In Australia, Soccer, also known as Britishfootball, is the most played outdoor team sport,[3][4] and ranked in the top ten for television audience as of 2015.[5] The national governing body of the sport is Football Australia (FA) which comprises nine state and territory member federations, which oversee the sport within their respective region. The season in Australia is played during the summer, to avoid clashing with Australian rules and Rugby league which dominant spectator and media interest there.
The men's and women's national teams, known as the Socceroos and the Matildas respectively, compete globally. Australia cohosted the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup with New Zealand. The Matildas finished fourth in that tournament (Australia's best ever performance at any World Cup, male or female), and the majority of Australians watched them play on television or at the stadium. It had a major impact on Australian sport, and the phenomenon is commonly known as "Matildas fever".
An early match took place at the Woogaroo Lunatic Asylum, located in Wacol in suburban Brisbane, on 7 August 1875, when a team of inmates and wards men from the asylum played against the visiting BrisbaneAustralian rules football club; the rules of the match which clearly stated that the "ball should not be handled nor carried" was a direct reference to British Association Rules.[6]
A match was recorded to be played in Hobart on 10 May 1879, when members of the Cricketer's Club played a scratch match under English Association Rules, which were adopted by the club.[7] The game was a return match to one played on 24 May by the clubs, under a variant of the Victorian rules; to prevent the disadvantage faced by the Cricketers, the clubs agreed that that Association rules would be adopted in the return match.[7]
The first recorded match in Sydney under the Laws of the Game was contested between Wanderers and members of the Kings Schoolrugby team at Parramatta Common on 14 August 1880.[8] The Wanderers, considered the first soccer club in Australia, was established on 3 August 1880, by English-émigréJohn Walter Fletcher. Later, in 1882, Fletcher formed the New South Wales English Football Association (also referred to as the South British Football Soccer Association), the very first administrative governing body of soccer within Australia and one of the first to be established outside the United Kingdom.[8]
As soccer continued to grow throughout Australia, John Fletcher's New South Wales soccer association gave inspiration to other states to establish their own governing bodies for the sport. In 1884, Victoria formed its own association, the Anglo-Australian Football Association (now Football Victoria), as did Queensland, in the Anglo-Queensland Football Association (now, Football Queensland), and Northern New South Wales, in the Northern District British Football Association (now, Northern New South Wales Football). In 1896, the Western Australian Soccer Football Association was formed. In 1900, a Tasmanian association was formed, and later, the South Australian British Football Association was formed in 1902.[11]
20th century
Association football (soccer) team of the 'Australian Squadron' of the British Royal Navy. HMS Psyche. 1910
It was not until 1911 that a governing body was formed to oversee soccer activities in the whole of Australia. The first such organisation was called the Commonwealth Football Association.[12] However, this body was superseded by the Australian Soccer Association, which was formed in 1921.[8]
Australia is regarded as the first country where squad numbers in soccer were used for the first time when Sydney Leichardt and HMS Powerful players displayed numbers on their backs, in 1911.[13] One year later, numbering in soccer would be ruled as mandatory in New South Wales.[14]
The first Australia national team playing in game 2 against New Zealand during Australia's first ever tour to New Zealand in 1922
On 17 June 1922, the first Australian national representative soccer team was constituted by the Australian Soccer Association to represent Australia for a tour of New Zealand. During the tour the Australia men's national team lost two out of the three matches against the newly formed New Zealand side.[15]
A football pitch used by the Federal Woollen Mills team in North Geelong, Victoria. Photo circa 1925/1935
After World War I, large numbers of British and southern European arrived seeking opportunities in new industries across parts of Australia which led to establishing soccer as a major sport in the country.[16]
Australian Imperial Force play a saturday afternoon soccer game in Darwin. Signals versus Navy. 1943
A distinct rise in popularity in New South Wales and Victoria, among other states, was linked to the post-World War II immigration. Migrant players and supporters were prominent, providing the sport with a new but distinct profile. Soccer served as a cultural gateway for many emigrants, acting as a social lubricant. Soccer transcended cultural and language barriers in communities which bridged the gap between minority communities and other classes within the country, thus bringing about a unique unity.[17][18]
Game of soccer at the Bonegilla Migrant Reception Centre. North East Victoria 1952.
