Country | Australia (9 teams) |
---|---|
Other club(s) from | New Zealand (1 team) |
Confederation | AFC |
Founded | April 2004 |
First season | 2005–06 |
Number of teams | 10 |
Level on pyramid | 1 |
Domestic cup(s) | FFA Cup |
International cup(s) | AFC Champions League |
Current champions |
Adelaide United (1st title) (2015–16) |
Current premiers |
Sydney FC (2nd title) (2016–17) |
Most championships |
Brisbane Roar Melbourne Victory (3 titles each) |
Most premierships | Melbourne Victory (3 titles) |
TV partners |
Fox Sports (Australia) SBS (Australia) Sky Sport (New Zealand) |
Website | a-league |
2016–17 A-League |
The A-League is a professional men's soccer league run by Football Federation Australia (FFA). At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's primary competition for the sport. The A-League was established in 2004 as a successor to the National Soccer League (NSL) and competition commenced in August 2005. The league is currently contested by ten teams; nine based in Australia and one based in New Zealand. It is known as the Hyundai A-League (HAL) through a sponsorship arrangement with the Hyundai Motor Company.
Seasons run from October to May and include a 27-round regular season and an end-of-season finals series playoff tournament involving the highest-placed teams, culminating in a grand final match. The winner of the regular season tournament is dubbed 'premier' and the winner of the grand final is 'champion'. This differs from the other major football codes in Australia, where 'premier' refers to the winner of the grand final and the winner of the regular season is the 'minor premier'.
Successful A-League clubs gain qualification into the continental competition, the Asian Football Confederation Champions League (ACL) also known as "AFC Champions League". Similar to the United States and Canada's Major League Soccer, as well as other professional sports leagues in both Australia and in the United States of America, Australia's A-League does not practice promotion and relegation, unlike various football leagues in Europe.
Since the league's inaugural season, a total of six clubs have been crowned A-League Premiers and five clubs have been crowned A-League Champions. The current premier and champion is Adelaide United, who finished first in 2015–16 as well as winning the 2016 A-League Grand Final.