| A-League | |
|---|---|
 A-League 2007-08 |
|
 |
|
| Sport | Association football |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Motto | 90 minutes, 90 emotions |
| No. of teams | 8 |
| Country(ies) |  Australia New Zealand |
| Most recent champion(s) | Champion: Melbourne (1st) Premier: Melbourne (1st) |
| Most championship(s) | Champions: Sydney, Melbourne (1) Premiers: Adelaide, Melbourne (1) |
| TV partner(s) | Fox Sports |
| Official website | www.a-league.com.au |
| Related competitions | AFC Champions League Pan-Pacific Championship |
- For the former US soccer league of the same name see A-League (American)
The A-League is the premier Australasian domestic association football competition. Founded in 2004 and staging its inaugural season in 2005-06, the league is contested by eight teams: seven covering Australia's major cities and regional centres and one from New Zealand.[1] The team which finishes on top of the league table at the end of the 21-round regular season is awarded the Premiership, with the winner of the subsequent four-team finals series awarded the Championship. Melbourne Victory FC are the current A-League Premiers (Season 2006-07) and are also the reigning Champions.
Contents |
History
In 2003, a report on football in Australia was published by the Australian Federal Government which ultimately led to an overhaul of Soccer Australia and the end of the National Soccer League, Australia's previous domestic football competition. In its place, Football Federation Australia (named the Australian Soccer Association at the time) announced plans for a new national competition set to start in 2005. The competition was based on a one-city, one-club format. This was for two reasons - to concentrate player talent, and possibly more importantly, break the connection between clubs and specific immigrant groups (the previous NSL had a number of teams whose players and fans largely came from one specific immigrant community). The plan called for privately owned franchises to represent Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide, Newcastle and New Zealand, with the eighth and final club to be selected from the remaining expressions of interest.[2] The selection of teams, with The Central Coast the eighth area represented, was announced on November 1 2004, along with the competition format which was shortened to provide a basic structure for further expansion. The FFA scheduled the inaugural season to begin in August 2005, budgeting for an annual turnover of AU$50 million and average crowds of 10,000.[3]
2005-06 season
The opening season saw clubs attract a wide array of talent, most notably Dwight Yorke for Sydney FC, as well as bringing a large number of former and current Socceroos home, including Ned Zelic, Steve Corica and Archie Thompson. Adelaide United FC won the inaugural A-League Premiership after the end of the home-and-away season. The Grand Final was played in front of 41,689 people at Aussie Stadium. Sydney FC prevailed 1-0 over the Central Coast Mariners to become the first A-League Champions. The FFA's target crowd figure of 10,000 was achieved as the league had an overall attendance average of 12,100 during its inaugural season.[4] An AU$120 million deal between the FFA and Fox Sports was reached in 2006 after the end of the first season. Under the deal, Fox Sports will have exclusive rights from 2007 to all Socceroos home internationals, all A-League and Asian Cup fixtures, World Cup qualifiers through the AFC, and all AFC Champions League matches. The deal will allow the FFA to increase the amount of TV money to each of the participating clubs in the league and increase the revenue streams for those clubs.[5]
2006-07 season
The creation of the A-League has allowed for many past and present Socceroos players to return and play on home soil. So far the A-League's second season has seen the return of such current Australian international players as Stan Lazaridis, Tony Vidmar and Joel Griffiths which has boosted the media attention of the league. The FFA is also toying with the idea of sharing the expense of some of the wages of Socceroos players to bring them back to Australia.