Western Sydney Wanderers FC

The Western Sydney region was regarded as a potential location for one of the founding A-League clubs in 2005, originally intended to be the base for Sydney FC. When Sydney FC put forward their bid to participate in the inaugural A-League season, Football NSW (which backed the bid) desired for the club's home ground to be Parramatta Stadium in Western Sydney.[3] Though after winning the A-League licence, Football Federation Australia (FFA) Chairman Frank Lowy forced a number of changes to the bid. The main of these were in moving the club to Sydney Football Stadium in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney and simultaneously reducing Football NSW's involvement from 100 to 25 percent.[3] Frank Lowy’s son, David Lowy, was also installed as a major investor.[3] In response, Football NSW made the decision to pull out its involvement with Sydney FC amid claims the A-League club had become a "plaything" for Frank Lowy and his family.[3] Football NSW stated its dislike of Lowy's autocratic style in establishing the club and the perceived lack of consultation on key club issues.[3][4] An unsuccessful bid named "Sydney Blues", which had proposed to play at the Sydney Football Stadium was the only other Sydney-based bid.[5] Sydney FC entered the A-League with a five-year city exclusivity deal as part of the league's "one-city, one-team" policy, preventing the establishment of another Sydney-based club until the deal expired.[6]

By 2008, as the five-year deal wound to its conclusion, FFA announced its intention to expand the A-League, with a second Sydney-based club a favourable option.[7] FFA received 10 expressions of interest, two of which from potential Western Sydney based teams.[8] Despite the unsuccessful attempt to establish a Western Sydney-based team in the form of Sydney Rovers (due to financial and technical reasons),[9] FFA were still strongly committed in pursuing a club in the region.[10]

The catalyst for the formation of the Western Sydney Wanderers was FFA revoking Gold Coast United's A-League licence on 29 February 2012. After a series of running battles between FFA and Clive Palmer – owner of Gold Coast United, over topics such as crowd control, stadium attendance capacities and breaches of A-League regulations.[11] The loss of Gold Coast United brought the league down to nine clubs, one fewer than what FFA needed for their upcoming television rights negotiations.[12]

On 4 April 2012, then FFA CEO Ben Buckley announced the creation of "New Sydney Club" based in the city's west to play in the A-League.[13] The new club would be set up to compete in the 2012–13 season, though despite several attempts by FFA to find a backer to own and run the club no individual owner or consortium of owners decided to take on the new Sydney club.[14] With the October deadline approaching, FFA decided to push through the club by taking on the ownership role themselves.[15] This was helped by securing $4 million from the Australian Government in a grant for the creation and ongoing costs of the club.[16]

As notable Australian soccer players Scott Chipperfield, Tim Cahill and Lucas Neill expressed their support for the Western Sydney-based club,[17] so did the local soccer community, with FFA holding supporter forums in Mount Pritchard, Parramatta, Rooty Hill, Penrith, Castle Hill, Campbelltown and Bankstown, where community members discussed such topics as the club's values and culture, playing style, home ground, and proposed names and colours.[18][19][20] Following the community forums, FFA launched an online survey to decide on various options for the new club.[21] It covered similar aspects of culture, location, team colour and playing style. A final survey was later launched with a specific focus on the club's colours and name. Options for team colours were black and red, black and white, and red, white and black. Options for the team name were Athletic, Wanderers, Wolves, Strikers and Rangers.[22]

The first three signed players (Mooy, Elrich and Appiah) at the club's launch

On 17 May 2012, former A-League head Lyall Gorman was appointed Chairman of the as yet unnamed club.[23] Tony Popovic was also announced as the inaugural head coach of the Western Sydney team. Popovic joined the club after requesting to be released from the final year of his contracted role as assistant coach of Crystal Palace, after ending talks with both A-League Sydney clubs and stating his desire to build a club from scratch as an opportunity he could not pass up. Popovic signed with the Western Sydney team to take the helm for four seasons.[24] On 22 May 2012, Popovic's close friend Ante Milicic also joined the club as assistant coach.[25]

