The team played itsfirst match in 1922 and originally participated in theOceania Football Confederation (OFC). In this confederation, Australia won the OFC Nations Cup four times between 1980 and 2004, and dominated manyFIFA World Cup qualification campaigns during earlier rounds. The team won31–0 againstAmerican Samoa in a FIFA World Cup qualification match, achieving the world record for the largest victory in a senior international match. Despite this, the team only managed to qualify for theFIFA World Cup twice in 11 attempts while in this confederation, due to Oceania's single qualification berth always leading to an intercontinental playoff, and thus, not guaranteeing straight qualification. The team moved to the AFC in 2006, winning the AFC Asian Cup once in 2015 (as hosts) and finishing runners-up in2011. By winning this competition, Australia became the only team in the world to have won two different confederation cups.[7] Since moving confederations, the team has also qualified for the World Cup in every attempt, qualifying an additional five times for an overall seven qualifications. Australia has made appearances in the World Cup knockout stages twice, having progressed to this stage in2006 and2022. Despite being part of the AFF, Australia has not joined theASEAN Championship due to mutual agreement.
The first Australia soccer team (wearing light blue shirts) of 1922
The first Australia national team was constituted in 1922 for a tour of New Zealand,[8] which included two defeats and a draw. For the next 36 years, Australia,New Zealand andSouth Africa became regular opponents in tour (exhibition) matches.[9] During that period, Australia also competed againstCanada andIndia during their tours of Australia in 1924 and 1938 respectively.[10][11] Australia recorded their worst ever defeat on 30 June 1951 as they lost 17–0 in a match to a touringEngland side.[12] The country had a rare opportunity to compete on the world's stage during the team's first major international tournament as hosts of the1956 Melbourne Olympics. However, an inexperienced squad proved to be reason for the team's disappointing performance, including a 4–2 loss to India in the quarterfinals.[13] With the advent of cheap air travel, Australia began to diversify its range of opponents,[9] but its geographical isolation continued to play a role in its destiny for the next 30 years.[9] Australia won the1967 South Vietnam Independence Cup against seven other nations, but this gained little recognition domestically.[14]
After failing to qualify for theFIFA World Cup in1966 and1970, losing in play-offs toNorth Korea andIsrael respectively, Australia finally appeared at their first World Cup inWest Germany in1974.[15] After managing only a draw fromChile and losses fromEast Germany andWest Germany, the team, which was made up of mostly amateur players, was eliminated at the end of thefirst round, finishing last in their group without scoring a goal. It would prove to be the only appearance for the Australian team until the World Cup returned to Germany more than three decades later in2006.[15] Over a 40-year period, the Australian team was known for its near misses in its attempts to qualify for the World Cup; they lost play-offs in1966 toNorth Korea,1970 toIsrael,1986 toScotland,1994 toArgentina,1998 toIran and2002 toUruguay.
The team's previously poor record in World Cup competition was not reflected in their reasonable performances against strong European and South American sides. In 1988, Australia defeated reigning world champions Argentina 4–1 in theAustralian Bicentennial Gold Cup.[16][17] In 1997, Australia drew with reigning world championsBrazil 0–0 in the group stage and then defeated Uruguay 1–0 in the semi-finals to reach the1997 FIFA Confederations Cup final.[18]
In early 2005, it was reported thatFootball Australia had entered into discussions to join theAsian Football Confederation (AFC) and end an almost 40-year association with theOceania Football Confederation (OFC).[21] Many commentators and fans, including soccer broadcaster and former Australian captainJohnny Warren, felt that the only way for Australia to progress was to abandon Oceania.[22] On 13 March, the AFC executive committee made a unanimous decision to invite Australia to join the AFC.[23] After the OFC executive committee unanimously endorsed Australia's proposed move, FIFA approved the move on 30 June 2005.[23] Australia joined Asia, with the move taking effect on 1 January 2006, though until then, Australia had to compete for a2006 FIFA World Cup position as an OFC member country.[23]