In 1956, Australia became a FIFA member through the Australian Soccer Association. Though Australia's membership was soon suspended in 1960 after disobeying FIFA mandate on recruiting foreign players without a transfer fee.[19] In 1961, the Australian Soccer Federation was formed and later admitted to FIFA in 1963, after outstanding fines had been paid. In 1966, Australia became founding members of the Oceania Football Federation (now Oceania Football Confederation).[20]
Pre-1960s, competitive soccer in Australia was state-based. In 1962, the Australia Cup was established,[21] but its ambition of becoming an FA Cup style knockout competition went unfulfilled with its demise in 1968. In 1977, the first national soccer competition, the National Soccer League, was founded.[22]
Migrants continued to boost interest in and player for the sport in the 1970s and 1980s, especially from the Middle East and from the former Yugoslavia.[23]
In 1984, the National Soccer Youth League was founded as a reserve and academy league to run in parallel to the National Soccer League. In 1996, the first national women's soccer competition, the Women's National Soccer League was founded. The National Soccer League and those for women and youth flourished through the 1980s and early 1990s, though with the increasing departure of Australian players to overseas leagues.[citation needed]
Soccer reached notable popularity among Australian people during the second half of the 20th century. Johnny Warren, a prominent advocate for the sport, who was a member of the Australia national team at their first FIFA World Cup appearance in 1974, entitled his memoir Sheilas, Wogs, and Poofters (a reference to the Australian slang: sheila, wog, poofter), giving an indication of how Warren considered the wider Australian community viewed "wogball".[8]
In the mid-1990s, Soccer Australia (the governing body for the sport) attempted under the Chairmanship of David Hill to shift soccer into the Australian mainstream and away from direct club-level association with migrant roots. Many clubs across the country were required to change their names and badges to represent a more inclusive community.[24]
21st century
The sport experienced major change in the country in 2003, after the then Minister for Sport, Rod Kemp, and the Australian Parliament commissioned a report by the Independent Soccer Review Committee. Its findings in the structure, governance and management of soccer in Australia led the restructure of Football Federation Australia (previously Australian Soccer Federation, Soccer Australia, Australia Soccer Association) and later in 2005, the succeeding relaunched national competition, the A-League.
The restructuring of the sport in Australia also saw the adoption of "football" by administrators, in preference to "soccer", to align with the general international name of the sport.[25] Although the use of "football" was largely cultural, as part of an attempt to reposition the sport within Australia, there were also "practical and corporate reasons for the change", including a need for the sport to break away from the baggage left over from previous competitions.[25] However, the move created problems within the wider community, engendering confusion due to the naming conflict with other football codes, and creating conflict with other sporting bodies.[26]
Australia ended a 32-year absent streak when the nation team qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The team's qualification and success in the tournament helped increase the profile and popularity of the sport in the country.[27]
The national team qualified for second and third consecutive FIFA World Cups in 2010 and 2014; and placed second in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup. The joining of Western Sydney Wanderers to the A-League in 2012 saw a rise in interest for the league within Australia, particularly increasing mainstream interest[28] and re-engagement with disaffected Western Sydney soccer fans. Also, the formation of the National Premier Leagues in 2013 and subsequent restructuring of state leagues as part of the National Competition Review and Elite Player Pathway Review has paved the way for the development of the sport throughout the country.[29][30] The launch of the Australia Cup (then known as FFA Cup) in 2014 has also similarly increased mainstream interest and grassroots development.[citation needed]
In 2020, Football Federation Australia officially unveiled a plan called "XI Principles for the future of Australian Football", shortened as Vision 2035, with the aim to restructure and expand football across the country, with the rebranding of the domestic league, establishment of a national second division, alignment with FIFA Domestic Match Calendar, restart and rebuilding of Australian football products (mainly by fixing the youth football development), reducing costs of football in the country, possibility of establishing promotion and relegation system, and expansion of women's football, with the aim to achieve the Vision 2035 for football in the country.[31]
In summer 2021, Football Australia officials announced a series of major reforms: the shift in calendar by aligning with Domestic Match Calendar and to avoid clashing with FIFA days so it could help the Socceroos to compete; establishment of a second-tier professional league; club licensing framework; domestic transfer system; as well a potential adoption of promotion-relegation system, expected to be implemented by 2022–23.[32][33]
FA is underpinned by nine member federations which oversee all aspects of the sport within their respective region, including the organisation of state league and cup tournaments as opposed to national tournaments which are organised by FA. Member federations are state-based, although New South Wales is divided into a northern and southern federation.[34]
Former and current Australian professional soccer players are represented by the Professional Footballers Australia (PFA), a trade union affiliated with the Australian Council of Trade Unions and a member of FIFPro, the global representative organisation for professional soccer players.[35] The association tends to soccer players' pay and conditions, and also protects soccer players from unfair dismissal.
