| Full name | South Melbourne Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | Hellas | ||
| Founded | 1959 (66 years ago) (1959) | ||
| Ground | |||
| Co-President | Bill Papastergiadis Andrew Mesourouni[1] | ||
| General Manager | Strati Xynas | ||
| Coach | Sinisa Cohadzic (men's) | ||
| League | OFC Professional League NPL Victoria (men's) | ||
2025 | 9th of 14NPL | ||
| Website | smfc | ||
South Melbourne FC, nicknamedHellas, is a Australianprofessionalsoccer club based in the suburb ofAlbert Park inMelbourne, Victoria. Its senior men's and women's teams play in theNational Premier Leagues Victoria (NPL) andVictoria Women, in the second tier of theAustralian league system. The club also competes in theAustralian Championship as a foundation club, and theOFC Professional League. Its home ground isLakeside Stadium.
Founded asSouth Melbourne Hellas (Greek:Νότια Μελβούρνη Ελλάς) by the merger of three clubs in 1959, it inherited theGreek Australian culture of its predecessors. Playing atMiddle Park Stadium, Hellas enjoyed immediate success, earning promotion toFootball Victoria's first division and winning seven titles in the 1960s and 70s. It was a charter member of theNational Soccer League (NSL) and competed in all 28 seasons from 1977 to 2004, winning four championships and twoNSL Cups. In the NSL's final seasons, the club moved to a reconfigured Lakeside Stadium, and competed as theSouth Melbourne Lakers and laterSouth Melbourne SC. Upon its return to Victoria's first division in 2005, it adopted its current name.
South Melbourne have won ten Victorian men's titles, five women's titles, tenDockerty Cups, and oneState Cup. The club also won the1999 OFC Club Championship, which earned them a place in the2000 FIFA Club World Championship. Its best finishes in theAustralia Cup are semi-final appearances in2017 and2024. TheIFFHS recognised South Melbourne as theirOceania Club of the Century in 2010. Its rivalries includeHeidelberg United, theMelbourne Knights,Preston Lions, andSydney Olympic. The club has also been a perennial candidate forexpansion of the A-Leagues.
South Melbourne was formed in 1959 with the amalgamation of three struggling Melbourne soccer clubs—South Melbourne United, the oldest of the three clubs with a history dating back to the early 1900s—the Greek-backedYarra Park Aias (Ajax), andHellenic.[2][3] Theo Marmaras, initiator of the merger proposal and president of Hellenic, became the first president of the new club.[2] In recognition of the largeGreek Australian support base of Hellenic and Yarra Park, which were also the best-supported of the three clubs, the new club was namedSouth Melbourne Hellas, the name by which it was to be known for the majority of its 50 years. The first emblem reflected the colour scheme of theGreek national flag. The first uniform consisted of jersey of white with a red 'V' around the collar, the was[clarification needed] also that of South Melbourne United, as well as blue shorts and blue and white hooped socks. Later on they would adopt predominantly blue and white strips, with various designs throughout the seasons, with the most common being a predominantly royal blue strip.
