Australia Cup Betting Tips

About Australia Cup

The Australia Cup is the national soccer knockout cup competition, which was formerly known as FFA Cup until the 2021 season. Football Australia, formerly Football Federation Australia until 2020, organizes this annual competition.

It is a tournament that consists of teams from the top division, the A-League Men (formerly referred to as simply the A-League), as well as teams from lower tiers of the Australian soccer league system. Teams from each state and territory-based member federation will enter the main competition along with clubs from the A-League Men.

Since the A-League Men's expanded, the top eight teams enter at the Round of 32, while play-offs are held between the four lowest-ranked teams to determine the final two qualifying spots. As of 2021, the winner of the competition will also be eligible for one of the play-off spots for the following year's AFC club competitions. It is the only opportunity for A-League Men and lower-tier clubs to play formal competitive matches since the Australian soccer league system lacks promotion and relegation mechanisms.

History

Australian knockout cup competitions have a long history. It has been difficult to create a nationally based knockout cup competition that encompasses clubs at all levels of the Australian league system. Prior to the FFA Cup, the Australia Cup was the only Australian national knockout tournament.

It was founded in 1962 but was abolished in 1968 after only seven seasons. Along with the former National Soccer League (NSL), the NSL Cup was founded in 1977. In addition to Australian soccer clubs competing in the then-top-flight NSL, a small number of clubs competed in state-based competitions. After the 1996–97 tournament, the NSL Cup came to an end.

From 2005 to 2008, the A-League Men's Pre-Season Challenge Cup was held, but it was not a knockout competition. After suffering numerous delays due to FFA's 2012 television coverage deal and rising cost concerns, the FFA Cup was put on hold in 2013.

A national FFA Cup was announced on 29 August 2013, after two years of organising the knockout competition. FFA announced on 14 October 2013 that Sam Chadwick had been appointed General Manager of the FFA Cup.

The FFA Cup was officially launched on 24 February 2014 by David Gallop. Tuggeranong United from the Australian Capital Territory was the first member federation club to qualify for the FFA Cup.

The first games in the tournament proper took place on 29 July 2014, with four games from the Round of 32 played simultaneously. Former three-time NSL champions Adelaide City defeated Western Sydney Wanderers 1–0 in 2014, becoming the first semi-professional state-league club to defeat a professional A-League club. FFA announced in late 2020 that future winners of the cup would qualify for the Asian Champions League preliminary round; however, by 2022, the winner will qualify for the AFC Cup.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, the 2020 competition was cancelled on 3 July 2020. In 2021, both the preliminary rounds and the main competition were disrupted by this ongoing pandemic. Sydney United 58 became the first National Premier League club to reach the Australia Cup final, defeating Brisbane Roar in the semi-finals in 2022.

Competition Format

The competition itself consists of a knockout tournament between 32 teams. In the event of a draw after 90 minutes, extra time is played, followed by a penalty shoot-out. If a game is tied after 90 minutes in some preliminary rounds, it can go straight to penalties.

Before the 2019 edition, all A-League teams entered the Round of 32. As of 2021, only the eight top-placed A-League Men clubs will qualify automatically, with the remaining four subject to a play-off series. Member Federation Clubs will have home ground preference in the Round of 32 and Semi-Finals from 2022 onwards, when drawn against A-League opposition.

To minimise travel requirements, the Round of 32 and Round of 16 were divided into different geographic zones in 2021. In previous years, the draw was made to make sure that some Member Federation Clubs would progress to later rounds, including one Member Federation Club guaranteed to make the Semi Final. Wellington Phoenix are subject to additional restrictions due to the fact that they are a New Zealand-based team and must play away from home all of their matches.

Trophy

During the final, the winning team receives a trophy, called the "FFA Cup Trophy", which they will keep until the following year's final. An intentional resemblance has been made to the historical Australia Cup trophy, which ran from 1962 to 1968. A silver-soldered brass cup is plated with 24 carat gold and sterling silver.

Football Federation Australia's badge is inscribed on the inside corners of both handles. Also engraved on the cup are the words FFA Cup and the design of the cup. On the lid of the cup, there are two soccer balls, one as the base and the other as the trim.