[6] The all time Australian domestic football (soccer) regular season crowd record was smashed on December 8, 2006 when Melbourne Victory hosted Sydney FC at the Telstra Dome. The crowd was 50,333 beating the previous record of 39,000 - set when the two clubs met at the same venue previously in the season. Kevin Muscat, the Melbourne captain, was quoted as saying: "You'd do well to find an Australian abroad this weekend who'll play in front of a bigger crowd than that". In December 2006 the New Zealand Knights had their licence revoked because of mounting debts. New Zealand Soccer was allocated control of the team for the remainder of the season. The FFA called for bids from prospective operators to take over the New Zealand license for the next season.[7] On February 18, 2007 Melbourne Victory defeated Adelaide United 6-0 to become champions of the A-League 2006-07 season in front of a crowd of over 55,000 people. Archie Thompson was awarded the Joe Marston Medal, scoring five goals for Melbourne Victory. Recently Melbourne Victory Chairman Geoff Lord has suggested the inclusion of overseas clubs in the pre-season cup competition, particularly targeting teams from Asia and the west coast of the United States.[8]
2007-08 season
Important signings before the start of the third season of the A-League have seen former socceroos Danny Tiatto, Craig Moore, Ljubo Milicevic, Nick Rizzo, Paul Agostino, Hayden Foxe and Tony Popovic return to Australia with Queensland Roar, Melbourne Victory,Perth Glory, Adelaide United, and Sydney FC respectively. Socceroos' striker Sasho Petrovski has left Sydney FC in favour of the Central Coast Mariners, where he is expected to form a deadly partnership with fit-again Nik Mrdja. On Saturday, October 20th, the Central Coast Mariners completed perhaps the biggest signing coup in A-League history when they announced the signing of Socceroos' hero, John Aloisi .[9] This spawned a large amount of controversy, as Aloisi's relatively large wages weren't included in the salary cap, because of a loophole involving replacing injured players.Also returning home was former socceroo Stephen Laybutt signing with the Newcastle United Jets after round 4 The A-League salary cap has spawned much controversy in the close season with champions Melbourne Victory unable to re-sign star midfielder Fred due to an offer from Major League Soccer club D.C. United that is reportedly worth three times the amount the Victory can afford to pay him. As well as this, Sydney FC have been unsuccessful in signing ex-Liverpool FC striker, Robbie Fowler because the club could not offer as much money as other English clubs.[10] On March 19 2007, it was confirmed that a bid from Wellington, New Zealand, later to be announced as Wellington Phoenix, would be replacing the New Zealand Knights for the 2007-08 season.[11][12] FFA granted New Zealand Football a three year license to stay in the competition in partnership with a Wellington-based consortium.[13] It is also confirmed that squad sizes will be increased from 20 players to 23 players.[14]
Format
Pre-Season Cup
A Pre-Season Cup is held in July and August, as a precursor to the main season. In the Pre-Season Cup, the eight teams are placed into two groups. Each team plays the others in the group once over three rounds. Beginning in 2006, an additional bonus round is then held, with each team playing a cross-over match with a team from a different group. In addition to the standard points (3 for a win, 1 for a draw), there are special bonus points on offer for the bonus round matches:
- 1 bonus point for 2 goals scored by a team,
- 2 bonus points for 3 goals scored by a team, or
- 3 bonus points for 4 or more goals scored by a team.[15]
All eight teams then enter a knock-out round, culminating in the final in late August. The FFA has indicated that, if successful, the bonus points system may be used in the main league season from the 2007-08 season.[16]
Regular season
The regular season runs mainly during the Australian summer, from late August to January of the following year. The competition consists of 21 home-and-away rounds, with each team playing each other team three times – twice at one team's home stadium and once at the other's. The teams which are allotted two home matches against an opponent in one season are allotted one home match against that opponent in the following season. Each match sees the winning team awarded three competition points, or in the case of a draw, the teams receive one point each. At the end of the season, the teams are ranked firstly in terms of competition points accumulated, then goal difference, total goals scored, head-to-head records between tying teams and finally the number of cards each team has received.[17] The club at the top of this ladder is crowned A-League Premiers, and as of the 2006–07 season, will be entered into the AFC Champions League.[18]