South Melbourne won the Victorian First Division (North) championship of 1960,[4] the club's inaugural year of competition. The club was promoted to the Victorian State League First Division the following year, where it finished fifth in its first year.[5] With a number of astute signings—Scottish journeymanTommy Anderson (George Cross), Ernie Ackerley (Manchester United), Leo Damianakos (Kalamata), Jim Pyrgolios (Panathinaikos) and Andreas Roussis, formerly ofPanathinaikos andApollon Athens[3]—the club won the division championship in 1962, 1964, and 1965.[6] In 1965, South Melbourne secured the services of 35-year-old formerAEK Athens star,Kostas Nestoridis as player-coach. The result was a significant increase in crowd attendances and a fourth league title in 1966.[6] Eager to repeat its success, the club recruited a number of Greek and local footballers, but they failed to make any impact. By 1969, the import experiment was considered a failure and most of the Greek players returned to their homeland.[3]
In 1970, the club focused its attention on recruiting local soccer players. It soon signed two players that would become South Melbourne Men's greatest players, Steve Walker and striker Jim Armstrong. South Melbourne missed out on the title by a point in the 1971 season, edged out byFootscray JUST,[7] but with Armstrong scoring goals aplenty, South Melbourne went on to win the championship in 1972.[6] The season also saw coach Bill Curran consolidate the first team's strength by signing midfielder Peter Bourne (Burnley) and promoting highly skilled youngsters Giovanni Barticciotto, Fethon Ileris[3] and Bill Hasapis.[8] The club continued its successful run with the 1974 title,[6] second place in 1975,[9] and with star recruitsJimmy Mackay,Peter Ollerton and Duncan Cummings, capped off its final year in the Victorian State League by winning the 1976 championship.[3]

South Melbourne joinedMooroolbark,Heidelberg United andFootscray JUST, as Melbourne's participants in the newly formedNational Soccer League (NSL) in 1977, which was Australia's first sporting national competition.[10] A mass exodus of its best players (Armstrong, Bourne, Mackay, Walker), saw the team slump to eleventh place in its inaugural year, but a recruiting drive by coach Dave Maclaren gave the club a respectable third in 1978. It was not to last as South Melbourne finished at the bottom of the league table in 1979.[3]

The recruitment ofAlan Davidson,George Campbell (Aberdeen), Steve Blair,Branko Buljevic,Alun Evans (Liverpool), and Charlie Egan, helped South Melbourne climb theNSL ladder in the early part of the decade, with South becoming runners up in the NSL in 1981, which was their best ever NSL placing at the time. They also won the Ampol Cup in 1982.[11] Some solid player signings such as (Oscar Crino,Doug Brown, Bobby Russell andJohn Yzendoorn) gave the club some respectability, but a combination of committee problems and a string of coaches, never allowed the team to settle and gain consistency.[11] South Melbourne finished first on the league ladder in 1984,[12] but in a newly restructured NSL competition, it also had to win the finals series to win the title. The club powered past local rivalsHeidelberg United in the Southern Division play-offs, and edged outSydney Olympic in the Grand Final to win the 1984 national championship.[3]
After the departure ofGeorge Campbell to rivalsPreston Makedonia in 1983/84,Branko Buljevic to Footscray Just in 1985 and others, South Melbourne could not repeat the success of the previous year. Despite finishing in first place,[13] it was knocked out of the finals series by local rivalsBrunswick Juventus andPreston.[14] A major overhaul by coach Brian Garvey saw a number of new signings being made, including youngstersPaul Trimboli, David Healy,Kimon Taliadoros and Harry Micheil.[3] The young team put in some memorable performances as the decade came to a close, finishing in the top half of the league table, but failed to win another championship. The club appointed Footballing iconFerenc Puskás as coach for the 1989/90 season, helping South win the NSL Cup tournament for that season, as well backing up their 1988Dockerty Cup win with victory in the 1989 tournament.[15]
On 28 November 1981, South Melbourne Hellas and Melbourne Hakoah announced that they had merged to form a second team for South Melbourne which would compete in the Victorian State League and act as a feeder club to the South Melbourne senior team.
The price paid for 54 years of Hakoah history was $35,000. The merger had been an ongoing discussion between the two co-tenants ofMiddle Park from the middle of the 1981 season.
The two clubs had shared Middle Park from 1961 until 1981. Melbourne Hakoah cited financial strains and lack of crowd support as the two prime reasons why the club was forced to accept the offer from South Melbourne.
The club's change of fortune continued next season, with the club winning its second national championship, beating rivalsMelbourne Croatia on penalties after a tense 1–1 score line in normal time with many describing it as one of Australian footballs best matches.[16] With Croatia dominating most of the proceedings, striker Joe Palatsides was put through on goal by Paul Trimboli who equalised with the last kick of the game.