The A-League Men was founded in 2005 after Australia's former top-flight national league National Soccer League was replaced. The A-League Men is contested between 12 clubs. The league covers the only competition controlled by the Australian Professional Leagues and the only professional league in Australia.
National Second Division
The National Second Division is the upcoming Australian second-tier professional division, and is expected to begin from 2025.[36]
National Premier Leagues
The National Premier Leagues has 90 clubs, divided into eight divisions by state. Despite the organisational split, promotion and relegation does not take place between the A-League and NPL.
State-league soccer
Below the NPL, is what is commonly known as "state-league". This refers to clubs outside of NPL, although they still play in organised league competitions for each state in the Australian system.
District soccer
There are many district leagues and soccer clubs in Australia, examples include NSW districts Bankstown, Blacktown, Eastern Suburbs with their own semi-professional leagues with clubs from their respective districts.
Youth leagues
Many club sides have youth teams. The top level of youth soccer in Australia is the A-League Youth, founded for all A-League Men clubs that have Youth sides. The league, which currently has 10 teams, is divided into two groups each with five teams. The winners of both groups contest the end-of-season Grand Final to decide the league champions.
Cup competitions
There are several cup competitions for clubs at different levels of the soccer pyramid. The only major cup competitions are the Australia Cup.
The Australia Cup, first held in 2014, is the only major cup competition in Australia. It is open to around 700 clubs in levels 1–9 of the soccer pyramid.
The Waratah Cup, first held in 1991, is a New South Wales cup played through all levels of teams from the NSW league system.
The Canale Cup, first held in 1894, is the oldest knockout competition in Australia and is played through Brisbane teams below the National Premier Leagues.
According to Ausplay in 2024, there were 1,232,726 adults and 632,249 children playing the sport of which about a quarter were female with an overall participation per capita of 6.9% making it the most participated team sport.[1]
According to FIFA's Big Count in 2006, a total of 970,728 people in Australia participated in the sport, with 435,728 registered players, and 535,000 unregistered players.[37] These numbers were higher than the equivalents for other sports such as cricket, Australian rules football, rugby league and rugby union.[38] In 2013, an audit on the sport by Gemba found that 1.96 million Australians were actively involved in the game as a player.[39] When coaches, referees and fans are included it is estimated that involvement with the sport is around 3.1 million.[40]
National Men's soccer teams of various age groups represent Australia in international competition. Australian national teams historically competed in the OFC, though since FFA's move in 2006, Australian teams have competed in AFC competitions.
In the Olympic arena, Australia first fielded a men's team at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne. Australia did not compete again in the Olympic arena, until the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. Apart from London 2012, where it failed to qualify a team, Australia has competed in all Olympic Men's Football competitions since 1988.[43]
There are also a number of national youth teams: Under-17 team, nicknamed the "Joeys"; Under-20 team, nicknamed the "Young Socceroos"; and the Under-23 team, nicknamed the "Olyroos". The latter is considered to be a feeder team for the national team.
The participation of Australian women in soccer was first recorded in the early 1920s.[8] It has since become one of the country's most popular women's team sports. As with the men's game, the women's game in Australia saw a large expansion following the post-war immigration, though it is only in recent years that women's soccer has gained momentum, with such factors as the creation of the W-League and the success of the Australia women's national soccer team nicknamed "the Matildas" aiding the increasing popularity of the game.[8][44][45] In 2021 the W-League was renamed to A-League Women.[46]
Women's soccer was added to the Olympic program in 1996, with Australia first fielding a Women's team at Sydney 2000. Australia fielded a team at the Athens 2004 Olympics, but did not qualify for the final Olympic tournament again until Rio 2016.[43]
Australia cohosted the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup with New Zealand. The Matildas finished fourth in that tournament (Australia's best ever performance at any World Cup, male or female), and the majority of Australians watched them play on television or at the stadium. It had a major impact on Australian sport, and the phenomenon is commonly known as "Matildas fever".
In April 2024, the 2023–24 A-League Women season set the record for the most attended season of any women's sport in Australian history, with the season recording a total attendance of 284,551 on 15 April 2024,[47][48][49][50] and finishing with a final total attendance of 312,199.[51]
Futsal, an indoor variant of soccer, was introduced in Australia in the early 1970s and soon gained popularity after a wet period during the winter football season forced players indoors where they took up the new sport.[52][53]
Media coverage
Pay television is the predominant outlet for both domestic and international soccer in Australia. Some games can also be heard on local radio stations. The anti-siphoning list which controls what must be kept on free to air television in Australia includes only specific international matches, including all matches at the FIFA World Cup and FIFA Women's World Cup featuring Australia as well as both the FIFA World Cup Final and the FIFA Women's World Cup Final.
