A-League Men

A-League Men
Founded	2005
Country	Australia and New Zealand
Level on pyramid	1
Most championships	Sydney FC (5)
Website	keepup.com.au

A-League Men, known before the 2021–22 season as the A-League, is a soccer league which is the top division in Australia and New Zealand. It was established in 2004 as a replacement to the National Soccer League and started in August 2005. Unlike professional soccer leagues in most of the rest of the world, A-League Men has what is called a "franchise" system—the same teams play in the league each year, unless a team drops out of the league on its own, or the league decides to add one or more new teams. This system is normal for pro sports leagues in Australia, as well as in the United States and Canada.

Since the beginning of the league in 2005, fourteen teams have competed in the league with Western United becoming the last club to join the league in the 2019–20 season. From those fourteen teams, six have taken the title while seven have taken the minor premiership. The current champion is Melbourne City FC, who defeated Sydney FC in the 2021 Grand Final.

The word "Men" was added to the league name after the 2020–21 season when the country's men's, women's, and youth leagues were brought under the "A-League" brand.

History

Before A-League Men was founded, the top division of Australian soccer was the National Soccer League which ran between 1977 and 2004.

Current clubs

As of the 2023-24 season

List

Map

A-League Men clubs
As of 2023/2024
Clubs in Australia
Adelaide United Brisbane Roar CC Mariners Newcastle Jets Perth Glory class=notpageimage\| Location of clubs in Australia for the 2023 A-League Men season
Clubs in Sydney
Macarthur Sydney Western Sydney Wanderers class=notpageimage\| Location of clubs in Sydney for the 2023 A-League Men season
Clubs in Melbourne
Melbourne City Melbourne Victory Western United class=notpageimage\| Location of clubs in Melbourne for the 2023 A-League Men season
Clubs in New Zealand
Wellington Phoenix class=notpageimage\| Location of clubs in New Zealand for the 2023 A-League Men season

Former clubs

Gold Coast United (2009–2012)
New Zealand Knights (2005–2007)
North Queensland Fury (2009–2011)

Champions and premiers

A-League Men, like other professional leagues in Australia, crowns its champion at the end of a knockout playoff series involving top teams on the regular-season table. The final match is called the Grand Final, a term used in several other Australian sports. The team that finishes on top of the regular-season table is called the "Premiers". Media sometimes incorrectly call the Premiers the "minor premiers", a term used in other football codes in the country.

Season
2005–06	Sydney FC	Adelaide United
2006–07	Melbourne Victory	Melbourne Victory
2007–08	Newcastle Jets	Central Coast Mariners
2008–09	Melbourne Victory	Melbourne Victory
2009–10	Sydney FC	Sydney FC
2010–11	Brisbane Roar	Brisbane Roar
2011–12	Brisbane Roar	Central Coast Mariners
2012–13	Central Coast Mariners	Western Sydney Wanderers
2013–14	Brisbane Roar	Brisbane Roar
2014–15	Melbourne Victory	Melbourne Victory
2015–16	Adelaide United	Adelaide United
2016–17	Sydney FC	Sydney FC
2017–18	Melbourne Victory	Sydney FC
2018–19	Sydney FC	Perth Glory
2019–20	Sydney FC	Sydney FC
2020–21	Melbourne City	Melbourne City
2021–22	Western United	Melbourne City

Rivalries

Common name	Full name
The Big Blue	Melbourne Victory vs Sydney FC
The Distance Derby	Perth Glory vs Wellington Phoenix
F3 Derby	Central Mariners vs Newcastle Jets
Mariners–Wanderers Derby	Central Coast Mariners vs Western Sydney Wanderers
Melbourne City–Sydney FC Derby	Melbourne City vs Sydney FC
Melbourne Derby	Melbourne City vs Melbourne Victory
The Original Rivalry	Adelaide United vs Melbourne Victory
Sydney Derby	Sydney FC vs Western Sydney Wanderers
Wellington Phoenix–Western United Derby	Wellington Phoenix vs Western United
Westgate Derby	Melbourne Victory vs Western United

References