After a successfulcampaign, the team took the first steps towards qualification for the 2006 World Cup.[24] After coachFrank Farina stood down from the position after Australia's dismal performance at the2005 FIFA Confederations Cup,Guus Hiddink was announced as the new national coach.[24] Australia, ranked 49th, would then have to play the 18th rankedUruguay in a rematch of the2001 qualification play-off for a spot in the 2006 FIFA World Cup. After a 5–0friendly win againstJamaica,[25] the first leg of theplay-off tournament was lost (1–0), with the return leg still to be played in Australia four days later in Sydney on 16 November 2005.[26]
Australia playingUruguay atStadium Australia to determine the last qualifying spot for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
The second leg of the qualifying play-off was played in front of a crowd of 82,698 atStadium Australia.[27] Australia led Uruguay 1–0 after 90 minutes following a goal byMark Bresciano in the first half. The aggregate was tied, and extra time was played. Neither team scored after two periods of extra time, bringing the game to a penalty shootout. Australia won the penalty shootout 4–2, making Australia the first ever team to qualify for a World Cup via a penalty shootout.[28] Australian goalkeeperMark Schwarzer made two saves, withJohn Aloisi scoring the winning penalty for a place in the World Cup, Australia's first qualification in 32 years.[26]
Australia went into the 2006 World Cup as the second lowest-ranked side. Although their ranking vastly improved in subsequent months after a series of exhibition matches against high-profile teams, including a 1–1 draw against theNetherlands, and a 1–0 win at the sold-out 100,000 capacityMelbourne Cricket Ground against the thenEuropean championsGreece[29] for the 2006 World Cup, Australia was placed intoGroup F, along withJapan,Croatia and defending champions Brazil. In their opening group game, Australia defeated Japan 3–1, withTim Cahill scoring two goals (84', 89') andJohn Aloisi scoring one (90+2') in the last eight minutes. The goals were the first ever scored by Australia's men's soccer team in a World Cup and it was also the first victory of an Oceanian team in the tournament's history, as well as all three goals being scored in the last seven minutes of the game, which was never before done in a World Cup match.[30] Australia met Brazil in their second group game, which Australia lost to Brazil 2–0. The Socceroos faced Croatia in their third match. The final score (2–2) was enough to see Australia proceed to theround of 16, where they were eliminated from the competition after a 1–0 defeat by the eventual championsItaly after conceding a controversial penalty in the 93rd minute.[31][32] The loss marked the official end of Hiddink's tenure as Australia's national coach.[33] The success achieved at the 2006 World Cup later sawthe team namedAFC National Team of the Year,[34] as well as being dubbed the "golden generation" in the history of the Socceroos.[35]
Led by coachGraham Arnold, Australia went to their firstAFC Asian Cup in 2007, sending a strong squad which included 15 players from theprevious year's World Cup team. InGroup A they played againstOman (a 1–1 draw),Thailand (a 4–0 win) and eventual championsIraq (a 3–1 loss), assuring Australia's progression to the quarter-final stage of the tournament. After drawing 1–1 with Japan with 120 minutes played, Australia exited the tournament on penalties at the quarter-final stage. An international friendly on 11 September 2007 against Argentina (a 1–0 loss) was Graham Arnold's last game as head coach, with the position eventually being filled byPim Verbeek on 6 December 2007.[36]
Australia was drawn intoGroup D in the World Cup, which featured three-time world champion Germany,Ghana andSerbia. On 14 June, Australia faced Germany. Pim Verbeek's surprising decision to play without a recognised striker saw Australia comprehensively defeated 4–0. Verbeek received heavy criticism for his tactics,[38] withSBS (Australia's World Cup broadcaster) chief soccer analystCraig Foster calling for his immediate sacking.[39] Australia's second group match against Ghana resulted in a 1–1 draw, and their third and final group match against Serbia resulted in a 2–1 win. Ultimately, Australia were eliminated on goal difference behind Ghana. Pim Verbeek completed his term as Australian coach at the end of the 2010 World Cup and was soon replaced byHolger Osieck.[40]
In 2010, Australia qualified for their secondAFC Asian Cup, topping theirqualification group. A successful campaign at the2011 Asian Cup saw Australia become runners-up to Japan, after losing in theFinal 1–0 in extra time.[41]
