Will Lewis is officially an AFL footballer.
The 26-year-old has joined the Western Bulldogs via the pre-season supplementary selection period, becoming yet another Footscray graduate to enter the AFL.
Lewis played in the 2025 Footscray flag, before helping Old Brighton secure the VAFA premiership only a week later.
He played 19 games last season after five in 2024, and kicked 40 goals, including two in the Grand Final.
Lewis had been training with the Dogs' AFL program across the pre-season.
Player Acquisition and Strategy Manager Michael Regan was pleased to bring Lewis into the AFL program.
"We're really pleased to bring Will onto the list," Regan said.
"It's a great story of perseverance for Will and another representation of the positive impact our VFL program continues to have on the development of our players."
"He has put together consistent seasons with the support of people like Stewart Edge and Alex Johnson, readying him for the next step in his football journey.
"Will has great competitive attributes and an ability to genuinely impact games and will be a good strong character for our locker room."
An engineer by trade, he was told of the news in the team meeting this morning.
“I’m obviously over the moon - I haven’t wiped the smile off my face since I found out,” Lewis said.
“I’ve been pinching myself…I can’t actually believe what’s happened in the last little bit.
“I’ve been working as an engineer the last five years, and then playing here (with Footscray). To then get the opportunity to train over the last couple of weeks here and get the list spot now…it’s been a long journey to get here, but one that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed."
Lewis becomes the third Footscray VFL player to be elevated to an AFL senior list via pre-season supplementary selection, following Anthony Scott (Western Bulldogs) in 2020 and Lachie Sullivan (Collingwood) in 2023.