On 25 June 2012, the official club name, logo and colours were formally announced.[26] The name "Western Sydney Wanderers FC" was officially released, as was the club logo, the home playing strip, the home ground (Parramatta Stadium) and the first three signed players: Aaron Mooy, Tarek Elrich and Kwabena Appiah.[27] The name 'Wanderers' had been an overwhelming favourite among fans and community groups, with it also paying homage to Wanderers F.C., the first registered soccer club in Australia, who played in the area in 1880.[28]

With the start of Western Sydney Wanderers' first season approaching, Tony Popovic was charged with putting together a competitive squad for the 2012–13 A-League, which would be the team's only competition of the season. The squad was made up of relative unknowns, though included former Japan international and Asian Footballer of the Year Shinji Ono, as well as Jérome Polenz, Mateo Poljak, Youssouf Hersi, Iacopo La Rocca and Dino Kresinger.[29] On 6 October 2012, Western Sydney Wanderers played their first competitive match of any kind against reigning A-League Premiers Central Coast Mariners in the first round of the league. The match ended in a 0–0 draw.[30] It took the team a further three weeks, until the fourth round of the league to win their first competitive match of any kind; after two consecutive losses, one of which the first Sydney Derby, the encounter against reigning A-League Champions Brisbane Roar ended 0–1 in favour of Wanderers, with Mark Bridge netting the club's first competitive goal after the team failed to score in their opening three games.[31]

A slow start into the team's first season soon turned positive as Western Sydney Wanderers quickly emerged as one of the leading soccer clubs in Australia.[32] A historic record-breaking season in the league saw the club break an all-time Australian national league record and win their first A-League Premiership after topping the A-League table through a record-undefeated streak, which included 10 straight wins.[33][34] This feat gained the club direct qualification into the 2014 AFC Champions League, as well as a place in the A-League finals series. A 2–0 win against Brisbane Roar in the semi-finals of the finals series lead the club to the 2013 A-League Grand Final, which on 21 April 2013, Wanderers eventually lost 0–2 to Central Coast Mariners at a sold out Sydney Football Stadium.[35] The success of the club's first season was pitted on first-time coach Popovic who had built the team from its foundations in the space of only five months.[36] Popovic was awarded A-League Coach of the Year and goalkeeper Ante Covic Goalkeeper of the Year.[37] The club's inaugural success, both on and off the field, sparked much interest worldwide, though most notably within Australia, where soccer has often struggled to gain mainstream interest.[38]

The clubs second season saw Brendon Santalab and Australian international Matthew Špiranović join the team.[39] Wanderers held second position behind Brisbane Roar throughout the majority of the season despite criticism over the team's squad rotation policy which Popovic implemented with consideration to the AFC Champions League and the short turnaround between matches.[40] On 26 February 2014, the club made their Champions League debut against Ulsan Hyundai. A goal within the first minute of the match by Santalab was cancelled out as the South Korean side scored three unanswered goals to win the match.[41] Nevertheless, the team eventually finished top in their group to progress to the Round of 16.[42] After finishing runners-up in the 2013–14 A-League season, Wanderers secured direct qualification into the 2015 AFC Champions League, as well as a place in the A-League finals series. A 2–0 win against Central Coast Mariners in the semi-finals of the finals series on 26 April 2014, saw the team progress to their second A-League Grand Final in as many seasons.[43] On 4 May 2014, Western Sydney Wanderers competed against Brisbane Roar in the 2014 A-League Grand Final at a sold out Lang Park. 10,000 Wanderers supporters travelled north for the occasion,[44] but after taking the lead through a header from Špiranović the team failed to hold the lead late in the game, later letting slip the A-League Championship during extra time.[45] Following the loss, the team was forced a quick turnaround for their home and final leg of the Champions League Round of 16 – a home and away series against Japanese side Sanfrecce Hiroshima. Despite being down 3–1 on aggregate, the team managed to overturn the result and win 2–0 to progress to the quarter-finals in what was Ono's, Hersi's, Polenz's and inaugural captain Michael Beauchamp's final match for the club.[46]

Covic

Hamill

Topor-Stanley (C)

