are slated, but four likely top-10 bids on academy and father-son talent \u2014 as well as multiple more before the end of the round \u2014 will mean we\u2019ll see more than that on night one. <\/p>\n The remaining rounds of the draft will take place on Thursday, November 20. <\/p>\n AFL Media\u2019s Cal Twomey reported in October that between 44 and 57 total picks are expected to be used \u2014 potentially a record low. For context, 71 and 64 players were taken in the past two drafts. <\/p>\n Fox Footy, via Channel 504 and streaming on Kayo Sports, again has exclusive broadcast rights for the draft. <\/p>\n You can also follow Foxfooty.com.au\u2019s live and comprehensive coverage with analysis of every pick and club, as well as via Fox Footy\u2019s social media channels. <\/p>\n The 2025 AFL pre-season draft and 2025 AFL rookie draft will be held on the afternoon of Friday, November 21. <\/p>\n MORE FROM THE DRAFT<\/p>\n PHANTOM DRAFT: Shock calls, bids galore as top 29 picks predicted in MEGA late mail<\/a><\/p>\n <\/a>TOP YOUNG GUNS: Best draft prospects ranked 1-50 and AFL stars they play like<\/a><\/p>\n Demons through to Prelims over Crows | 03:13<\/p>\n HOW DOES THE AFL DRAFT WORK?<\/p>\n All 18 clubs are entitled to draft picks, which are based on the reverse finishing order from the previous AFL season. <\/p>\n And in a change that came into effect this year, these picks can now be traded up to two years in advance. <\/p>\n Additionally, some picks are also distributed as compensation for departed free agents. <\/p>\n On draft night, the teams select in order, going about adding the best young or mature-aged talent that aren\u2019t already on AFL lists. <\/p>\n The only exceptions are when draft picks are traded on the night or when bids for father-son and academy prospects linked to certain clubs are made. Those clubs then choose whether or not to match those rival bids with draft points. <\/p>\n HOW DOES THE AFL DRAFT BIDDING SYSTEM WORK?<\/p>\n The AFL has a Draft Value Index, a system where each draft pick \u2014 up until the 54th selection \u2014 is allocated a points value. <\/p>\n This allows clubs with existing links to draft prospects \u2014 either through academy programs or as father-sons \u2014 to \u2018pay\u2019 for these players by using multiple picks. It also means rival clubs can bid on these players. <\/p>\n For clubs to secure their linked talent, they must pay and match a bid by using the draft picks they already hold. This is often done by bundling up multiple later picks to amass a cumulative value of a higher pick. <\/p>\n There is a 20 per cent discount for matching bids in the first round. The discount after that is fixed at 197 points.<\/p>\n If a club does not have enough picks at the time, it can enter \u2018draft deficit\u2019, meaning the value of its hand next year will decrease. If that club chooses not to match a bid, then the player will go to the club that made the bid. <\/p>\n The league\u2019s Index underwent a significant change ahead of this year. It saw a reduction in total points, removing points from later picks to make it harder for clubs to use multiple late-round selections to match bids on father-son and Academy players. <\/p>\n Last year, picks up to no.73 in the order held a points value. That is no longer the case. <\/p>\n HUGE Gillard tackle sums up Demons win | 00:21<\/p>\n WHO ARE THE BEST PLAYERS IN THE DRAFT?<\/p>\n Gippsland Power utility Willem Duursma is seen as the consensus top talent heading into Wednesday night\u2019s count \u2014 sitting atop Fox Footy draft expert Ben Waterworth\u2019s top 50 rankings<\/a>. <\/p>\n Duursma, who has been compared to Hawthorn\u2019s Will Day, has an elite kick, great lateral movement and the versatility to play in multiple positions on the field. It\u2019s seen as a fait accompli that the West Coast Eagles will make him the first overall selection. <\/p>\n This year\u2019s intake is considerably compromised, however, with four of Waterworth\u2019s top prospects not available in the open pool due to being club-tied as academy graduates or father-son prospects. <\/p>\n Zeke Uwland \u2014 an Errol Gulden-like