The team boasted some of the finest Australian football talent inPaul Fernandes,Michael Petersen,Paul Wade,Mehmet Durakovic,Paul Trimboli andCon Boutsianis. The feat could not be repeated the next year as the club was eliminated by eventual premiersAdelaide City in a Preliminary Final.[17]
Former player Jim Pyrgolios replaced Puskás for the 1992/93 season which saw the club finish first on the points table during the regular season.[18] South Melbourne was again eliminated during the finals series by Adelaide City and Marconi-Fairfield, the latter inflicting a 7–0 thrashing.[19][20] In 1993/94, the club finished second,[21] but failed yet again to progress to the Grand Final, courtesy of Melbourne Croatia and their nemesis, Adelaide City.[22] For the 1994/95 season, the club hired formerSocceroos coachFrank Arok to replace Pyrgolios. The round one game from that season was the club's last at itsMiddle Park home before moving temporarily toOlympic Park while they awaited the completion of their new home, the 14,000-capacityLakeside Stadium, on the site of the formerLake Oval. The club finished sixth on the ladder,[23] but was eliminated again in the Preliminary Final by the Melbourne Knights in a 3-2 thriller in the rain with a hattrick toMark Viduka.[24] Arok left the club after a disappointing 1995/96 season, which saw South miss the finals for the first time since 1989.[25]

In 1996, the club was required bySoccer Australia, along with clubs all over the country, to change its emblem and name in an attempt to move soccer into the Australian mainstream and away from direct club-level association with its migrant roots. As a consequence, South Melbourne Hellas reappeared asSouth Melbourne Lakers. Its new name and emblem was not well received by many of its Greek supporters. The name change also drew attention from AmericanNBA team, theL.A. Lakers, who threatened legal action.[26]
Under new coach and former captainAnge Postecoglou, the club bounced back in season 1996/97, finishing third on the table[27] and eventually being eliminated bySydney United in the Preliminary Final.[28] The club capped off the end of the decade with impressive performances, becoming Australian champions in 1998 and 1999, thanks to performances byPaul Trimboli,Vaughan Coveny,Con Blatsis and formerPAOK starJohn Anastasiadis.
In the 1998 Grand Final, South Melbourne defeated league newcomerCarlton 2–1 with a controversial late chip by Boutsianis, sending the crowd into pandemonium.[29] That win was followed up in 1999 with a come-from-behind 3–2 win against Sydney United in the Grand Final, which was the first time the club had gone back-to-back since the glory days of the 1960s. This win would be Hellas' fourth and final national championship.[30] By now, South Melbourne had dropped theLakers moniker and becomeSouth Melbourne Soccer Club, and sported a new emblem—the current blue and white shield with stars (each star representing a national championship). They followed up their fourth domestic title with the1999 Oceania Club Championship, a win that qualified them for the2000 FIFA Club World Championship in Brazil.[3]
Grouped withVasco Da Gama,Necaxa, and the treble-winningManchester United in the 2000 FIFA Club World Championship,[31] South Melbourne lost all three games. Despite the losses and being the only non-professional club at the tournament, the club gained some respectability amongst its peers with its performance, as well as some much needed exposure on the world stage, something that had been severely lacking for Australian soccer clubs at the time.On its return from Brazil, South Melbourne failed to make the finals in the 1999/2000 season, finishing well outside the top six finals spots.[32] Before the new season started, Postecoglou left South Melbourne in order to take up the position of Australian youth coach, and was replaced by former South player and teammate Mike Petersen.[3] At the end of the 2000/01 home and away season, South Melbourne had finished a comfortable eight points clear ofWollongong,[33] but lost both legs of its major semi-final against the Wolves 2–1,[8] meaning South Melbourne would have to win the preliminary final in order to earn a rematch. They duly did so, with a 2–0 victory over Sydney Olympic, but put in a lacklustre performance in the Grand Final, with a late revival not being enough once more losing 2–1.[8]
Prior to the start of the 2001/2002 season, South Melbourne suffered a major blow as Petersen, along with several players including Boutsianis andAndy Vlahos left to join theFootball Kingz. A young squad under the management ofEddie Krncevic struggled, occupying the bottom rungs of the table halfway through the season, before the return in controversial circumstances of Boutsianis sparked a major revival, which saw the club finish fifth in the standings,[34] eventually being eliminated by eventual championsOlympic Sharks in the finals.[35]
Krnčević was replaced by former player Danny Wright for the 2002/03 season, but the club failed to reach the finals by a point.[36] Stuart Munro took over as coach for the 2003/04 season, with the club finishing fifth,[37] eventually being eliminated by a penalty deep into extra time againstAdelaide United[38] in what turned out to be South's final game in the NSL.