Finals series
The top four-ranked teams at the end of the regular season are entered into a finals series based on the Page playoff system, where the first round of matches consists of two legs (with ties decided by the away goals rule). The top two ranked teams play the Major Semi-Final, with the winner progressing straight to and hosting the Grand Final. On the same weekends, the third and fourth ranked teams contest the Minor Semi-Final, which sees the losing side eliminated whilst the winner plays off against the loser of the Major Semi-Final in the Preliminary Final the following weekend. The winner of this match also progresses to the Grand Final, the winner of which becomes A-League Champions. As of the 2006–07 season, this team will also contest the AFC Champions League, although if the team that wins the Premiership goes through to Grand Final then the runners-up in the Grand Final are awarded the second spot in the competition, win or lose.[18]
Promotion
The A-League logo, designed by Coast Design Sydney, is a three-dimensional sphere in the shape of a football. The two-toned ochre colours represent the sun, earth and desert while the 'glow' emanating from the centre of the logo depicts the playing season's Spring and Summer time span. The eight 'A' figures that make up the ball shape represent the eight foundation clubs.[19] At the start of the inaugural season, an AU$3 million dollar advertising campaign was launched, with the television and film advertisements produced by Ridley Scott's production company. The theme for the campaign was: "Football, but not as you know it". A new television advertisement was created for the start of the 2007-08 season, which debuted on Foxtel's program, Total Football. It was filmed at Bob Jane Stadium in Melbourne. The theme of the current campaign is "90 minutes, 90 emotions".[20] The A-League will feature in the video game EA SPORTS FIFA 08 and has been featured Football Manager 2008 by SI Games.[21]
Clubs
There are currently eight clubs from Australia and New Zealand playing in the A-League. Only three of these clubs, Adelaide United, Newcastle United Jets (previously known just as Newcastle United) 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, as well as Major League Soccer and other major sports leagues in the United States. On March 19 2007, it was confirmed that a Wellington based franchise would be replacing the New Zealand Knights for the 2007-08 season.[13] The name of Wellington Phoenix was announced on March 28.[12] For the 2007-08 season, the eight clubs will be:
| Team | City | Years in competition | Home Ground |
|---|---|---|---|
 Adelaide United |
Adelaide, SA | 2005-06–present | Hindmarsh Stadium |
 Central Coast Mariners |
Gosford, NSW | 2005-06–present | Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium |
 Melbourne Victory |
Melbourne, VIC | 2005-06–present | Telstra Dome |
 Newcastle Jets |
Newcastle, NSW | 2005-06–present | EnergyAustralia Stadium |
 Perth Glory |
Perth, WA | 2005-06–present | Members Equity Stadium |
 Queensland Roar |
Brisbane, QLD | 2005-06–present | Suncorp Stadium |
 Sydney FC |
Sydney, NSW | 2005-06–present | Sydney Football Stadium |
 Wellington Phoenix |
Wellington, NZ | 2007-08 | Westpac Stadium |
| Former clubs: | |||
 New Zealand Knights |
Auckland, NZ | 2005-06–2006-07 | North Harbour Stadium |
Squad & salary cap
Each club can have a maximum squad of 23 players with a salary cap of AU$1.8 million for the whole squad - much less than the millions of dollars a year that individual star players (including a few Australians) earn in Europe's top football leagues. The minimum number of players on each squad is 20. The squad must include at least three under-20 players. Clubs may also only have a maximum of four internationals (from outside Australia and New Zealand) in their squad.[22]
Marquee player
In order to combat fears that the salary cap would reduce the capacity of the clubs to attract crowds through big-name players, the league allows each team to have one "marquee" player, whose salary is funded separately, and not included in the team's salary cap. The best-known example of a marquee player in the A-League was Dwight Yorke who played for Sydney FC in the inaugural season. Yorke had previously played several seasons for Manchester United and Aston Villa and currently Sunderland in the English Premier League.
