Australian soccer clubs in international competitions

Australian soccer clubs have entered Asian and Oceania competitions (AFC Champions League, OFC Champions League and the now defunct Oceania Cup Winners' Cup) since 1987 where Adelaide City entered the competition as the Australian repersenative. Since 2007, Australian clubs have participated in this league. For their first five competitions, the A-League was given two spots in the league- one for the champions (grand final winners) and one for the premiers (regular season winners- or the losing grand finalist if the champions and premiers were the same team). For the 2012 competition, another half a spot was added, with the highest placed team on the A-League table which has not already qualified for the AFC Champions League entering a playoff to enter the competition.

The Western Sydney Wanderers are the only Australian side to win the competition, while Adelaide United are the only Australian side to have made the final and lost.

For the 2013 competition the AFC reduced the number of A-League qualification spots to 1.5.^[1] The Premiers (regular season winners) directly qualified for the Asian Champions League. The Champions (winners of grand final) entered a play off to qualify for the competition. The AFC ruled that the A-League did not meet the criteria for full participation in the tournament, including the lack of promotion and relegation within a tiered league system was a major reason, and that the A-league was not run as a separate entity to the FFA.^[2]^[3]

From the 2014 AFC Champions League until the 2016 edition, the allocation of two spots in the group stage and one qualifying play-off spot returned and in 2017, the qualifying play-off spot dropped back to a place in the Preliminary Round 2.

Australian soccer clubs have entered Asian and Oceania competitions (AFC Champions League, OFC Champions League and the now defunct Oceania Cup Winners' Cup). Australian clubs have also taken part in the FIFA Club World Cup and the Pan-Pacific Championship which however, were not won by any Australian club.

Who qualifies for AFC competitions[]

From the 2021–22 season, the various permutations allow for a maximum of 1 Australian club to qualify for the AFC Champions League group stage and 2 for the play-off stage.

Competition	Who qualifies
AFC Champions League group stage	A-League 1st
AFC Champions League play-off	A-League champions
AFC Champions League play-off	FFA Cup champions

Winners of Asian, Oceania and worldwide competitions from Australia[]

Team	Number of Wins	Year(s)
Adelaide City	1	1987
Hakoah Sydney City East	1	1987
South Melbourne	1	1999
Sydney FC	1	2005
Western Sydney Wanderers	1	2014
Wollongong Wolves	1	2001

Asian, Oceania and World competition winners[]

AFC Champions League	OFC Champions League	Cup Winners' Cup
2014 – Western Sydney Wanderers	2005 – Sydney FC	1987 – Hakoah Sydney City East
	2001 – Wollongong Wolves
	1999 – South Melbourne
	1987 – Adelaide City

Full Australian record for Australian soccer clubs[]

AFC Champions League[]

Australian teams have won the competition 1 time and been in the final on 2 occasions as of 1 November 2014.

Year	Team^[4]	Progress	Score	Opponents	Venue(s)
1967–2006	Non-AFC member
2007	Adelaide United	3rd in group stage	N/A	Gach Dong Tam Long An, Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma, Shandong Luneng Taishan
2007	Sydney FC	2nd in group stage	N/A	Persik Kediri, Shanghai Shenua, Urawa Red Diamonds
2008	Adelaide United	Final	0–5	Gamba Osaka	0–3 at Osaka Expo '70 Stadium 0–2 at Hindmarsh Stadium
2008	Melbourne Victory	2nd in group stage	N/A	Chonburi, Chunnam Dragons, Gamba Osaka
2009	Central Coast Mariners	4th in group stage	N/A	Kawasaki Frontale, Pohang Steelers, Tianjin Teda
2009	Newcastle Jets	Round of 16	0–6	Pohang Steelers	Pohang Steel Yard
2010	Adelaide United	Round of 16	2–3 (a.e.t.)	Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors	Hindmarsh Stadium
2010	Melbourne Victory	4th in group stage	N/A	Beijing Guoan, Kawasaki Frontale, Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma
2011	Melbourne Victory	4th in group stage	N/A	Gamba Osaka, Jeju United, Tianjin Teda
2011	Sydney FC	3rd in group stage	N/A	Kashima Antlers, Shanghai Shenua, Suwon Samsung Bluewings
2012	Adelaide United	Quarterfinals	4–5	Bunyodkor	2–2 at Hindmarsh Stadium 2–3 (a.e.t.) at JAR Stadium
	Brisbane Roar	3rd in group stage	N/A	Beijing Guoan, FC Tokyo, Ulsan Hyundai
	Central Coast Mariners	3rd in group stage	N/A	Nagoya Grampus, Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma, Tianjin Teda
2013	Brisbane Roar	Qualifying play-off	0–0 (a.e.t.) (0–3 p)	Buriram United	Buriram Stadium
2013	Central Coast Mariners	Round of 16	1–5	Guangzhou Evergrande	1–2 at Central Coast Stadium 0–3 at Tianhe Stadium
2014	Central Coast Mariners	4th in group stage	N/A	Beijing Guoan, FC Seoul, Sanfrecce Hiroshima
	Melbourne Victory	3rd in group stage	N/A	Guangzhou Evergrande, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, Yokohama F. Marinos
	Western Sydney Wanderers	Winners	1–0	Al Hilal	1–0 at Parramatta Stadium 0–0 at King Fahd International Stadium
2015	Brisbane Roar	3rd in group stage	N/A	Beijing Guoan, Suwon Samsung Bluewings, Urawa Red Diamonds
	Central Coast Mariners	Qualifying play-off	1–3	Guangzhou R&F	Central Coast Stadium
	Western Sydney Wanderers	3rd in group stage	N/A	FC Seoul, Guangzhou Evergrande, Kashima Antlers
2016	Adelaide United	Qualifying play-off	1–2	Shandong Luneng	Hindmarsh Stadium
	Melbourne Victory	Round of 16	2–3	Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors	1–1 at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium 1–2 at Jeonju World Cup Stadium
	Sydney FC	Round of 16	3–3 (a)	Shandong Luneng	1–1 at Jinan Olympic Sports Center Stadium 2–2 at Sydney Football Stadium
2017	Adelaide United	3rd in group stage	N/A	Gamba Osaka, Jeju United, Jiangsu Suning
	Brisbane Roar	4th in group stage	N/A	Kashima Antlers, Muangthong United, Ulsan Hyundai
	Western Sydney Wanderers	4th in group stage	N/A	FC Seoul, Shanghai SIPG, Urawa Red Diamonds
2018	Brisbane Roar	Preliminary round 2	2–3	Ceres-Negros	Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre
	Melbourne Victory	3rd in group stage	N/A	Kawasaki Frontale, Shanghai SIPG, Ulsan Hyundai
	Sydney FC	3rd in group stage	N/A	Kashima Antlers, Shanghai Shenua, Suwon Samsung Bluewings
2019	Melbourne Victory	4th in group stage	N/A	Daegu, Guangzhou Evergrande, Sanfrecce Hiroshima
	Newcastle Jets	Qualifying play-off	1–4	Kashima Antlers	Kashima Soccer Stadium
	Sydney FC	4th in group stage	N/A	Kawasaki Frontale, Shanghai SIPG, Ulsan Hyundai
2020	Melbourne Victory	Round of 16	0–3	Ulsan Hyundai	Education City Stadium
	Perth Glory	4th in group stage	N/A	FC Tokyo, Shanghai Shenhua, Ulsan Hyundai
	Sydney FC	4th in group stage	N/A	Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, Shanghai SIPG, Yokohama F. Marinos

