The AFL has dropped the 2026 fixture and while most coaches are checking when their team plays Friday night footy, the smart AFL Fantasy and SuperCoach operators are doing something far more important. They’re scanning for fixture advantages.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Winners
Zak Butters
Butters gets a dream start to 2026. North Melbourne, Essendon, West Coast and Richmond in his opening stretch. No early bye to disrupt his momentum either.
This is massive for a player who’s shown he can rack up huge numbers when given space. If you’re looking at Butters as a starting midfield premium, this fixture makes the decision even easier. He should hit the ground running.
Tristan Xerri
North Melbourne’s fixture opens up beautifully for their number one ruck. Port Adelaide, West Coast, Essendon and Carlton to start the year.
West Coast in particular is a juicy matchup. While Port Adelaide’s ruck situation remains unclear with Dante Visentini still developing, alongside Ivan Soldo and Jordan Sweet fighting for the top mantle
Hayden Young
Young’s fixture is ridiculously kind. Geelong, Melbourne, Richmond, Adelaide, Collingwood and West Coast across his opening six rounds.
Richmond and West Coast are the standouts here. He’s a genuine chance to push towards 105 or higher early. For a midfielder of his capacity to have this fixture alongside a favourable injury discount, he’s going to be a popular pick in 2026.
Christian Petracca
Round zero against Geelong is a perfect introduction game. We get the free hit look at the team and the role all before the fantasy year kicks off. Then he gets West Coast and Richmond immediately after. By the time his round three bye hits.
Here’s the kicker. He plays his former team Melbourne straight after the bye. That’s three very positive matchups to start his season.
Harley Reid
Reid gets Gold Coast, North Melbourne and Port Adelaide in his opening month. Throw that in alongside him finding scoring form late last year and he could just head towards being a breakout premium.
Darcy Parish
Parish’s fixture is sneaky good. Hawthorn, Port Adelaide, North Melbourne, Western Bulldogs and Melbourne across his opening five rounds.
If Parish can stay healthy, he gets midfield minutes and is a legitimite fantasy premium. This fixture could be the platform for him to push towards fulfiling elite midfield potential.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Losers
Nick Daicos
This one stings because Daicos is arguably the best Fantasy players in the competition. But his fixture does him no favours early. St Kilda in opening round is fine. But then he gets Adelaide, a bye in round three, then GWS, Brisbane and Fremantle to follow.
Does this mean you have to fade Daicos? Absolutely not. He’s too good to dish up a month of 90’s. But it does mean you need to be realistic about what his first six weeks might look like. He’ll still score well, but those 130 plus ceiling games might be harder to come by early.
Marcus Bontempelli
Bontempelli’s fixture is rough. Opening round against Brisbane, GWS in round one, followed by Adelaide then a bye in round three. Post break it’s Essendon, Hawthorn and Geelong.
That bye in round three is a nightmare for fantasy purposes. You’re essentially getting five games from him across the first six rounds. A few of those midfields are strong defensive units who’ll make him work for every possession.
Bontempelli is still an elite talent and will score well across the season. But this fixture makes him less appealing as a starting option compared to someone like Butters who gets a dream run.
Max Gawn
Gawn opens against St Kilda and Fremantle. Both teams have a double option ruck lineup and combined will make it hard for him to have a large ceiling score. Then he gets Carlton in round three. Easily the best matchup for the first month of 2026. It doesn’t get easier against the Gold Coast in round four.
It opens up at round five with Essendon, and rounds seven and nine give him Richmond and West Coast. But that’ll feel like ages away. If you’re starting Gawn, you need to be comfortable with a potentially rocky first three to four weeks. Personally, I’m not keen!
Errol Gulden
Gulden’s start is brutal. Carlton in opening round could be OK, but that hope dies quickly. He jumps right into Brisbane, followed by Hawthorn and then a bye in round three, The bye in round three is poorly timed too. You’re getting a few tough games, then a week off, t. It’s not until round four that his fixture eases with West Coast and Gold Coast coming up.
If you’re keen on Gulden, and there are plenty of reasons to be, you might be better off waiting until after his early bye to bring him in. Let him navigate the tough start, then pounce when his fixture softens and his price potentially dips.