Expansion
While making a relatively modest start in order to ensure future stability, both Football Federation Australia and the media have indicated significant interest in expanding the league. The eight foundation clubs have exclusivity clauses for their respective cities valid for five years, but this does not exclude teams from other areas. There has been some media speculation that the league may be expanded for the 2008-09 or 2009-10 seasons. This is looking very possible with upcoming changes to the number of Asian Champions League spots available from 2009. Before the introduction of the A-League, ASA chairman Frank Lowy speculated that he hoped to expand the league into additional areas, mentioning Canberra, Hobart, Wollongong, Geelong and Far North Queensland.[23][24] On August 10, John O'Neill was talking up the support football would enjoy in Townsville.[25] In 2006, a representative of Capital Football was quoted as saying "Canberra, Geelong, Wollongong and Townsville were "on the radar" to join the comp for the 2008/09 season."[26] Many people felt the twice Australian Champions Wollongong Wolves should be the team from the Illawarra, but according to media reports the Wolves are planning on staying in the NSW Premier League, and are fully supporting a new club for the region. This club will be backed by Bruce Gordon, Australia's 14th richest person.[27] After it was announced that the New Zealand Knights were to be replaced from the 2007-08 season onwards, a Townsville-based consortium assembled a bid. Although they withdrew the bid at the last minute, the process gave the area a head start in any future license application.[13] In November 2007, it was revealed that the name of the club, if and when accepted, would be Northern Thunder FC, and Dairy Farmers Stadium would be the teams' home ground. [28] [29] On February 14 2007, South Melbourne announced their interest in becoming the second Victorian club in the A-League. After Melbourne Victory announced they would not be playing at the new Melbourne Rectangular Stadium unless it had a capacity of at least 30,000, the government suggested a second Melbourne team would play there. A consortium of investors are willing to put at least 5 to 6 million dollars per annum into the venture, and a letter of interest from the football club has been sent to the FFA. The agreement that will see the new Stadium built with a 31,500 capacity means that it will be extremely unlikely such a bid will succeed based on the above conditions.[30] In October 2007, Football Federation Tasmania CEO Martin Shaw suggested that a Tasmanian team would be a viable location for an A-League club, mentioning the fact that it would need support from state and local government. Such a team would play games in both Hobart and Launceston.[31][32] Gold Coast based club Gold Coast Galaxy FC announced in December 2007 that they were ready and able to join the league upon expansion. The team is proposing to play its home games at Skilled Park, due to be completed in 2008. [33]
Captains
Stadiums
Primary venues used in the A-League 2007-08 season:
| Stadium | Capacity | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Telstra Dome | 56,347 | Melbourne Victory |
| Suncorp Stadium | 52,500 | Queensland Roar |
| Sydney Football Stadium | 45,500 | Sydney FC |
| Westpac Stadium | 34,500 | Wellington Phoenix |
| EnergyAustralia Stadium | 26,126 | Newcastle Jets |
| Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium | 20,059 | Central Coast Mariners |
| Members Equity Stadium | 17,288 | Perth Glory |
| Hindmarsh Stadium | 16,500 | Adelaide United |
Other venues used by A-League clubs include:
| Stadium | Capacity | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Olympic Park Stadium | 18,500 | Used by Melbourne Victory in the 2005-06 season and part of the 2006-07 season1 |
| Parramatta Stadium | 20,000 | Used by Sydney FC for an AFC Champions League game on April 25 2007 |
| Stadium Australia | 83,500 | Used by Sydney FC for a friendly game against Los Angeles Galaxy on November 28 2007 |
| Adelaide Oval | 33,597 | Used by Adelaide United for a one-off game on December 28 2007 |
1Melbourne Victory's home stadium during the A-League 2005-06 season was Olympic Park Stadium. Their round 2 match of the 2006-07 season, on September 2 2006, was originally a one-off game at Docklands Stadium. After the success of the event, a further seven home games were relocated to Docklands Stadium, which went on to become Melbourne finals series home venue, and as of the 2007-08 season, the full-time home ground of the club.
