Australia - List of Foundation Dates


The following introduction is from the Balgownie Rangers site:

There is little doubt that a soccer ball was kicked about in Australia in a playful manner and small scale during the 1870’s by immigrants, but most people knew nothing about the game. The first known group to form a soccer social "club" was organised by a school teacher named W.J. Fletcher. It (the social club) was called the "Wanderers" and began operation on the 14th of August 1880 at Parramatta. Another soccer group was organised at Kings School and social games were arranged between these two groups. During the 1880’s the round code of football became very popular not only in Sydney but also in the coal mining areas of Newcastle and the Illawarra. However, travelling long distances by teams were very restricted until the railway links were made to the areas outside Sydney although there were some coach travelling from the Illawarra prior to the opening of the railway link to the Illawarra in 1888. Travelling to Sydney by ship could not be considered due to shipping times and absence from work.

In Sydney early major clubs were: Pymont, Arcadians, Caledonians, Ambrose, Canterbury, Granville, Parksgrove and Balmain. In the Newcastle district there were: Hamilton, Greta, Carrington, Burwood, Wallsend, West Wallsend, Adamstown and Minmi Rangers. The early South Coast clubs were: Balgownie, Corrimal, Woonona, North Illawarra (Bulli) and Helensburgh. Unfortunately there are very few records if any, of how the early clubs of the South Coast were formed or the dates of origin and most of their history have came from hand me down stories and old newspapers.


1873        Hawthorn FC (Melbourne) 
1881        North Illawara Rovers
1883        Footscray Thistle (Melbourne)
1885?       Minmi Rangers  
1887        Wallsend SC (Newcastle)
1888        Paramatta Meadows  
1889        Adamstown Rosebud FC
            Woonona FC 
1890        Balgownie Rangers SC
            Helensburgh Rovers
1891        Corrimal Rangers SC
1894        Dapto SC
1895        Helensburgh Thistle SC
1927        Melbourne Hakoah                 [founded as Club Nautico Israelita (Melbourne); in the
                                              early 1980s merged with South Melbourne FC]
1936        Olympic (Adelaide)               [became Hellas in 1962, then West Adelaide Hellas in 1977]
1938        Sydney City                      [founded as Hakoah Sydney]
1941        Metro SC (Claremont)
1945        Canterbury-Marrickville Berries (Sydney)
1946        Adelaide City Force SC                         
1948        Brunswick Juventus SC (Melbourne)
            Croatia SC (Melbourne)           [became Melbourne Knight SC in 1953] 
1949        NS Polonia (Sydney)
1950        Cracovia Club (West Perth)
1952        Polonia (Melbourne)
1953        Blacktown City Demons            [founded as Toongabbie SC]  
            North Ryde SC (Ryde City) 
1954        APIA Leichhardt Tigers FC
1956        Paramatta Eagles SC (Sydney)
1958        Marconi Fairfield Stallions FC Sydney
            Sydney United SC                 [founded as South Sydney Croatia]
            Heidelberg United SC (Melbourne) [founded as Fitzroy Alexander United]
1959        South Melbourne Lakers SC
1967        Pine Rivers United SC (Strathpine)
1971        Balga SC (Perth)
1975        Saint Albans Saints SC
1977        Sydney Olympic FC                [founded earlier as Pan Hellenic]
            Canberra City 
1980        Wollongong City Wolves
1988        DOSA SC (Hobart)              
1993        Brisbane Strikers FC
            Frankston Strikers SC (Melbourne) 
            Leeming Strikers SC (Willetton)
1995        Perth Glory FC
            Canberra Cosmos 
1997        Northern Spirit FC (Melbourne)
2003        Adelaide United FC

NB: see also http://www.ozfootball.net/ark/Clubs/ClubIndex.html


Women Club Foundation Dates

1920        Railway (Southern Cross)
            Rovers (Southern Cross)
1921 Jul  8 Brisbane City                    [aka South Brisbane Ladies FC; disbanded 1922]
     Jul  8 Brisbane Ladies FC               [disbanded 1922]
     Jul    Toowoomba Cities
     Jul    Toowoomba Rovers   
            Balgownie
            Boolaroo (Newcastle)
            Brisbane Celtics
            Cawdor Ladies
            Latrobe Ladies FC (Brisbane)
            Sydney Ladies Soccer Club
            Wallsend (Newcastle)   
            West Wallsend (Newcastle)
            Woons
1926        Brisbane City Ladies Soccer Club [in Winter 1926 splitted into Brisbane Kangaroos and Brisbane Wallabies]
            Brisbane Kangaroos               [split from Brisbane City Ladies SC]
            Brisbane Wallabies               [split from Brisbane City Ladies SC]
1928        Abermain
            Bellbird
            Cessnock
            East Grets
            Kurri Kurri North End
            Pelaw Main
            Stanford Methyr
            Weston
1929        Kurri Kurri/Weston               [disbanded 1930]  
            Speers' Point 
            Speers' Point/Teralba            [disbanded 1930]
            Teralba       
1931        Blue Birds (Lithgow)             [founded Jun 3; disbanded 1932]
            Coledale Ladies
            Scarborough Ladies FC
            State Mine                       [aka Royal Coal Mine Ladies; disbanded 1932]
            Vale of Clwydd Rovers            [disbanded 1932]
            Zig-Zag (Lithgow)                [founded Jun 3; disbanded 1932]
1933        Bluebirds (Ipswich)
            Booval (Ipswich)
            Favorites (Ipswich)
            Northern United (Ipswich)
            Robins (Ipswich)
1936        Brewer's Arms (Broken Hill)
            Railway Town (Broken Hill)  
            Southern Cross
            Wests (Broken Hill)

2008        Adelaide United FC
            Brisbane Roar FC
            Canberra United FC
            Melbourne Victiory FC
            Newcastle United Jets FC
            Perth Glory FC
            Sydney FC
2012        Western Sydney Wanderers FC 
 
 

About this document

Source for foundation dates women clubs until 1936: Faller, H.: "Waltzing Down Under: soccer in Oceania before World War Two", 2018.

With thanks to James Hothersall

Prepared and maintained by Hans Schöggl for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation

Author: Hans Schöggl
Last updated: 21 Oct 2021

(C) Copyright Hans Schöggl and RSSSF 2005/21
You are free to copy this document in whole or part provided that proper acknowledgement is given to the author. All rights reserved.