With the combined factors of the demise of the NSL, and poor financial management, South Melbourne fell into voluntary administration and lost most of its squad. With Melbourne being allocated just one licence for anA-League team, which was widely expected to go to a new franchise, and with the club in extreme financial difficulty, South Melbourne chose not to lodge an application to join the new competition.

Entering theVictorian Premier League in 2005 asSouth Melbourne Football Club, and with a new team under former player and new coachJohn Anastasiadis, the club reached the Preliminary Final of the VPL, going down to their old rivals Heidelberg United.[39] The season was highlighted by fluctuating crowd attendances at home games, national media attention paid to crowd trouble with fans ofPreston Lions, but also by good performances by a young and talented side, which before the season had been a relegation favourite.
In 2006, South Melbourne finished third in the table, courtesy of a strong home record,[40] including a record 7–0 thrashing of old foe Melbourne Knights.[41] They eventually progressed to the final, by defeatingGreen Gully andAltona Magic in successive weeks.[40] In the final itself, once more against Altona Magic, a second half goal by Gianni De Nittis was enough to see South Melbourne win the game 1–0,[40] and win their eighth Victorian championship, their first in 30 years, and first since returning to the competition in 2005.
In 2007, South Melbourne had a poor year, finishing in seventh place, missing the finals; after a poor start in 2008, Anastasiadis resigned. With another former player Michael Michalakopoulos taking charge, the team moved away from the relegation zone, but still missed the finals.
The club celebrated its 50th anniversary year during the 2009 season, with several heritage strips and a logo reminiscent of the pre-1990s logo used to mark the occasion. The club secured the services ofVaughan Coveny, recently retired fromA-League football, who went on to score his 100th goal for the club, withRamazan Tavsancioglu andFernando de Moraes also marking personal milestones by playing their 100th games. Michalakopoulos departed, after the club bowed out early in the finals series, to be replaced as coach by Vaughan Coveny.
The 2010 season saw drastic changes to the club with the re-development ofBob Jane Stadium commencing several rounds in the season. This forced the club to relocate the remainder of its 2010 home fixtures, and all of its 2011 home matches, toJohn Cain Memorial Park in a sharing arrangement withNorthcote City. The arrival of high-profile players includingCarl Recchia,Peter Zois andJoe Keenan among others brought a renewed hope of on-field success to the supporters. Despite some good on-field performances and individual brilliance, withFernando de Moraes winning the VPL Player of the Year andPeter Zois taking out the Goalkeeper of the Year award, the promised success did not eventuate with the club narrowly missing out on a finals berth.
Meanwhile, the club gained much international recognition with the award of being the Oceania Club of the Century by theInternational Federation of Football History & Statistics at a lavish gala ceremony at theHurlingham Club inFulham, London in May 2010 and entry into the2010 Singapore Cup. South Melbourne miraculously won its first-round match againstGombak United 2–1, and returned to Singapore in October for a two-legged playoff againstBangkok Glass at theJalan Besar Stadium, but were knocked out by the eventual champions 6–4 on aggregate. Coveny was replaced as coach after the end of the VPL season for the Singapore Cup tie byEddie Krncevic, who returned to the club after a stint as coach in the 2001/2002 NSL season. The club travelled to Singapore again for the2011 Singapore Cup, but were bundled out in the first round byAlbirex Niigata.