Crowds
Average crowds for the regular season are listed below. These figures do not include finals, international friendlies or AFC Champions League matches. Note that the 2007-08 season is still in progress.
| Team | Crowd average | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005-06 | 2005-06 | 2007-08 | |
| Melbourne Victory | 14,158 | 27,728 | 26,128 |
| Queensland Roar | 14,785 | 16,465 | 14,783 |
| Sydney FC | 16,669 | 14,999 | 14,665 |
| Adelaide United | 10,947 | 12,162 | 12,907 |
| Newcastle Jets | 8,912 | 11,442 | 12,894 |
| Central Coast Mariners | 7,899 | 9,828 | 12,290 |
| Wellington Phoenix | - | - | 11,394 |
| Perth Glory | 9,734 | 7,671 | 7,645 |
| New Zealand Knights | 3,909 | 3,014 | - |
| Whole season | 10,955 | 12,927 | 14,121 |
Champions and premiers
The "Premier" is the team at the top of the league table at the end of the regular season although the common term for this type of competition in Australia is "minor premier". Media reports sometimes erroneously refer to the Premiers as minor premier. The "Champion" is the team that wins the Grand Final.[34]
| Season | Pre-season cup | Regular season | Grand Final | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Runners-up | Champions | Runners-up | ||
| 2005-06 | Central Coast Mariners | Adelaide United | Sydney FC | Sydney FC | Central Coast Mariners |
| 2006-07 | Adelaide United | Melbourne Victory | Adelaide United | Melbourne Victory | Adelaide United |
| 2007-08 | Adelaide United | - | - | - | - |
See also the list of champions from 1977 to 2004 in the previous National Soccer League competition.
AFC Champions League
Two A-League clubs will participate in the AFC Champions League competition[35] from the 2007 competition on. The teams for the 2007 competition were determined by finishing positions in the 2005-6 A-League season, the 2008 competition by finishing positions in the 2006-7 season, and so on. The Champions and Premiers qualify for the cup. In the case where the same team is Champion and Premier, the losing grand finalist qualifies.
| Season | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Sydney FC | Adelaide United |
| 2008 | Melbourne Victory | Adelaide United |
Top scorers
All-time
| Rank | Player | Club/s | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Archie Thompson |
 Melbourne Victory |
29 |
| 2 | Danny Allsopp |
Melbourne Victory |
21 |
| 2 | Sasho Petrovski |
 Central Coast Mariners |
20 |
| 4 | Alex Brosque |
 Sydney FC ,  Queensland Roar |
19 |
| 5 | Kevin Muscat |
Melbourne Victory |
17 |
| 5 | Joel Griffiths |
 Newcastle Jets |
17 |
| 7 | Damian Mori |
Queensland Roar ,  Perth Glory , Central Coast Mariners |
15 |
| 8 | Jamie Harnwell |
Perth Glory |
14 |
| 9 | Carl Veart |
 Adelaide United |
13 |
| 9 |  Fernando Rech |
Adelaide United |
13 |
See Also: A-League all-time records
Notable Past players
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Current foreign players in the league
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Awards
Johnny Warren Medal
The Johnny Warren Medal, named after the late former Socceroo and media advocate Johnny Warren, is presented to the player who is deemed to be the best player overall at the end of the season as judged by his fellow players. Each player in the A-League votes three times over the season: after Round 7, Round 14 and Round 21. Players are not allowed to vote for other players on their own team.
| Year | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Bobby Despotovski |
Perth Glory |
| 2007 | Nick Carle |
Newcastle Jets |
Rising Star Award
The Rising Star Award is awarded to a youth (under 20) player judged by a panel of experts to be the best young performer throughout the season.
| Year | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Nick Ward |
Perth Glory |
| 2007 | Adrian Leijer |
Melbourne Victory |
Reebok Golden Boot
The Reebok Golden Boot is presented to the player who scores the most goals during the season. Only regular Hyundai A-League matches between Round 1 and Round 21 are included.
