Top 5 teams with the most Wooden Spoons in AFL history
North Melbourne, who were AFL Wooden Spoon winners in two of the last three seasons, are on their way to another at the bottom of the AFL ladder. They are also about to join the record owners of no wins, St Kilda, if nothing changes.
The Wooden Spoon is an unofficial title given to the last-placed team in the home and away rounds of the AFL season. It was inspired by the Wooden Spoon given to 19th century Cambridge students. The first nominees for it were mathematics students who only scored the minimum points in their exams.
Every team has gotten it at least once, except Port Adelaide, who joined the league in 1997.
When the Gold Coast Suns and GWS Giants won the Wooden Spoon in the 2011 and 2012 seasons respectively, they joined the list of clubs who won it in their inaugural VFL/AFL season.
Top 5 teams with the most Wooden Spoon in AFL history
#5 Sydney with 11
Sydney won their first Wooden Spoon in 1903. This was seven seasons after the creation of the VFL. They only won two games and lost the remaining 12 they played. They won the next one in 1922 when they won four, drew one and lost 11 games. They won the title again in 1938, 1939, 1962, 1971, 1973 and 1975.
They faced the worst run of form in their history when they won it in three consecutive seasons: 1992, 1993 and 1994. There were rumours flying that the AFL intended to merge the club with the Brisbane Bears but ultimately decided to offer monetary and management support.
The reorganization of the club was successful and the last time they finished rock bottom of the ladder was the 1994 season.
#4 Hawthorn with 11
Hawthorn joined the VFL in 1925 and were Wooden Spoon winners immediately. They won just three of their matches and lost the remaining 14. They won the Spoon again in 1927, 1928 and 1932.
Despite being one of the most successful clubs in V/AFL history, the 40s were the darkest period for the club. They won the Wooden Spoon in 1941, 1942, 1946 and 1949. They finished second to the last in 1944, 1947 and 1948. They only managed a first-half ladder finish in 1943.
They won the Spoon again in 1950 and 1953 but moved to being a mid-ladder team consistently in the 50s, winning their last Wooden Spoon in 1965.
#3 Melbourne with 12
Melbourne won their first Spoons back to back in 1905 and 1906. They won again in 1919 and 1923. They enjoyed decades of dominance and won it just twice in 1951 and 1969. They entered the decades of disappointment and only got to the finals in the 1987 season after picking Wooden Spoons in 1974, 1978 and 1981. They won the Spoon again in 1997.
Hard financial decisions were made by the club executives which took them away from rock bottom for a decade. They then won back-to-back Spoons in 2008 and 2009 but stayed away from rock bottom after that. The appointment of Paul Roos as coach in 2013 was the turning point for the club as they steadily improved and became competitive.
#2 North Melbourne with 15
After 29 years of waiting to enter the VFL, North Melbourne were admitted to the league in 1925. They finished 10th in their first season but won the Wooden Spoon the next season not winning a single game and only drawing one of their 18 games.
They struggled in the first 25 years of their admission, winning the Spoon in 1929, 1930, 1931, 1934, 1935, 1937 and 1940. They picked the Wooden Spoon 1956, 1961, 1968, 1970 and 1972, and enjoyed some years of dominance thereafter.
However, in recent years, the club has struggled with their form and finished in the bottom half of the table consistently since 2019 when they finished 12th. They have not finished higher than this since then. In 2021 and 2022, they were Wooden Spoon winners. This season, with 11 rounds played, they are bottom of the ladder with no wins and no draws.
#1 St Kilda with 27
St Kilda has built a reputation for being one of the worst historical teams in the AFL. They joined the breakaway VFL and many fans of the sport immediately questioned the reason for their admission.
As a part of the VFL in the early days, they lost 48 straight games. In 1899, they had the lowest score ever recorded in a VFL/AFL match: the one point against the Geelong Cats and St Kilda did not win any game until 1900 when they faced Melbourne.
They currently have the longest premiership drought and fourth-longest in history with 58 years. They also have the second-lowest all-time win percentage of any team still playing in the league.
They won their only premiership in 1966 and were minor premiers three times: 1965, 1997 and 2009. They have 27 Wooden Spoons in their name: 1897, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1902, 1904, 1909, 1910, 1920, 1924, 1943, 1945, 1947, 1948, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1977, 1979, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 2000 and 2014.