Full name | Western Sydney Wanderers Football Club |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | Wanderers |
Short name | WSW |
Founded | 4 April 2012 |
Ground |
Parramatta Stadium (2012–2016, 2019– ) Stadium Australia, Sydney Showground Stadium (2016–2019) |
Capacity | 24,000 |
Owner | Paul Lederer |
Chairman | Paul Lederer |
Manager | Tony Popovic |
League | A-League |
2015–16 | A-League, 2nd |
Website | Club home page |
Western Sydney Wanderers Football Club (colloquially known as Western Sydney, or simply as Wanderers) is an Australian professional soccer club based in the western region of Sydney, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier soccer competition, the A-League, under licence from Football Federation Australia (FFA). The club has established itself as a major force in both Australia and Asia, having won one A-League Premiership and an AFC Champions League title in its short history.
Formed in April 2011 by FFA, Wanderers was established with a strong community focus. A series of community forums across Western Sydney helped choose the club's name and colours, as well as its culture and playing style. The club's record-breaking inaugural season won them an A-League premiership and saw the club reach the 2013 A-League Grand Final. The club followed that up by contesting the 2014 A-League Grand Final and securing second place in their second season of the league. The club was also crowned Asian Champions in their debut Champions League season, becoming the first Australian side to win the tournament.
The club is run from a facility based in Blacktown, and currently plays matches at Stadium Australia and Sydney Showground Stadium while their permanent home ground of Parramatta Stadium is in the process of a three-year rebuild. An affiliated youth team competes in the National Youth League and will compete in the National Premier Leagues NSW in 2016. A women's team competes in the W-League. The youth and women's matches are played at various locations across Western Sydney, including Marconi Stadium, Campbelltown Stadium and Cook Park. The club also has a Powerchair Football team which competes in the NSW Western Division Powerchair Football League, with matches played at Kevin Betts Stadium in Mt Druitt.