line-breaker sitting at no.2 in the rankings \u2014 will have a rival bid matched by the Gold Coast Suns, while no.5, the explosive and damaging Dylan Patterson, is an academy teammate of Uwland\u2019s and is thus also Gold Coast-bound. <\/p>\n Brisbane Academy product Dan Annable is considered a top-three prospect and will be a tremendous long-term addition to the Lions\u2019 star-studded midfield. <\/p>\n And then there\u2019s Harry Dean \u2014 the foremost defensive prospect in this year\u2019s class \u2014 who\u2019ll follow in father Peter\u2019s footsteps and don navy blue after potentially drawing a bid in the top five or six picks. <\/p>\n Calder Cannons ruck-forward Cooper Duff-Tytler is considered the number-two open-pool talent, flashing \u2018unicorn\u2019 potential in the Luke Jackson mould, standing at 200 centimetres. He is also tipped to become an Eagle, provided West Coast stands pat with the opening two selections. <\/p>\n After Duursma and Duff-Tytler, many consider all-time bolter Sullivan Robey to be the next-best cab off the rank, with the Eastern Ranges forward-midfielder coming from the clouds to ascend to top-10-pick status. <\/p>\n Waterworth believes Robey is the \u201cbiggest bolter in an AFL draft since Clayton Oliver (Pick 4 in 2015)\u201d. <\/p>\n Hard-headed South Australian midfielder Dyson Sharp boasts leadership capabilities in addition to his ball-winning ability and cleanliness at the coalface, while versatile Victorian defender Xavier Taylor has drawn comparisons to Hawthorn\u2019s Josh Weddle due to his tantalising two-way game while standing at 191 centimetres. <\/p>\n RELATED: Best draft prospects ranked 1-50 and AFL stars they play like<\/a><\/p>\n Everything you need to know about the 2025 draft.Source: FOX SPORTS<\/p>\n WHAT ARE THE BIG STORYLINES OF THE DRAFT?<\/p>\n When will the bids come? And how many will there be?<\/p>\n This year\u2019s draft is considered by many to be the most compromised in history, with a litany of top prospects not available in the open pool as the northern and Next Generation academies continue to pay fruitful dividends. <\/p>\n It\u2019s expected that West Coast and Richmond, who cumulatively hold the opening four picks of the draft, will do the majority of the early bidding as it pertains to upper-echelon club-tied talent Uwland, Dean, Patterson and Annable. <\/p>\n The Eagles are widely anticipated to make Duursma the natural first overall selection, but they may end up using their second selection to bid on both of Uwland and Dean before the Tigers get on the clock and likely make the Suns and Lions pay up for Patterson and Annable respectively. <\/p>\n Waterworth believes<\/a> the highly-touted quartet are more likely than not to all be off the board after seven picks. <\/p>\n But the bidding will be far from over from there, with a host of Next Generation Academy products set to attract plenty of interest early in the order. <\/p>\n Sydney-tied duo Harry Kyle and Max King will receive rival bids, with Kyle potentially set to be the fifth club-tied name off the board in the middle of the first round. <\/p>\n Jai Murray (Gold Coast), Jack Ison (Carlton), Tylah Williams (West Coast Eagles) and Adam Sweid (Essendon) are among the other relevant academy names, with Waterworth predicting<\/a> 10 bids among the draft\u2019s first 30 selections. <\/p>\n Where will the trades come, and why?<\/p>\n Carlton is expected to trade its ninth and 11th selections in preparation for an earlier-than-anticipated rival bid for in-demand key defender Harry Dean. <\/p>\n The Eagles now appear more likely than not to take a swing at Dean at no.2 overall, with the Blues set to trade the no.9 pick to Essendon and the 11th choice to North Melbourne. <\/p>\n The Blues will receive two picks in the 20s from the Bombers and an early-second-rounder and a future second from the Roos in order to stockpile more draft points. <\/p>\n Which directions will Tigers, Bombers go?<\/p>\n What Richmond decides to do with its two top-five picks is an intriguing talking point, given that once the early bidding is done, there are multiple directions they could go. <\/p>\n