Current Clubs
Adelaide Brisbane Central Coast Melbourne Heart Melbourne Victory Newcastle Perth Sydney FC Wellington Western Sydney
There are nine clubs from Australia and one from New Zealand in the A-League. Only four of these clubs, Adelaide United, Brisbane Roar (as Queensland Roar), Newcastle Jets, and Perth Glory, existed before the A-League was formed.
Unlike most European leagues, there is no system for promotion and relegation of teams nor a national knockout cup competition along the lines of the FA Cup. The A-League system thus shares some franchising elements with most other professional leagues in Australia, Major League Soccer and other major American-based sports leagues.
Wellington Phoenix replaced the New Zealand Knights at the start of the 2007–08 season.
On 1 March 2011 the FFA officially announced that the licence held by franchise North Queensland Fury had been revoked for financial reasons.
The Newcastle Jets officially announced that their license had been handed back to the FFA, but later took it back.
On 29 February 2012, a second Queensland club, Gold Coast United, also had its licence revoked. This was later confirmed by the announcement of the new Western Sydney based club to take over its licence.
On 4 April 2012 it was announced that a new club in Western Sydney would take part in the 2012–13 A-League season.
| Team | City | Stadium | Founded | Joined | Head Coach | Captain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current A-League Clubs | ||||||
| Adelaide United | Adelaide, SA | Hindmarsh Stadium | 2003 | 2005 | John Kosmina | Eugene Galeković |
| Brisbane Roar | Brisbane, QLD | Suncorp Stadium | 1957 | 2005 | Rado Vidošić | Matt Smith |
| Central Coast Mariners | Gosford, NSW | Bluetongue Stadium | 2004 | 2005 | Graham Arnold | John Hutchinson |
| Melbourne Heart | Melbourne, VIC | AAMI Park | 2008 | 2010 | John Aloisi | Fred |
| Melbourne Victory | Melbourne, VIC | AAMI Park & Etihad Stadium | 2004 | 2005 | Ange Postecoglou | Adrian Leijer |
| Newcastle Jets | Newcastle, NSW | Hunter Stadium | 2000 | 2005 | Gary van Egmond | Jobe Wheelhouse |
| Perth Glory | Perth, WA | NIB Stadium | 1995 | 2005 | Ian Ferguson | Jacob Burns |
| Sydney FC | Sydney, NSW | Allianz Stadium | 2004 | 2005 | Frank Farina | Terry McFlynn |
| Wellington Phoenix | Wellington, NZL | Westpac Stadium | 2007 | 2007 | Ricki Herbert | Andrew Durante |
| Western Sydney Wanderers | Sydney, NSW | Parramatta Stadium | 2012 | 2012 | Tony Popovic | Michael Beauchamp |
| Team | City | Stadium | Founded | Joined | Ceased Operations | Last Head Coach | Last Captain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defunct Franchises | |||||||
| Gold Coast United | Gold Coast, QLD | Skilled Park | 2008 | 2009 | 2012 | Mike Mulvey | Michael Thwaite |
| New Zealand Knights | Auckland, NZL | North Harbour Stadium | 1998 | 2005 | 2007 | Ricki Herbert | Darren Bazeley |
| North Queensland Fury | Townsville, QLD | Dairy Farmers Stadium | 2008 | 2009 | 2011 | František Straka | Ufuk Talay |
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