Soccer Clubs in Australia

There are hundreds of soccer clubs in Australia. From school competitions to the World Cup, thousands of Australians play the game they call football. Not to be confused with Australian Rules Football, Australians play by the same rules as the rest of the world when it comes to soccer. All of the green continent's clubs come under the umbrella of the Football Federation Australia (FFA), the governing body for soccer.

  1. A-league

    • Between 1977 and 2004, Australian soccer's premier competition was the National Soccer League. In 2005, the Football Federation of Australia launched a new national soccer competition called the A-League with eight clubs. In 2010, ten teams competed in the A-League. Sydney FC won the regular 27-game season that began in August 2009, beating Melbourne Victory by a single point. These two teams met in the Grand Final in March 2010 that ended in a 1-1 draw. Sydney beat Melbourne in a shoot-out by 4-2. The clubs that competed in the A-League are:

      Adelaide United
      Brisbane Roar
      Central Coast Mariners
      Gold Coast United
      Melbourne Victory
      Newcastle Jets
      North Queensland Fury
      Perth Glory
      Sydney FC
      Wellington Phoenix

      Since 2006, two top teams from the A-league take to the pitch in search of glory in the Asian Football Federation's Champions League.

    International Teams

    • Australia has national teams for men, women and youth to represent the country in international soccer competitions. The men's national team, known as the "Socceroos", have competed on the international stage since 1922. The women's national soccer team, called the "Matildas," played their first international match in 1979. The soccer team Australia sent to the Olympics was once called "Olyroos." The players of the junior national team are known as "Joeys," the term for infant kangaroos. The Football Federation of Australia is a member of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), allowing the country to compete in qualifying matches for the World Cup.

    Women's National League

    • Eight teams competed in the Women's National League during the 2009-2010 Season. Sydney FC won the regular season ten-game schedule with 23 points, besting the second-place Central Coast Mariners by one point and the Brisbane Roar by two. The teams that played in the Women's League are:

      Adelaide United
      Brisbane Roar
      Canberra United
      Central Coast Mariners
      Melbourne Victory
      Newcastle Jets
      Perth Glory
      Sydney FC

    National Youth League

    • In 2008, the Football Federation of Australia launched a national league for clubs with players under 21 years of age. Nine teams competed in the 2009-2001 season. The regular 24-game season was won by the Central Cost Mariners who beat Perth Glory by one point. However, the Grand Final was won by Gold Coast United, which placed fourth after the regular season. The teams that competed in the Australia's national soccer league for youths in 2010 included:

      Adelaide United
      Australian Institute of Sport
      Brisbane Roar
      Central Coast Mariners
      Gold Coast United
      Melbourne Victory
      Newcastle United Jets
      Perth Glory
      Sydney FC

    Aboriginal Soccer

    • Indigenous Australians first played on the national team when Harry Williams stepped onto the field during the 1974 World Cup. The Australian government has special programs for promoting soccer among the aboriginal population. In 2003, teams of indigenous children traveled to Europe to play in soccer competitions. The boys' team was called the Boomerangs, while the girls' team was called the Woomeras. In 2009, the Borroloola Cyclones became the first all-aboriginal team to play an international match.

    State Federations

    • The Commonwealth of Australia is comprised of six states and two territories. There are nine football federations that are members of the Football Federation of Australia, each with dozens of men's, women's, youth and children's soccer teams. Information about all these teams are available on the federation websites.

      Capital Football (Canberra)
      capitalfootball.com.au

      Football Federation Northern Territory
      footballnt.com.au

      Football Federation South Australia
      ffsa.com.au

      Football Federation Tasmania
      footballfedtas.com.au

      Football Federation Victoria
      footballfedvic.com.au

      Football Queensland
      footballqueensland.com.au

      Football West
      footballwest.com.au

      Northern NSW Football
      northernnswfootball.com.au

      Football NSW
      footballnsw.com.au

    Soccer Club Database

    • An historical database of more than 870 Australian soccer clubs is maintained by Paul Mavroudis on the ozfootball.net website. The database of teams that have competed in national and state competitions includes information on club histories, rosters, colors, monikers, venues, mergers, performance records and results.