Michael Voss resigns as coach of Carlton after losses

Michael Voss has resigned as Carlton coach with the club winning just one of its first nine matches this season and sitting 16th on the AFL ladder.

Assistant coach Josh Fraser is set to take over as interim coach as the team prepares to play the Western Bulldogs this Saturday.

Here’s what to know.

Who is Voss?

Voss is one of the most decorated figures in AFL history.

He captained the Brisbane Lions to three consecutive premierships between 2001 and 2003, won a joint Brownlow Medal in 1996, and earned five All-Australian selections.

The 50-year-old began his senior coaching career at Brisbane, leading the Lions for five seasons before being sacked in 2013. He later spent seven years as an assistant coach at Port Adelaide before taking over Carlton ahead of the 2022 season.

In 2023, Voss led the Blues to a Preliminary Final – the club’s deepest finals run since finishing runner-up in 1999.

Why did he resign?

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Carlton's decline has been steep.

The Blues were second on the ladder as late as Round 19 in 2024, but won just one of their final six games that season. They scraped into finals in eighth spot before a first-week elimination loss to Brisbane.

A 9-14 record followed in 2025, while an off-season exodus saw several high-profile players leave the club.

The past 18 months have also been marked by repeated second-half collapses. In Round 3 this year, Carlton blew a 43-point lead against Melbourne before losing by 23 points. A four-goal collapse against North Melbourne followed a week later.

Off-field scrutiny also intensified. In Round 6, a narrow loss to Collingwood was overshadowed by the club’s handling of Elijah Hollands, who experienced a mental health episode during the match. The AFL fined Carlton $75,000 over the incident last week.

What happens now?

Fraser will lead the team for the rest of the year while the club searches for a permanent replacement. According to AFL.com.au, Carlton is expected to target a first-time senior coach, with CEO Graham Wright having previously hired then-untried Craig McRae at Collingwood.

Captain Patrick Cripps, on his way to a club meeting this morning, described Voss as "a great mentor and a great coach to me."