In 2012, Australia agreed to compete in theEast Asian Cup.[42] Australia travelled to Hong Kong to compete in a series of qualification matches with the hopes of qualifying for the2013 East Asian Cup. Despite handing several debuts and fielding an in-experienced squad, Australia was successful, finishing ahead ofHong Kong, North Korea,Guam andChinese Taipei to progress to the 2013 East Asian Cup, where Australia eventually finished last behind Japan,South Korea and China PR.[43][44] On 26 August 2013, Australia became full members of theASEAN Football Federation[45] but as part of their entrance agreement with the sub-confederation, their national team is barred from participating in theAFF Championship due to their perceived wide gap in playing standards between Australia and the rest of the region.[46]
Shortly after achieving qualification to the World Cup, Australia played a series of friendly matches against Brazil and France, suffering consecutive 6–0 defeats. This along with previous poor performances during the 2014 World Cup qualification campaign resulted in manager Holger Osieck's sacking, bringing his four-year tenure as Australia's manager to an end.[49]
After a two-week search for a new manager,Ange Postecoglou was eventually appointed in the position.[50] Postecoglou was tasked with regenerating the Australian national team, which was deemed to have been too reliant on members of their Golden Generation of 2006, subsequently leading to a stagnation of results, culminating in successive 6–0 defeats to Brazil and France.[51] In his first game as Australia's manager, a home friendly match againstCosta Rica, Australia won 1–0 courtesy of a goal from Tim Cahill.[52]
At the World Cup, Australia were drawn inGroup B alongsidedefending world championsSpain, 2010 runners-upNetherlands andChile.[53] Their first match was off to a lacklustre start, having conceded two goals in the opening 15 minutes fromAlexis Sánchez andJorge Valdivia. Despite a goal from Tim Cahill that inspired a late resurgence from Postecoglou's team, they ultimately lost to Chile 3–1. Their second match against the Netherlands was a close one, with the Socceroos giving up a 2–1 lead, eventually resulting in a 3–2 loss, thus earning their early exit along with the Spanish. In the end, Australia finished Group B with a third consecutive defeat to Spain, 3–0. Australia's competitive World Cup performances in a difficult group led to believe that a new Golden Generation was about to begin.[54][55]
In their first international match after the World Cup, Australia played 2014 quarter-finalistsBelgium inLiège, with Australia going down 2–0. Four days later, Australia achieved their first international win in ten months, and just their second win under Ange Postecoglou, with a 3–2 victory overSaudi Arabia inLondon. After drawing against the United Arab Emirates, and suffering successive losses against Qatar and Japan, combined with previous poor results earlier in the year, Australia slipped to 94 and 102 in theFIFA World Rankings, their lowest-ever ranking.[56]
The new year saw Australia host the2015 AFC Asian Cup, with the team making their third consecutive appearance in the tournament. Australia won their first twogroup matches againstKuwait and Oman comfortably, with scorelines of 4–1 and 4–0 respectively. This guaranteed their qualification for the knockout stage, despite losing their final group match against South Korea in Brisbane 1–0.[57] They faced China PR in the quarter-finals and won 2–0, courtesy of a second-half brace from Tim Cahill. In the semi-finals, Australia won 2–0 over the United Arab Emirates and advanced to thefinal for the second time in a row. They faced South Korea in the final on 31 January atStadium Australia, winning 2–1 after extra time to claim their first Asian title and qualify for the2017 FIFA Confederations Cup.[58][59]
After Australia qualified for the2018 FIFA World Cup in November 2017,Ange Postecoglou resigned from his position as coach;[60] and former manager of the Netherlands national team,Bert van Marwijk, was subsequently appointed as his replacement.[61][62][63] On 8 March 2018, after van Marwijk's first squad announcement, the FFA announced thatGraham Arnold will take the coaching role from after the 2018 World Cup until the2022 World Cup.[64]
With van Marwijk, Australia wasgrouped withDenmark,France andPeru. The Socceroos' first group match against eventualworld champions France was praised by a valiant effort, in which Australia only lost 1–2 by a virtual own goal fromAziz Behich.[65] After the defeat to France, Australia produced another outstanding performance, drawing Denmark 1–1.[66] However, in the crucial match against already eliminated Peru, Australia lost 0–2 and crashed out from the World Cup with only a point, becoming the only team from the AFC to be winless in the 2018 World Cup.[67] Subsequently, van Marwijk left his post and Arnold replaced him as the new coach of the Socceroos.
