Betting odds have picked Collingwood’s Nick Daicos as the favourite to win this year’s Brownlow Medal after just falling short of the award in the last two seasons.

AFL greats began arriving at the Crown Melbourne from 5.30pm on Monday night ahead of the ceremony, beginning at 8pm.

Daicos is the frontrunner for the award for the third year in a row, having lost the medal to Gold Coast’s Matt Rowell by seven votes in 2025 and Carlton’s Patrick Cripps by seven votes in 2024.

The Brownlow Medal is awarded to the best and fairest player according to umpires.

Umpires award votes to the three best players of every game, excluding finals.

The best player is given three votes, followed by two votes for the second-best and one vote for the third-best.

Collingwood’s Nick Daicos (pictured with partner Arlette Amor) has been picked as the favourite to win the 2026 Brownlow Medal

Daicos (above) has already won the 2026 AFL Coaches Association Champion Player with a record 147 votes and Leigh Matthews Trophy

The number of votes is kept secret until the Brownlow ceremony.

Players who have been suspended for a week or more are not eligible for the medal. 

However, that rule came too late to exclude the suspended Swans players – Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner, Nick Blakey, Riley Bice and James Jordon.

Heeney has been marked a top-10 contender for the award. 

However, betting platforms have pegged Daicos as by far the strongest competitor with bets starting at $1.01.

Odds for the other top contenders were significantly lower. Bets for Geelong’s Bailey Smith sat at $67, followed by Western Bulldogs’ Marcus Bontempelli at $81, and Carlton’s Patrick Cripps at $101.

The odds for other top contenders were significantly lower with bets for Daicos’ win running at $1.01 while second-best competitor Geelong’s Bailey Smith (above) sat at $67

Marcus Bontempelli (pictured with wife Neila Bontempelli) was picked as the third-favourite to win

Nick Daicos

Daicos has had an amazing 2026 season and has been picked as the favourite to claim this year’s Brownlow Medal. 

The star Collingwood player has already claimed the 2026 AFL Coaches Association Champion Player award with a record 147 votes and Leigh Matthews Trophy. 

Daicos was also given a spot on the All-Australian team for the fourth year in a row. 

Bailey Smith

Even better in his second season at Geelong, powering his team to a semi-final with outstanding work inside and outside the contest. 

Smith was the only player other than Daicos to average more than 32 disposals per game this year. 

Bontempelli (above) is a two-time Brownlow runner-up and was runner-up to Daicos in both the players’ and coaches’ awards

Marcus Bontempelli 

A two-time runner-up, with another four top-10 finishes, the widely-respected Bulldogs captain shapes as a likely bridesmaid once again. 

Bontempelli was runner-up to Daicos in both the players’ and coaches’ awards.

Patrick Cripps

Already a two-time Brownlow winner, Cripps could cement himself among the all-time greats with an upset this year. 

But it appears beyond him even after a superb finish as the slow-starting Blues rattled home under Josh Fraser to reach the finals.