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A new era for football in Australia as APL rebrands professional leagues under A-Leagues banner

The Australian Professionals Leagues (APL) has revealed a new identity for its professional leagues, with the men’s women’s and youth leagues coming together under a new A-Leagues branding ahead of the upcoming season.

This move looks to position both the previous A-League and W-Leagues as the elite partners at the top of the Australian game, the A-Leagues will use “football’s position as the country’s most inclusive sport to grow the game for everyone”.

This comes at a crucial time of transition for the sport professionally in Australia, with the new season marking a new broadcasting deal with Network Ten and owner ViacomCBS’s streaming platform Paramount+.

As a result of the change, the leagues will now operate a unified social media platform for both men’s and women’s football across Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, and will also re-launch a new website, creating a hub for professional league fans nationally, with the hope of raising the profile of the women’s game.

The A-Leagues said that in the coming months it will reveal a “ground breaking, world class digital football platform to become the home of football in Australia”. This will come after last month Optus Sport’s Richard Bayliss was appointed as the professional leagues’ its first director of content.

At the time, the APL said in the new role, Bayliss would be leading the APL’s new content arm to create a digital content offering that goes “beyond a traditional website”, according to an APL spokesperson, with additional video and social content, as it looks to foster a compelling home for football coverage in Australia.

Melbourne City’s Jamie McLaren with the new logo on his kit

Managing director Danny Townsend said the core of the rebrand was about bringing unity across professional football in Australia.

“It’s not men’s football, or women’s football, it’s just football,” said Townsend. “We’re committed to growing the game in Australia – for everyone. That means delivering a world-class experience on and off the pitch and inspiring the next generation of A-Leagues superstars to fulfil their highest potential. This is just the beginning of our ambitious, longterm vision for the growth of football in Australia.”

Chief commercial officer at the A-Leagues, Ant Hearne, said: “We know our fans live and breathe football so we want to create the best possible experience in the stadium, at home, on the move, through gaming or fashion or food – however fans want to connect with football, we will deliver.”

The A-League Men season will kick off on November 19 with the A-League Women season following on December 3. Both seasons will air entirely on Ten and Paramount+. 

The A-Leagues said the branding is the latest in a series of announcements since the A-Leagues took over the running of the professional game in December 2020, which includes: “the expansion of the women’s league by three teams in two years; the launch of a new Club Championship to bring the men’s and women’s leagues closer together; and an historic Collective Bargaining Agreement to drive up standards and bring genuine equity to the game”.

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