UnderGraham Arnold, Australia started their2019 AFC Asian Cup in hope of defending the title, beinggrouped withJordan, Syria and Palestine, but their hope was shattered by a shocking 0–1 defeat to Jordan.[68] Australia soon returned to the race by beating Palestine 3–0[69] before winning an important encounter with a hard-fought 3–2 win over Syria,[70] eliminating both Palestine and Syria in the process. The win gave Australia to qualify for the round of sixteen, where they overcameUzbekistan after winning on penalties 4–2, having drawn 0–0 for 120 minutes.[71] In the quarter-finals, however, in theHazza bin Zayed Stadium, where Australia had lost their opening match against Jordan, Australia once again failed to register a win in the same ground, losing to the host United Arab Emirates 0–1 due to a mistake fromMiloš Degenek, eventually failing to defend the title.[72]
Australia took part in the2022 FIFA World Cup qualification, which they entered in thesecond round, in which they facedKuwait, Jordan,Nepal andChinese Taipei.[73] Australia dominated the group with eight wins out of eight to reach thethird round, where it facedSaudi Arabia,Japan,China,Oman andVietnam.[74] After a start with three straight wins over China, Vietnam and Oman, Australia then won only one game, against Vietnam, in their final seven matches, being held thrice and losing three more, finishing third in the group. It then had to rely onfourth round playoffs.[75] Due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, all of Australia's playoffs were centralised inDoha. The Socceroos began their quest with a 2–1 win over theUnited Arab Emirates, to face fifth placeCONMEBOL qualification finisherPeru, a rematch of the2018 FIFA World Cup.[76] This time around, Australia held Peru goalless, before winning on penalties to qualify for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Australia was drawn ingroup D along withFrance,Denmark andTunisia.[77] Australia's qualification also meant that theAsian confederation had the largest number of teams in their FIFA World Cup history, with six countries qualifying.[78]
As preparation for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Australia played two friendlies against neighbouringNew Zealand, winning both games.[79][80] It began its World Cup quest on 23 November against France, losing 4–1 after initially taking the lead with goal fromCraig Goodwin.[81] Three days later Australia registered its first World Cup win since2010, overcoming Tunisia with a header fromMitchell Duke to seal a 1–0 win, sending Australia from bottom to second place.[82] Four days later, againstUEFA Euro 2020 semi-finalists Denmark, Australia won 1–0, thanks to aMathew Leckie goal. Australia finished the group stage in second place behind France on goal difference, making Australia the first Asian representative to reach theknockout stage in Qatar 2022.[83] Australia's resurgence in the group stage was widely watched and followed by Australian supporters. Mass celebrations occurred after the upsets over Tunisia and Denmark, and Prime MinisterAnthony Albanese called the achievement "magnificent".[84][85][86] In the round of 16, Australia lost 2–1 toArgentina, withLionel Messi opening the scoring andJulián Álvarez getting the second after dispossessingMathew Ryan. Australia pulled one back when Goodwin's shot deflected into goal offEnzo Fernández andGarang Kuol almost scored the equaliser in injury time, but his shot was smothered by Argentinian goalkeeperEmiliano Martínez.[87]
On 20 September 2024, Graham Arnold announced he was stepping down as head coach, two games into the third round of2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying.[88] The Socceroos had only picked up one point from two matches. On 23 September 2024,James Johnson announced thatFootball Australia had appointedTony Popovic as head coach.[89] Popovic led the Socceroos to wins over Japan and Saudi Arabia, and Australia eventually ensured direct qualification to the FIFA World Cup for the first time since 2014, and their sixth consecutive World Cup appearance.[90]
The national team has set multiple ratings records for both subscription and free-to-air television. Australia's final2006 FIFA World Cup qualifying match againstUruguay was the highest rating program in SBS history with an audience of 3.4 million viewers,[94] while a2010 World Cup qualifying match againstUzbekistan set a record for the highest subscription television audience, with an average of 431,000 viewers.[95] The2015 AFC Asian Cup final againstSouth Korea had a total reach of 5.3 million Australians overall.[96]
As of 2025, the Socceroos kit is designed by Reko Rennie, aFirst Nations artist.[97] The kit is used across all of Australia's national football teams, including theMatildas. The home shirt is predominantly yellow and light green chevron patterning. The shorts are a solid dark green, along with the collar, side, and cuffs of the shirt. They are usually worn with white socks. The away kit is predominantly black, with a light green collar and cuffs on the shirt. It is also adorned with pink and green chevron patterning on its sides.[98]
Australia's first national kit, 1922
Australia's first kit was sky blue with a maroon hoop on the socks, the colours representing the states ofNew South Wales andQueensland, a look that was reminiscent of theAustralian national rugby league team's strips of the period.[99] They wore the predominantly light blue kit until 1924 when they changed togreen and gold, Australia's national colours.[100]
Australia has worn a yellow jersey, usually accompanied by green shorts, and yellow socks since the 1960s. The colour of the socks altered throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s from white to the same green as the shorts to the same yellow colour as the jersey.