Under Krncevic, the club rallied late in the 2011 VPL season to finish fourth, but had their season ended in a penalty shootout in the semi-final byOakleigh Cannons. Krncevic was replaced in 2012 by former player Peter Tsolakis, who moved across fromNorthcote City with several players. 2012 saw the return of South Melbourne to their home ground, now known asLakeside Stadium, with vastly improved amenities, a second grandstand and an international-standard athletics track, which was opened in December 2011 with a friendly against old foesSydney Olympic. However, the club could not capitalise on its own turf, with terrible home form condemning the club to finish outside the top five, and miss out on finals once again.
In July 2013, Tsolakis resigned from his post after the board sacked five senior squad members without his consultation[42] and the club appointed formerSunshine George Cross, Melbourne Knights and Dandenong Thunder manager Chris Taylor on a two-year deal. South Melbourne finished the season in fourth place.
In 2014, the club entered theNational Premier Leagues Victoria competition, which replaced the old Victorian Premier League. South had a fantastic season, taking out their first league title since their 2000–01 NSL title. In the NPL National Finals Series, South Melbourne beatSouth Hobart 1–0 at theSouth Hobart Ground,[43] but lost toNorth Eastern MetroStars in the semi-final 2–1.[44]
In 2015, the club retained the NPL Victoria premiership, but lost to rivalsBentleigh Greens in the Grand Final. South Melbourne also won the Dockerty Cup, but lost toPalm Beach in the2015 FFA Cup Round of 32.
South Melbourne then recruited the likes ofMatthew Foschini,Matt Millar and Marcus Schroen for the following season.[45][46] South got season 2016 off on a bad note, losing the FFV Community Shield 3–0 to Bentleigh, but opened the NPL Victoria season on an emphatic note, beating traditional rivalsHeidelberg United 6–0 in front of over 3,000 fans at Lakeside.[47] On 30 March 2016, South Melbourne announced that it had secured a 40-year lease of Lakeside Stadium, with the club now "able to commence building its new administrational offices, museum, futsal court and bistro / social room in its exclusive areas."[48] South Melbourne bowed out of the2016 FFA Cup qualifying rounds at the final qualifying round, losing 4–0 to rivals Bentleigh Greens.[49] The club finished in third place in the league,[50] but went on to win the Championship through the finals series, beating Hume City 3-0 and then Oakleigh Cannons 3–2 in the grand final.[51] South Melbourne began construction on its exclusive areas at Lakeside Stadium in October 2016, with the development including the building of a new social club, futsal court and club offices.[52]
In 2017, South Melbourne finished runners-up in the league behind traditional rivalsHeidelberg United. In the finals series, Hellas lost to eventual championsBentleigh Greens in a penalty shoot-out in the semi-final. After reaching the2017 FFA Cup national stages, South Melbourne defeatedEdgeworth,Sorrento andGold Coast City to reach the semi-finals where they hostedSydney at Lakeside Stadium, eventually going down 5–1 to the reigning A-League champions in front of almost 6,000 people.
On the eve of the 2018 season, manager Chris Taylor and the club parted ways after four and a half seasons.[53] He was replaced by South Melbourne Men's U-20 manager Saša Kolman.
In the off-season, the club announced that Con Tangalakis had been appointed as the senior head coach on a permanent basis, after guiding them to survival while on an interim basis the season prior.[54] The club then farewelled three-time NPL Golden Boot and five-time club Golden Boot winner Milos Lujic after five years of service to the club.[55] After a start to the season, which saw the club manage two wins, a draw and four losses, leaving South Melbourne in eleventh place, senior coach Con Tangalakis offered his resignation, and senior assistant coach Estaban Quintas was appointed in a caretaker role to see out the 2019 season.[56]
South Melbourne was announced as one of the eight foundation clubs in the second-divisionAustralian Championship from October 2025 after submitting their application to Australian Professional Leagues on 20 November 2023.[57] They will continue to play in the NPL Victoria for the 2024 and 2025 season, before transitioning to the new league in the following season.
