Tanner Bruhn cleared as prosecutors drop case; Geelong midfielder set for AFL return

Tanner Bruhn is free to resume his AFL career after prosecutors dropped all criminal charges against the Geelong midfielder on Tuesday, November 11, 2025. The decision ends a months-long legal saga that began early this year and sidelined the 23-year-old from competition.

What changed for Tanner Bruhn today

Court officials confirmed the case against Tanner Bruhn and a co-accused was abandoned before trial, with no findings made and no convictions recorded. With the matter withdrawn, the league’s standing directive that had kept Bruhn off the field while the charges were active is no longer in effect. Club and league integrity protocols typically require routine administrative steps following a case withdrawal, but there is no remaining court barrier to his participation.

AFL status: stood down, then reinstatement pathway

When the charges were first laid in early 2025, the league stood Bruhn down from playing pending the court outcome. That approach—applied despite the absence of a formal blanket stand-down policy—drew pushback from player advocates, who argued that indefinite sidelining before a verdict was disproportionate. With the case now dropped, the expectation is that Bruhn’s eligibility reverts immediately, subject to standard fitness and list-management processes.

Geelong is preparing for pre-season, and internal planning has Bruhn returning to full club activities once routine integrity clearances are ticked. Any further comment from team officials is expected to focus on reintegration, welfare support, and football preparation rather than legal issues now resolved.

Football picture: contract, role, and timeline

From a list perspective, Tanner Bruhn remains signed through the end of 2027, having agreed to a two-year extension last year. Before the legal stand-down, he had been tracking as a starting inside midfielder, building on a 2024 campaign that delivered career highs in clearances, tackles, and minutes around centre bounces.

Key football notes at a glance:

• Contracted through 2027: Geelong retains a prime-age midfielder under term.

• Role on return: Inside-mid minutes with bursts at half-forward; contested ball, tackle pressure, and link handballs were his 2024 calling cards.

• Fitness basis: Bruhn managed a finger injury in the 2025 pre-season and did not play this year; the club’s sports science team will set a ramp-up plan that includes match simulation before scratch matches.

• Pre-season window: With list lodgements and training blocks ramping, the timing of today’s development gives Geelong scope to reintegrate Bruhn from day one of summer.

What it means for Geelong’s 2026 midfield mix

Geelong’s engine room has leaned on a rotating core of ball-winners and two-way runners. A ready Bruhn changes the calculus in three ways:

1. Contested balance: His stoppage craft and body positioning improve first-possession odds without sacrificing outside spread.

2. Defensive pressure: A top-quartile tackler on the list, Bruhn lifts turnover creation around the ball and in forward-half congestion.

3. Rotation stability: With a contracted midfielder back in the frame, the Cats can be more selective with younger depth and wing-to-inside experiments.

Player welfare and next steps

While the legal case is over, reintegration plans usually include player welfare support, privacy considerations, and communication guidelines for public settings. The club is expected to set boundaries aimed at allowing Bruhn to focus on football while respectful of all parties’ privacy.

Key next steps

• Integrity sign-off: Routine paperwork following a case withdrawal.

• Medical screen: Baseline testing after a year without senior football.

• Training block: Staged return to full-contact workloads, then match sim.

• Practice games: Early looks in pre-season fixtures if conditioning benchmarks are met.

Tanner Bruhn

With the case formally dropped, Tanner Bruhn can turn the page and return to football activities at Geelong. The timing—just as pre-season begins—gives both player and club a clean runway to plan for 2026. On-field, his clearance work, pressure acts, and composure in traffic remain valuable ingredients for a Cats midfield aiming to sharpen its contest-to-transition game.