In 2007, a A$120 million, seven-year broadcasting deal between FFA and Fox Sports Australia gave the subscription television exclusive rights to all Australia internationals, all A-League and AFC Asian Cup fixtures, FIFA World Cup qualifiers through the AFC, and all AFC Champions League matches.[54] In 2013, FFA signed a joint A$160 million, four-year deal with Fox Sports and SBS for the A-League.[55] SBS would show a delayed simulcast for the second round of 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification,[56] before the Nine Network broadcast the live simulcast rights for the third round and intercontinental play-offs.[57] In 2017, Fox Sports renewed its deal with FFA for a further six years, with Network 10 simulcasting one A-League match each week.[58]ABC TV would later receive the simulcast rights for the 2019/20 and 2020/21 seasons.[59] In 2020, Fox Sports terminated its contract following financial losses from the COVID-19 pandemic.[60]Paramount+ currently holds the broadcasting rights for the A-Leagues and AFC Champions League competitions until the end of the 2025/26 season,[61] along with all Socceroos and Matildas matches until 2028.[62] Network 10 currently holds simulcast rights for some matches.
Since 1986, SBS has been the official Australian broadcast rights holder for the FIFA World Cup, and the television network will continue to hold the rights to the competition until 2026.[63] The Nine Network broadcast sixteen matches of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, including exclusive coverage of the final, and would also have shown all Australian matches had the Socceroos qualified.[64] Similarly, Optus Sport briefly held exclusive rights to every game of the 2018 FIFA World Cup before relinquishing them to SBS due to technical issues.[65]
Soccer is a widely supported sport in Australia, with most Australians following the Socceroos and the Matildas. Many Australians also follow an A-League club and/or other foreign clubs, most commonly English clubs that play in either the Premier League or the Championship.[citation needed]
Many Australians, male and female, play for foreign clubs. The majority of both Socceroos and Matildas players play for clubs outside Australia, mostly for clubs in England. As of the 2024–25 season, fourteen Australians play in the Women's Super League (WSL),[69] with two in the Premier League.
Ange Postecoglou is the first ever Australian to manage a Premier League club, having managed Tottenham Hotspur since 2023. He has heavily contributed to the club's rising popularity in Australia.[citation needed]
The following articles are an incomplete list of Seasons in Soccer in Australia since 1884. Each article covers the leagues and competitions played that season, as well as games played by all national teams during that period. National soccer in Australia was not played until the 1962 season as the first 78 seasons only played regional soccer.
53 teams have taken part in 47 National Soccer League and A-League seasons that have been played from the 1977 season until the 2023–24 season. The teams in bold compete in the A-League Men currently.
Football Australia is the governing body of soccer, futsal, and beach soccer within Australia, headquartered in Sydney. Although the first governing body of the sport was founded in 1911, Football Australia in its current form was only established in 1961 as the Australian Soccer Federation. It was later reconstituted in 2003 as the Australian Soccer Association before adopting the name of Football Federation Australia in 2005. In contemporary identification, a corporate decision was undertaken to institute that name to deliver a "more united football" in a deliberation from the current CEO, James Johnson. The name was changed to Football Australia in December 2020.
John Norman Warren, MBE, OAM was an Australian soccer player, coach, administrator, writer and broadcaster. He was known as Captain Socceroo for his passionate work to promote the game in Australia. The award for the best player in the A-League is named the Johnny Warren Medal in his honour.
Lucas Edward Neill is an Australian former soccer player. Neill played as a defender, often playing as a centre back as well as a full-back. Neill spent almost 15 years of his career playing in England. He represented Australia at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, the 2007 AFC Asian Cup, the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, and also the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar. On 6 October 2006 he was named the 50th captain of the Australian national team, and by the time of his retirement, had amassed a record 61 caps as captain. He played for Millwall, Blackburn Rovers, West Ham United, Everton, Galatasaray, Al Jazira, Al Wasl, Sydney FC, Omiya Ardija, Watford and Doncaster Rovers.
David Allen Zdrilic is an Australian association football coach and former player, who is currently the head coach of A-League Men club Perth Glory. Zdrilic is also a football presenter on the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), Most recently he was a key figure in SBS's coverage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
In Western Australia (WA), soccer is the most participated code of football, though it is a distant second in overall interest behind Australian rules football in Western Australia. It is governed by Football West. Football West runs the National Premier Leagues Western Australia, State Leagues, Sunday League and Metropolitan League. There are also numerous casual and school competitions, as well as futsal and indoor soccer in competitive and social games.