Rather than displaying the logo of Football Australia, Australia's jersey traditionally features thecoat of arms of Australia over the left breast. The team first wore the traditional green and yellow colours in 1924.[101]
Australia's kits have been produced by manufacturers includingUmbro,Adidas, KingRoo, and since 2004 byNike.[102] Australia's 1974 World Cup kits were produced by Adidas as were all other national team kits in the tournament, with Adidas sponsoring the event. The kits, however, contained Umbro branding, due to the manufacturer's Australian partnership at the time.[103] Nike renewed the kit manufacturer deal with FFA for another 11 years in 2012, handing them the rights to make national team kits until 2022.[104] In the lead-up to the 2014 World Cup, the new kits to be worn by the team were revealed. The design of the new kits included a plain yellow shirt with a green collar, plain dark green shorts and white socks, a tribute to the 1974 Socceroos. Inside the back of the neck also had woven the quote, "We Socceroos can do the impossible", fromPeter Wilson, the captain of the 1974 Australian team.[105] This kit was well received.[citation needed] In March 2016, FFA revealed the new Socceroos kit, which featured a yellow jersey, yellow shorts and green socks. This was reportedly in accordance with a FIFA directive, instructing all national teams to have matching shirts and shorts.[106][107] This kit was met with wide public contention, primarily due to the colour change of the shorts from the traditional green to yellow.[106][107][108][109][110]
The team has been branded the "CommBank Socceroos" since 1 September 2025, afterCommonwealth Bank (who also have the naming rights for thewomen's national team) took over the naming rights from restaurant chainSubway, whose previous deal started in 2022.[117][118]
Previously, they were known as the "Caltex Socceroos" under the sponsorship ofCaltex Australia from 2017 to 2019.[119][120] During the2018 FIFA World Cup, some of Caltex's service stations were re-branded as "Cahilltex" as a nod to Socceroos playerTim Cahill.[121][122]
Football Australia has been sponsored byQantas as its official airline since 2004.[123]
Australia's longtime rivals aretrans-Tasman neighboursNew Zealand.[124] The two teams' history dates back to 1922, where they first met in both their international debuts. The rivalry between the Socceroos and theAll Whites (New Zealand) is part of awider friendly rivalry between the neighbours Australia and New Zealand, which applies not only to sport but to the culture of the two countries. The rivalry was intensified when Australia and New Zealand were both members of the OFC, regularly competing inOFC Nations Cup finals and inFIFA World Cup qualifications, where only one team from the OFC progressed to the World Cup. Since Australia joined the AFC in 2006, competition between the two teams has been infrequent, with the occasional match still receiving much media and public attention.[125]
After joining the AFC, Australia began to develop a fierce rivalry with fellow Asian powerhouseJapan.[126] The rivalry began at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, where the two countries were grouped together. The rivalry continued with the two countries meeting regularly in various AFC competitions, including the2011 Asian Cup final and qualification for the 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, and 2026 World Cups.[citation needed]
Another major rival within Asia isSouth Korea, who Australia came up against in three World Cup qualification campaigns in the 1970s and, since joining the AFC, have met regularly, including the2015 Asian Cup final.[127]
A rivalry exists withUruguay since their first meeting on the eve of the1974 FIFA World Cup. Both nations have faced each other in consecutive FIFA World Cup play-offs in 2001 and 2005 with each nation winning a playoff final each to progress through to the World Cup. Australia and Uruguay also faced off in the1997 Confederations Cup in Saudi Arabia, with Australia progressing through to the final againstBrazil via agolden goal winner fromHarry Kewell.[128]
The mainsupporter group of the Australian national team isAustralian Active Support (AAS).[129] AAS, then known asSocceroos Active Support (SAS), was founded in January 2015 as an independent group,[130] who uses social media to organise and keep in touch. This replaced the former active support groupTerrace Australis,[131] who were founded by Football Federation Australia and fans in 2013, during Australia's 2014 World Cup qualification campaign.[132] Its establishment came in the wake of poor off-field action and minimal community engagement.[133] Previously, the emergence of Terrace Australis saw theGreen and Gold Army relinquish its role as a hub for active support, which it had claimed since its establishment in 2001.[134][135] Since the 2015 AFC Asian Cup triumph, the supporters had encouraged people in Australia to focus more on the national team, and the nation's soccer pride.
Since the 2003 friendly against England, theSocceroos have also played a significant number of games in England, especially London, since a high proportion of the senior team play in European leagues. This includes games atMadejski Stadium in Reading (Reading Football Club's home ground in 2003 against Jamaica,Loftus Road inShepherd's Bush (Queens Park Rangers' home ground) in 2004 and 2008 against South Africa, 2006 against Ghana, and 2007 against Denmark.
1 Associate member of OFC - Not a member of FIFA 2 Not a member of OFC and consequently not a member of FIFA 3 Northern Mariana Islands was only an associate member of OFC between 1998 and 2009 - Not a member of FIFA 4 Although not geographically in Oceania, Chinese Taipei was a member of the OFC between 1976–1978 and 1982–1989 Although not geographically in OceaniaIsrael entered OFC World Cup qualification in1986 and1990 due to political reasons, though it never became a formal OFC member.
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