Football Victoria confirm new NPL structures for 2020

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Football Victoria (FV) have announced its new NPL Victoria structures for the 2020 season.

The upcoming season will see the introduction of an NPL3 competition, which will alter the structures of the NPL men’s competitions.

FV CEO Peter Filopoulos claims the new structures would lead to the best teams playing each other week in, week out. He said it was a fairer setup than what was previously implemented.

“These new structures are the result of a lot of consultation, deep thought and a very thorough review of the many options available to us. The application process was also very extensive, and we were thrilled with the overall quality of the club applications we received,” Mr Filopoulos said.

NATIONAL PREMIER LEAGUE (NPL) VICTORIA MEN’S PREMIER COMPETITION

The top-tier NPL Victoria competition remains with 14 teams in the 2020 season. However, there will no longer be a promotion-relegation playoff match. Instead, the top two teams in NPL2 will be promoted to the first division whilst the bottom two teams in NPL Victoria will be relegated to NPL2.

In accordance with the 2019 NPL Rules of Competition, the promotion and relegation policy has been applied by FV. These are the positional changes that have now been made in the NPL1 men’s league.

Promoted Clubs Relegated Clubs to NPL 2
Eastern Lions SC Pascoe Vale FC
St. Albans Saints SC Kingston City FC

NATIONAL PREMIER LEAGUE (NPL) VICTORIA MEN’S 2 & 3 LEAGUE STRUCTURES

The NPL2 and NPL3 competitions will have 12 teams in each league in 2020. The top six on the ladder in NPL 2 (West) and NPL 2 (East), as well as the top two from Men’s State League 1 (North West) and Men’s State League 1 (South East), will form the new NPL3 competition.

Promoted / Relegated / Current Clubs to NPL 2 from NPL 2 – West Promoted / Relegated /Current Clubs to NPL 2 from NPL 2 – East
Moreland Zebras FC FC Bulleen Lions
Werribee City FC Northcote City FC
Moreland City FC Langwarrin SC
North Geelong FC Manningham United FC
Brunswick City SC Goulburn Valley FC
Pascoe Vale FC (Relegated into NPL2) Kingston City FC (Relegated into NPL2)

 

Promoted / Relegated Clubs to NPL 3 from NPL 2 – West Promoted / Relegated Clubs to NPL 3 from NPL 2 – East
Geelong SC Melbourne City FC
Whittlesea Ranges FC Murray United FC
Melbourne Victory FC Box Hill United SC
Ballarat City FC Springvale White Eagles FC
Preston Lions FC (Promoted into NPL 3) Nunawading City FC (Promoted into NPL 3)
North Sunshine Eagles SC (Promoted into NPL 3) Doveton SC (Promoted into NPL 3)

 

Promoted Clubs to NPL 3 from MSL 1 – North West Promoted Clubs to NPL 3 from MSL 1 – South East
Preston Lions FC Nunawading City FC
North Sunshine SC Doveton SC

NATIONAL PREMIER LEAGUE VICTORIA (NPLW) WOMEN’S AND GIRLS’ LEAGUE STRUCTURES

After the completion of the NPLW licence audit process, Southern United FC and Galaxy United FC won’t participate in the NPLW senior women’s and Under 19 competition in 2020. Because of this, the NPLW Senior Women’s and Under 19 competitions will have eight teams in each league in 2020.

The junior girls’ structure remains the same. Further changes are expected after the 2020 season.

NATIONAL PREMIER LEAGUE VICTORIA (NPL) JUNIOR BOYS’ LEAGUE STRUCTURE

Following extensive reviews, the Junior Boys’ NPL has been separated from the Senior NPL for the purpose of promotion and relegation.

48 clubs will be involved in Victoria’s Junior Boys’ NPL competition in 2020.

These clubs will be involved in a pre-qualification phase in their geographical zones in early February.

In the 2020 season the Junior Boys’ NPL will comprise of only U13, U14, U15 and U16 teams.

Clubs in the zones below will compete in an 11 round pre-qualification phase in their specified regions. After the completion of this, clubs will be put in a three-tier competition.