On 29 August 2025, South Melbourne were announced as one of the eight founding members of theOFC Professional League by theOceanian Football Confederation (OFC), as Australia's only member in the competition and also the only member outside of the OFC.[58]
From its formation in 1959, Hellas played its home game atMiddle Park Stadium. The ground with an 18,000 seat capacity was a fully enclosed venue by 1960, and a grandstand built by South Melbourne Hellas and Melbourne Hakoah, partly with funds lent to it by the Albert Park management authority was opened in the May 1961. The stadium saw many sellout crowds as South Melbourne made the jump to state league club to National league in 1977.
In 1993, the Victorian Government made a successful bid to bring the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix to Melbourne with the agreement that the running track would be in Albert Park. South Melbourne were forced to move from their home ground due to the installation of the track. On October 23, 1994, the final match at Middle Park was played as South Melbourne hosted traditional rivals Heidelberg Alexander beating them 4–1 in front of a sold-out crowd.
South Melbourne moved to Lakeside Stadium in 1995. The stadium was built with a capacity of 14,000 people. Agrandstand with an approximate capacity of 3,000 people was situated on one side, with a social club, reception centre and administrative facilities built in, while the other three sides of the ground consisted of open terraces with wooden seats. At one stage, a second two tiered stand for the outer side was proposed, but only preliminary plans were produced.
As well as being the home of South Melbourne, the venue also hosted games by theSocceroos,Young Socceroos, Australia's national women's team theMatildas, and grand finals and finals matches of theVictorian Premier League (now National Premier Leagues Victoria). It has also been a training base for theGreece national football team,France national football team and theBrazilian football national team.
In May 2008, the state government announced that Lakeside Stadium would undergo a major redevelopment, in order to accommodate an athletics track, as part of moving Athletics Victoria fromOlympic Park. TheVictorian Institute of Sport, Athletics Victoria and South Melbourne FC would share tenancy of the venue. Major Projects Victoria committed $60 million to the project. South Melbourne played its final match under the old Lakeside Stadium's in April 2010, and construction work on the remodelled venue began in June 2010. Under the remodelling, the old grandstand stand was refurbished to house the VIS and included a state of the art gym, swimming pool and clubrooms. A blue running track in reference to the home colour of the club was also constructed for the Athletics division.
Today, Lakeside Stadium is one of Australia's premiere stadiums.
Being one of the top placed sides since their inception, South Melbourne have numerous rivalries stemming from their participation in the State Leagues, National Soccer League and VPL/NPL.
South Melbourne have traditionally been one of the most well supported Football clubs in Australia, with fans across many countries and states. Their supporters have been noted for their vocal support and their dedication shown through banners and flags.
Currently, the main supporter faction is known as the Clarendon Corner, which has been present since the last few years of the NSL and place themselves in the corner of the stadium. Prior to that, the 'Hellas fans' would traditionally place themselves behind the goal South Melbourne was shooting at in large numbers.
Since dropping out of the national competition at the demise of the NSL, the club has held aspirations to return to the top competition for football clubs in Australia. On 14 February 2007, South Melbourne announced their interest in becoming the second Victorian club in theA-League.[59] In June 2008, South Melbourne sent a letter of interest to join the league[60] and lodged an application for the second Melbourne licence as part of the Southern Cross consortium, but on 26 September 2008 theFootball Federation Australia announced[61] it was commencing exclusive negotiations with the rivalMelbourne Heart bid, which went on to join the competition for the2010-11 A-League season.
In March 2013, it was revealed that the club was in negotiations to take a stake in the cash-strappedCentral Coast Mariners, but talks cooled off when the Mariners ownership structure was consolidated underMike Charlesworth.[62] In April 2013, the club was revealed to have made several offers to take a 100 per cent stake inMelbourne Heart; however, these offers were rejected.[63] Melbourne Heart management subsequently accepted an offer fromManchester City.