| Year | Player/s | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Alex Brosque, Bobby Despotovski Stewart Petrie Archie Thompson |
Queensland Roar Perth Glory Central Coast Mariners Melbourne Victory |
8 |
| 2007 | Danny Allsopp |
Melbourne Victory |
11 |
Coach of the Year Award
| Year | Name | Club |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Lawrie McKinna |
Central Coast Mariners |
| 2007 | Ernie Merrick |
Melbourne Victory |
Fair Play Award
The Fair Play Award will go to the team with the lowest points on the fair play ladder at the conclusion of the home and away season (Yellow Card = 1 point, Direct Red Card = 3 points, 2nd Caution Red Card = 2 points).
| Year | Club |
|---|---|
| 2006 | |
| 2007 |
Zurich Referee of the Year
| Year | Referee |
|---|---|
| 2006 | |
| 2007 |
TV Coverage
The Hyundai A League, being a relatively minor league internationally, only has a small broadcast base, compared to the giant European competitions such as the English Premier League or Serie A. The countries where the A-League is shown are mostly other Commonwealth nations, which have a larger than normal base of Australian immigrants.
- Australia - Foxtel (Live coverage & Highlights)
- New Zealand - Sky Sports NZ (Live coverage & Highlights)
- United States - Fox Soccer Channel (Highlights)
- Cananda - Fox Soccer Channel (Highlights)
- United Kingdom - Sky Sports (Highlights)
Rivalries
Although there are no local derbies, due to the league's one-city one-team policy, many rivalries have formed between A-League sides:
- Adelaide United v Melbourne Victory: Considered by some as the greatest rivalry in the league. Contested the 2006-07 A-League Grand Final, in which Melbourne won 6-0.
- Adelaide United v Sydney FC: The clash between the two most successful teams in the A-League's inaugural year (Adelaide the Premiership and Sydney the eventual winners). The finals series between the two teams was explosive and led to the establishment of a rivalry between the clubs.
- Sydney FC v Melbourne Victory: The clash between Australia's two biggest cities. which is considered the biggest rivalry in the league by both sets of fans. Sydney and Melbourne have been historical rivals for over a century, and their football teams are no exception. The rivalry between Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory has become arguably the most bitter in the A League, with almost every match between the two teams characterised by spiteful confrontations, controversy and consistently record-breaking crowds. There is also an intense rivalry emerging between the supporters of the clubs.
- Newcastle Jets v Central Coast Mariners: Labelled the "F3 Derby" by commentators,[36] the two regional clubs, only an hour apart, are also big rivals. Due to their close geographic proximity, the Mariners/Jets rivalry is identified as the closest thing to a true 'local derby' that the league offers.
- Newcastle Jets v Sydney FC: Sydney had never beaten their intra-state rivals until January 1 2007. The rivalry between these teams was originally mild, with most Newcastle supporters more concerned with the Central Coast and most Sydney supporters more concerned with Melbourne. However, the on-field rivalry reached explosive levels in the 2006-2007 Minor Semi-Final, especially in the second leg in Newcastle, where Alex Brosque was sent off and the ensuing arguments led to Iain Fyfe being elbowed by Jade North.[37]
- Central Coast Mariners v Sydney FC: Although not the most intense rivalry in the competition, there is still a history that adds an element of importance for the fans in this fixture. Sydney FC beat the Central Coast Mariners in the inaugural A-League grand final in 2005. Due to this it is considered by the fans as the grudge match of the A-League. The Central Coast Mariners supporters (The Marinators) take great pride in beating Sydney FC, and Sydney supporters (The Cove) take great pleasure in reminding them of the score in the final. This rivalry intensified after Round 15 of the 2007-08 season, where Central Coast were beaten at home 5-4. Two of Central Coast's players were sent off, the second being in the 94th minute for a handball in the penalty area which gave Sydney FC a penalty that won the match in the last play of the game.
References
- ^ "FFA Statement Regarding New Zealand Knights", 2006-12-14. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ "ASA announce several significant initiatives", 2004-03-22. Retrieved on 2006-11-03.