OFC Champions League[]

Australian teams have won the competition 4 times and been in the final on 4 occasions as of 10 June 2005.

Year	Team^[5]	Progress	Score	Opponents	Venue(s)
1987	Adelaide City	Winners	1–1 (4–1 p)	University-Mount Wellington	Hindmarsh Stadium
1999	South Melbourne	Winners	5–1	Nadi	Prince Charles Park
2001	Wollongong Wolves	Winners	1–0	Tafea	Lloyd Robson Stadium
2005	Sydney FC	Winners	2–0	AS Magenta	Stade Pater

Oceania Cup Winners' Cup[]

Year	Team^[5]	Progress	Score	Opponents	Venue(s)
1987	Sydney City	Winners	2–0	North Shore United	Fuji Film Stadium

Performance summary by competition[]

Performance record and ranking of A-League clubs in AFC Champions League[]

Rank	Football Club	Best Result	07	08	09	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21
1	Western Sydney Wanderers	W	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	W	GS	•	GS	•	•	•	•
2	Adelaide United	RU	GS	RU	•	R16	•	QF	•	•	•	PO	GS	•	•	•	•
3	Melbourne Victory	R16	•	GS	•	GS	GS	•	•	GS	•	R16	•	GS	GS	R16	•
4	Sydney FC	R16	GS	•	•	•	GS	•	•	•	•	R16	•	GS	GS	GS	GS
5	Central Coast Mariners	R16	•	•	GS	•	•	GS	R16	GS	•	•	•	•	•	•	•
6	Newcastle Jets	R16	•	•	R16	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	PO	•	•
7	Brisbane Roar	GS	•	•	•	•	•	GS	PO	•	GS	•	GS	PR2	•	•	PO
8	Perth Glory	GS	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	GS	•
9	Melbourne City	-	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	PO

FIFA Club World Cup[]

Year	Team	Progress	Score	Opponents	Venue(s)
2000	South Melbourne	4th in group stage	N/A	Manchester United, Necaxa, Vasco da Gama	Maracanã Stadium
2005	Sydney FC	5th	2–1	Al Ahly	National Stadium
2008	Adelaide United	5th	1–0	Al Ahly	International Stadium Yokohama
2014	Western Sydney Wanderers	6th	2–2 (4–5 p)	ES Sétif	Stade de Marrakech

Pan-Pacific Championship[]

Year	Team	Progress	Score	Opponents	Venue(s)
2008	Sydney FC	Semi-finals	0–3	Houston Dynamo	Aloha Stadium

References[]

^ "AFC cuts Champions League slots". Football Federation Australia. Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
^ Micallef, Philip. "AFC ruling clouds A-League finals". The World Game. Special Broadcasting Service. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
^ "A-League misses out on automatic ACL spot". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
^ "AFC Champions League Summary". aleaguestats.com.
^ ^a ^b "Oceania Club Cups – Overview File". RSSSF.

External links[]

AFC Champions League official website
AFC Champions League on RSSSF

[1] "AFC cuts Champions League slots". Football Federation Australia. Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 14 February 2016.

[2] Micallef, Philip. "AFC ruling clouds A-League finals". The World Game. Special Broadcasting Service. Retrieved 14 February 2016.

[3] "A-League misses out on automatic ACL spot". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 14 February 2016.

[4] "AFC Champions League Summary". aleaguestats.com.

[OFC-5] "Oceania Club Cups – Overview File". RSSSF.

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