Paul Michael Okon is a former Australian soccer player who played as a defender or midfielder. He has Belgian citizenship.
Perth Rectangular Stadium is a sports stadium in Perth, the capital of the Australian state of Western Australia. Located close to Perth's central business district, the stadium currently has a maximum capacity of 20,500 people for sporting events and 25,000 people for concerts, with the ground's record attendance of 32,000 people set during an Ed Sheeran concert in 2015. The land on which the stadium was built, known as Loton Park, was made a public reserve in 1904, with the main ground developed several years later.
Ante Milicic ( AN-tay MIL-ə-chitch; Croatian: Ante Miličić ; is an Australian soccer manager and former professional player who currently is the head coach of the China women's national football team.
Simon Hill is an English football commentator based in Australia. He is also a gifted musician and vocalist, specialising on the drums. He plays in several bands.
Soccer in the Australian Capital Territory is predominantly amateur with a local, interstate, national and international history. Soccer in the ACT is organised and administered by Capital Football and involves teams from within the ACT and surrounding NSW regions, Monaro, Southern Tablelands and Riverina.
McKellar Park, formerly known as Belconnen Soccer Centre and McKellar Soccer Centre, is an association football stadium in the Canberra suburb of McKellar, in Australia. The playing surface is rectangular in shape and is used almost exclusively for association football matches. The venue is the home ground of National Premier Leagues Capital Football club Belconnen United FC and W-League club Canberra United FC.
A-League Women, formerly the W-League, is the top-division women's soccer league in Australia. The W-League was established in 2008 by Football Australia and was originally composed of eight teams of which seven had an affiliation with an existing A-League Men's club. As of the 2022–23 season, the league is contested by twelve teams. The league, as well as the A-League Men and A-League Youth are administered by the Australian Professional Leagues.
Michelle Pearl Heyman is an Australian soccer player and commentator who as of 2024 plays for Canberra United FC in the A-League in Australia. She became the all-time record goalscorer in the W-League in March 2021 after scoring her 73rd goal. Heyman first represented Australia in the Matildas in 2010, playing at the 2014 AFC Women's Asian Cup, the 2015 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics. In May 2019, she retired from international football, but returned to the team in January 2024 when she was called up following an injury to Matildas' striker Sam Kerr.
Samantha May Kerr is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a striker for Women's Super League club Chelsea, and the Australia women's national team, which she has captained since 2019. Known for her speed, skill, and tenacity, Kerr is widely considered one of the best strikers in the world, and one of Australia's greatest athletes.
Emily Louise van Egmond is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for San Diego Wave FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) and the Australia national team. She previously played for German side 1. FFC Frankfurt and VfL Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga, Danish side Fortuna Hjørring in the Elitedivisionen, Chicago Red Stars and Orlando Pride in the NWSL, West Ham United in the FA Women's Super League, as well as Canberra United, Western Sydney Wanderers, Newcastle Jets and Melbourne City in Australia's W-League.
Stephanie-Elise Catley is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a defender for Women's Super League club Arsenal and the Australia national team. She can play in many positions in defence, such as left-back, centre-back or sweeper.
The Australia women's national soccer team is overseen by the governing body for soccer in Australia, Football Australia, which is currently a member of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the regional ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) since leaving the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) in 2006. The team's official nickname is "the Matildas" ; they were known as the "Female Socceroos" before 1995.
Women's soccer, also known as women's football, is a popular sport in Australia. The sport has a high level of participation in the country both recreational and professional. Football Australia is the national governing body of the sport in Australia, organising the A-League Women, the Australian women's national team, and the nine state governing bodies of the game, among other duties. Women's participation of modern soccer has been recorded since the early 1920s. It has since become one of Australia's most popular women's team sports.
Optus Sport is an Australian group of sports channels, owned by Optus launched on 13 July 2016. Optus created the service after it outbid Foxtel for the English Premier League broadcasting rights in Australia. It is the main broadcaster of non-Australian soccer in Australia, broadcasting the Premier League, J.League, K League, UEFA international matches and the Women's Super League.
Cortnee Brooke Vine is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a winger for the North Carolina Courage of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) and the Australia national team.
References
1 2 3 Commission, Australian Sports Commission; jurisdiction=Commonwealth of Australia; corporateName=Australian Sports. "AusPlay results". Sport Australia. Retrieved 5 November 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
↑ Rosenberga, Buck Clifford. (2009). "The Australian football wars: fan narratives of inter‐code and intra‐code conflict". Soccer & Society. 10:2. pp. 245-260.
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