In November 2016, it was reported that South Melbourne intended to submit a bid for an A-League licence, with the club intending to continue playing home games at Lakeside Stadium, if the bid is successful.[64][65] Following this news, the club provisionally appointedBrazil andReal Madrid legendRoberto Carlos as the team's head coach should they be granted an expansion slot.[66]
South Melbourne submitted a bid to join the expanded A-League in September 2018;[67] however, were unsuccessful once again when, in December 2018, new consortiumWestern Melbourne was selected instead.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
South Melbourne won eight premierships, twoDockerty Cups, and two Ampol Cups before their entrance into theNational Soccer League (NSL) in 1977. In the1984 season, they won their first NSL premiership and their first championship, defeatingSydney Olympic 4–2 over a 2-legged Grand Final. They won another four premierships and three championships, only inthe 1997–98 season winning the double again, before the NSL folded in 2004. The club didn't enter the newly formed national competition, theA-League, due to the bidding process and one team for one state rule, and returned to playing at state level, entering theVictorian Premier League. Since then, they have won two premierships and two championships, with the most recent being in 2016.
Club[edit]National
State
Continental
Worldwide
Youth
Women[edit]
|
Individual[edit]Johnny Warren Medal/Player of the Year
Leading Goalscorer
Sam Papasavas Award (Under 21 NSL player of the year)
NSL Goalkeeper of the Year
NSL Coach of the Year
Bill Fleming Award
Victorian Premier League Top Goalscorer Award
Victorian Premier League Goalkeeper of the Year
Jimmy Rooney Medal
Victorian Premier League player of the year
|
| Country | Name | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Christos Georgoussis | (1960–1961) | |
| Len Young | (1961) | |
| Manny Poulakakis | (1961–1964) | |
| Ron Sawecki | (1965–1966) | |
| Kostas Nestoridis | (1966) | |
| John Anderson | (1967) | |
| Kostas Nestoridis | (1967–1968) | |
| Ljubiša Broćić | (1968) | |
| Ron Sawecki | (1968–1969) | |
| Manny Poulakakis | (1969) | |
| Ljubiša Broćić | (1970–1971) | |
| Bill Curran | (1972) | |
| Manny Poulakakis | (1972–1973) | |
| Jim Pyrgolios | (1974) | |
| John Margaritis | (1975) | |
| Brian Edgley | (1976) | |
| Manny Poulakakis | (1976) | |
| John Margaritis | (1977) | |
| Dave MacLaren | (1977–1979) | |
| Duncan MacKay | (1979) | |
| John Margaritis | (1979–1981) | |
| Tommy Docherty | (1982–1983) | |
| Mick Watson | (1983) | |
| Rale Rasic | (1983) | |
| Len McKendry | (1983–1985) | |
| John Margaritis | (1986) | |
| Brian Garvey | (1987–1989) | |
| Ferenc Puskás | (1989–1992) | |
| Jim Pyrgolios | (1992–1994) | |
| Frank Arok | (1994–1996) | |
| Ange Postecoglou | (1996–2000) | |
| Mike Petersen | (2000–2001) | |
| Eddie Krncevic | (2001–2002) | |
| Danny Wright | (2002–2003) | |
| Stuart Munro | (2003–2004) | |
| John Anastasiadis | (2005–2008) | |
| Michael Michalakopoulos | (2008–2009) | |
| Vaughan Coveny | (2010–2011) | |
| Eddie Krncevic | (2011–2012) | |
| Peter Tsolakis | (2012–2013) | |
| Chris Taylor | (2013–2018) | |
| Saša Kolman | (2018) | |
| Con Tangalakis | (2018–2019) | |
| Esteban Quintas | (2019–2025) | |
| Sinisa Cohadzic | (2025–present) |
| Preceded by | NSL Champions 1984 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | NSL Champions 1990/91 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | NSL Champions 1997/98-1998/99 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Adelaide City (1987) | OFC Champions League Champions 1999 | Succeeded by Wollongong Wolves (2000–01) |