- ^ "Australian Soccer announces the Hyundai A-League", 2004-11-01. Retrieved on 2006-11-03.
- ^ "Facts and Figures", 2006-02-09. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
- ^ "Historic deal to secure Football's future", 2006-05-03.
- ^ Plan to bring back Socceroos. The World Game (2006-08-05).
- ^ "Tough trip for Waitt's lineup", The Dominion Post, 2007-02-10. Retrieved on 2007-02-10.
- ^ Lynch, Michael. "Victory chairman wants Asia, US teams in pre-season", 2007-02-01. Retrieved on 2007-02-06.
- ^ "Aloisi: Now's the Right Time", Four Four Two Australia, 2007-10-20. Retrieved on 2007-10-20.
- ^ "Sydney FC misses out on Fowler", Football Federation Australia, 2007-06-20. Retrieved on 2007-09-14.
- ^ "NZ franchise for A-League", Football Federation Australia.
- ^ a b "NZ Phoenix to rise in A League", News.com.au, 2007-03-28. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.
- ^ a b c "Kiwis alive as Townsville pulls pin", Fox Sports, 2007-03-19. Retrieved on 2007-03-19.
- ^ "The time is right to go into the ref's book", The Age, 2006-12-31. Retrieved on 2007-01-24.
- ^ "Pre-Season Cup to go Regional", 2006-05-01.
- ^ "New and old for Kossie (see Matt Carroll interview section)", 2006-07-25.
- ^ Hyundai A-League > Rules. A-League.com.au. Retrieved on 3 November, 2006.
- ^ a b "Grand Final rematch to open HAL season", A-League.com.au, May 1, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-11-03.
- ^ "Logo signals refreshing new era", 2004-11-01. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
- ^ "New A-League ad hits the screens", FourFourTwo, 2007-08-09. Retrieved on 2008-01-06.
- ^ "Hyundai A-League To Feature in FIFA 08 Video Game", 2007-08-20. Retrieved on 2007-08-21.
- ^ "A-League salary cap to rise]", The Daily Telegraph, 2007-03-23. Retrieved on 2007-09-14.
- ^ ASA announce several significant initiatives (2004-03-22).
- ^ A-League launch speech by FFA chairman Mr Frank Lowy AC (2004-11-13).
- ^ Osbourne, Paul. "Chief talks up Townsville", Fox Sports, 2006-08-10. Retrieved on 2007-02-06.
- ^ "Canberra chief: 4 new teams on A-League radar (Google cache)", 2006-03-26.
- ^ Cockerill, Michael. "Win-win situation to get Wollongong into A-League", SMH, 2006-08-19. Retrieved on 2007-02-06.
- ^ "North Qld unleash Thunder", The World Game, 2007-11-21. Retrieved on 2007-12-22.
- ^ "Thunder keeps rolling", Townsville Bulletin, 2007-12-05. Retrieved on 2007-12-05.
- ^ "South Melbourne wants to be second Victorian a-league club", 2007-02-14.
- ^ "Why not Tasmania?", Fox Sports, 2007-10-09. Retrieved on 2007-12-22.
- ^ "Tasmania wants A-League bid", FourFourTwo, 2007-11-27. Retrieved on 2007-12-22.
- ^ "Two Queensland teams set to score spots in expanded A-League", The Age, 2007-12-13. Retrieved on 2007-12-22.
- ^ Australia's finest designers in trophy challenge. Football Federation Australia (2005-12-19). Retrieved on 2006-11-29.
- ^ Australia received two spots in AFC Champions League (2006-07-18).
- ^ "Fans steamed up for derby - if they get there", Sydney Morning Herald, 2006-11-11. Retrieved on 2006-11-12.
- ^ "Jets down Sydney FC in night of spite", Sydney Morning Herald, 2007-02-02. Retrieved on 2006-02-04.
External links
- A-League official website
- Football Federation Australia
- SBS The World Game A-League section
- FOX Sports Australia A-League section
- A-League active support
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