JUNIOR BOYS’ NPL VICTORIA LEAGUE ALLOCATIONS & STRUCTURES

JBNPL 

Northern League

 JBNPL 

Western League

 JBNPL 

Southern League 

 JBNPL 

Eastern League
Brunswick City SC Altona Magic SC Bentleigh Greens SC Ashburton United SC
Eltham Redbacks FC Avondale FC Berwick City SC Box Hill United SC
Essendon Royals SC Ballarat City FC Dandenong City SC Eastern Lions SC
Goulburn Valley Suns FC Bendigo City FC Dandenong Thunder FC FC Bulleen Lions
Heidelberg United FC Brimbank Stallions FC Gippsland FC Malvern City FC
Hume City FC Caroline Springs George Cross FC Glen Eira FC Manningham United FC
Melbourne Victory FC Geelong SC Kingston City FC Melbourne City FC
Moreland City FC Green Gully SC Langwarrin SC Northcote City FC
Moreland Zebras FC Melbourne Knights FC Mornington SC Nunawading City FC
Murray United FC North Geelong Warriors FC Oakleigh Cannons FC Port Melbourne Sharks SC
Pascoe Vale FC St Albans Saints SC Peninsula Strikers FC Ringwood City FC
Whittlesea Ranges FC Werribee City FC Springvale White Eagles FC South Melbourne FC

 

 

 

 

 

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South Canberra FC Breaks the Mold: Equity-Driven Model Earns ‘Club Changer’ Honour

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Image Credit: SCFC

South Canberra Football Club has been named Club Changer of the Month for April, in a recognition that reflects a broader shift across Australian football toward rewarding clubs that are actively dismantling the structural barriers limiting women’s access to the game.

The AFC Women’s Asian Cup has just delivered record crowds and unprecedented visibility for women’s football in Australia, and the Club Changer program is now asking what comes next. Its decision to name South Canberra Football Club as Club Changer of the Month for April signals a clear shift in how the program defines contribution: away from participation numbers alone, and toward the equity frameworks that determine whether women stay in the game once they arrive.

South Canberra FC built that framework from the ground up. Established in 2021, the club set out to give women and female-identifying players a safe, inclusive environment to play football at any level. It runs entirely on volunteers, operates as a not-for-profit, and is governed by an all-female committee with 13 of its 14 coaches identifying as female.

 

Building the infrastructure of inclusion

In 2026, the club secured grant funding and put it to work immediately. Two coaches are completing their C Licence qualification, and ten coaches, players and community members have undertaken the Foundations of Football course, which directly tackles the cost and accessibility barriers that exclude women out of coaching pathways.

The club also commissioned a female-specific strength and conditioning program with sports physiotherapists ahead of the 2026 season, targeting injury prevention and explicitly supporting players returning after childbirth.

SCFC’s leadership team draws from LGBTIQ+ individuals, First Nations people and veterans, strengthening the club’s connection to the communities it was built to represent.

The Club Changer program is backing clubs that do this work- clubs that treat equity as infrastructure rather than aspiration. At a moment when Australian football is under pressure to turn its biggest-ever surge of women’s interest into something lasting, SCFC’s model offers a clear answer to the question of how.

Football NSW announces 2026 First Nations Scholarships as pathway access program enters new phase

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Image Credit: Football NSW

Football NSW has announced the recipients of its 2026 First Nations Scholarships, with ten emerging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players from metropolitan and regional NSW receiving support designed to reduce the financial and structural barriers that have historically limited First Nations participation across the football pathway.

The scholarship program, developed and assessed in collaboration with the Football NSW Indigenous Advisory Group, targets players across both elite and development environments – recognising that talent identification alone is insufficient without the resources to support progression once players are identified.

Co-Chair of the Indigenous Advisory Group Bianca Dufty said the calibre of this year’s recipients reflected the depth of First Nations football talent across the state, and the importance of structured support in converting that talent into long-term participation.

“Their dedication to football and the desire to be role models for younger Aboriginal footballers in their communities is to be celebrated,” Dufty said. “I’m confident we will see some of these talented footballers in the A-League and national teams in the future.”

 

Beyond the pitch and into the pipeline

The 2026 cohort spans both metropolitan clubs and regional associations, an intentional distribution that acknowledges the particular barriers facing First Nations players outside major population centres, where access to development programs, qualified coaching and pathway competitions is more limited and the cost of participation more prohibitive.

The next phase of the program will introduce First Nations coaching scholarships, extending the initiative’s reach beyond playing pathways and into the coaching and administration pipeline – areas where Indigenous representation remains among the lowest in the game.

The structural logic is clear. Scholarships that reduce financial barriers at the entry point of elite pathways matter most when they are part of a sustained ecosystem of support rather than isolated gestures. Football NSW’s collaboration with the Indigenous Advisory Group provides that continuity, ensuring the program is shaped by the communities it is designed to serve.

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