Football South Australia

Football South Australia (FSA) is the governing body of soccer in the state of South Australia. It was established in 2006 under the name Football Federation South Australia (FFSA), which succeeded the former organisation, the South Australian Soccer Federation (SASF).

FSA oversees the highest levels of soccer in South Australia, as well as collaborating with regional competitions and amateur leagues, and organise the Football SA Federation Cup.

History
The first South Australian soccer organisation was the South Australian British Football Association (SABFA), which was founded in 1902. The inaugural official South Australian soccer competition took place in 1903, featuring three teams: North Adelaide, South Adelaide, and Woodville. In 1924, the association's name was changed to the South Australian Soccer Football Association (SASFA).

In 1961, the association split into SASFA and the South Australian Soccer League (SASL), but the following year, merged to form the South Australian Soccer Federation (SASF), which continued to operate until 2006.

In 2006 the Football Federation South Australia (FFSA) was established. In 2020, following the renaming of Football Federation Australia to Football Australia, South Australia's federation adopted the name Football South Australia.

Description and functions
Football South Australia is affiliated with Football Australia, the national governing body.

FSA oversees the highest levels of football in South Australia, including the National Premier Leagues South Australia, State League 1 South Australia, and State League 2 South Australia. They also work in conjunction with South Australia's regional competitions and amateur leagues. Many teams from these various leagues participate in the Federation Cup, which determines the South Australian representatives for the Australia Cup.

Football South Australia also manages the Junior Premier League (JPL) and Junior State League (JSL), providing opportunities for teams in age groups ranging from under 6s to under 17s to compete on Sundays.

FSA holds the annual African Nations Cup of South Australia in partnership with the African Communities Council of South Australia, which is held at the ServiceFM Stadium.

National Training Centre
Football SA National Training Centre (NTC) programs "aim is to provide talented boys and girls with the opportunity to develop their skills and ability through a game-related approach to training". The FSA NTC teams have a high turnover owing to their nature as a training team for players, but the women's team reached their first ever grand final in 2023, after beating the Adelaide Comets.

Women's National Premier Leagues South Australia
The Women's National Premier Leagues South Australia (WNPL) represents the second tier of the sport, below A-League Women.

Men's teams
Port Adelaide Pirates are the oldest team still in existence in South Australia, being founded in 1903, and competing in the 1904 season.

In 1933, Birkalla Rovers were founded, which would later amalgamate with a West Torrens team to form West Torrens Birkalla. Alongside Adelaide University, these are the only South Australian clubs with history dating back to before World War II.

Following World War II, Australia was a particular hotspot for immigration by those who had been displaced by the war. These immigrants would found multiple clubs that have survived to the current day: Juventus in 1946, Beograd in 1949, Polonia in 1950, Croatia in 1952, Napoli in 1958 and Hellas in 1962. Other notable clubs founded during this period, now defunct, are: Burnside Budapest, which later merged with Campbelltown City to become Campbelltown Budapest; and Ukrainian SC Lion, which later merged with Port Adelaide to become Port Adelaide Lion, and now continue to participate in the South Australian Amateur Soccer League.

Adelaide City are the most successful club in history, having won 3 National Soccer League championships, 19 first division championships and 18 Federation Cups. Clubs can apply to enter the State League 2 competitions when a space is available, with the team being in one of the regional leagues or the amateur league.

The most recent teams to have joined being Pontian Eagles in 2020, Modbury Vista in 2017, Fulham United and Vipers FC both in 2016, the latter two having won promotion to State League 1.

Junior Premier League and Junior State League clubs participate in junior soccer, with teams ranging from U6 to U17. The seniors participate in the Amateur League or Regional Leagues.

League system
The soccer pyramid in South Australia comprises 4 levels below the A-League Men, with promotion and relegation between the top 3 levels. It also includes the South Australian Amateur Soccer League, which is not officially a part of the league system. In total, there are 259 men's clubs/teams across 28 divisions in South Australia, and 90 women's clubs/teams across 9 divisions.

Performance by club
Over the history of South Australian soccer, 26 different clubs have won the title. The most successful club is Adelaide City, with 19 titles to its credit, 7 of those coming since their return from the National Soccer League in 2004.

Clubs in bold currently play in the top division, and clubs in italics no longer compete in semi-professional competitions or are defunct.