A-League
The A-League is the premier domestic Australian football (soccer) competition. Founded in 2004 and staging its inaugural season in 2005–06, the league is contested by by seven teams covering Australia's major cities and regional centres, as well as one representing New Zealand. 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. The current Premiers are the Melbourne Victory, who won their first title in the 2006–07 season, whilst Sydney FC are the reigning Champions.
Format
Regular season
The regular season of the A-League is played mainly during the Australian summer, from late August through to January of the following year. It is made up of 21 rounds, with each of the eight teams playing each of the others three times – twice at one team's home stadium and once at the other's. Teams which are allotted two home matches against a particular opponent in one season are then allotted a single home match against that opponent in the following season. The winner of each match is awarded three competition points, or in the case of a draw, the competing teams gain one point each. At the end of the 21 rounds the teams are ranked by the number of competition points they have accumulated over the course of the season. If two or more teams have an equal amount of points, they are then ranked based on goal difference, total goals scored, head-to-head records between tying teams and finally on the number of cards each team received.[1] The top-ranked club is awarded the title of "Premiers", and is entered into the following season's AFC Champions League.[2]
References
- ↑ Hyundai A-League > Rules. A-League.com.au. Retrieved on November 3, 2006.
- ↑ Grand Final rematch to open HAL season. A-League.com.au (May 1, 2006). Retrieved on November 3, 2006.