Cole

Golec

Poljak

La Rocca

Appiah

Haliti

Bridge

Santalab

2014 AFC Champions League final second leg starting lineup

Western Sydney Wanderers supporters celebrating win in Asian Champions League

Prior to the 2014–15 season, the club signed Brazilian midfielder Vítor Saba, as well as Seyi Adeleke, Dutch international Romeo Castelen and Australian international Nikita Rukavytsya.[48] On 12 August 2014, Western Sydney Wanderers competed against Adelaide City in the first round of the inaugural season of the FFA Cup.[49] The match ended 1–0 in favour to Adelaide City, with Wanderers becoming the first professional club to lose to a semi-professional side in the competition.[50]

The Cup loss was directly followed by Wanderers' continued campaign in the 2014 AFC Champions League; as due to the calendar format of the Asian tournament, the quarter-finals – a home and away series against Guangzhou Evergrande, resumed after a three-month break.[51] The first match was won by Wanderers 1–0, and a 2–1 loss in the second leg was enough to see the club progress to the semi-finals, due to the away goals rule.[52] The first leg of the semi-final clash against FC Seoul ended in a 0–0 draw.[53] In the return leg, Wanderers defeated FC Seoul 2–0, courtesy to goals from Mateo Poljak and Shannon Cole, which advanced the club to the 2014 AFC Champions League Final.[54] In the first leg of the Champions League final, Wanderers defeated Al-Hilal 1–0 at home,[55] and on 1 November 2014, Western Sydney Wanderers won the AFC Champions League after managing a goalless draw in the second leg of the final against Al-Hilal, winning 1–0 on aggregate courtesy of Tomi Juric's goal. They became the first Australian team to be crowned Asian champions, an achievement they reached in only their first attempt in the Asian tournament. There were some controversial decisions from the Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura, where Al-Hilal felt they deserved two clear penalties.[56] Prior to the final match, Wanderers were criticised by the opposition coach in the media; after being crowned Asian champions, Tony Popovic responded by saying, "We were called a small club yesterday – today we are the biggest in Asia".[47] At the 2014 AFC Annual Awards, Western Sydney Wanderers was named Asian Club of the Year, and Tony Popovic Asian Coach of the Year.[57]

The club's Asian success however, was not replicated in the beginning of the A-League season, with the team managing only three draws out of the first nine matches. The team's poor domestic run was put on hold while the team travelled to Morocco for the 2014 FIFA Club World Cup, where Wanderers faced Mexican side Cruz Azul in a quarter-finals clash on 13 December 2014. After going down to 9-men, Wanderers failed to hold onto the lead late into the match; an unfavourable 3–1 scoreline in extra-time saw Wanderers matched-up against ES Sétif of Algeria in a fifth place play-off.[58] A 2–2 draw led to a penalty shoot-out which finished 5–4 in favour of the African champions, ending Wanderers' run in the tournament with the team finishing in sixth place.[59] After returning home, the team finished the year with a loss in Wellington, in what was the team's 44th match in all competitions for the calendar year – a record for an Australian club.[60] A short mid-season break gave Popovic the chance to organise the squad for the remainder of the season. This included the addition of Japanese internationals Yūsuke Tanaka and Yojiro Takahagi, as well as Australian-born Kerem Bulut among others as either injury replacements or squad replacements for Vítor Saba, Seyi Adeleke and foundation player Kwabena Appiah.[61] As the season resumed, it became apparent that a heavy schedule would be the team's downfall.[62] Wanderers had to manage entering into the 2015 AFC Champions League group-stage with the former season's rivals Guangzhou Evergrande and FC Seoul as well as rescheduled mid-week league fixtures. After a grueling three months the club ended their third season in the league in ninth position,[63] whilst their Champions League season also ended unfavourably with the title-holders eliminated from the group stage, finishing third in their group.[64]

The beginning of the 2015–16 season saw Popovic extended his initial contract with the club for a further three seasons.[65] The effects from the 2014–15 season were felt by the players as Popovic released almost half the squad.[66] In their place Popovic signed 3 Spanish foreign players and Italian striker Federico Piovaccari as a marquee. In the FFA Cup the Wanderers progressed with wins against Brisbane Roar & Palm Beach, then were beaten in a penalty shootout against Perth Glory in the quarter final.

After a slow start to the 2015–16 A-League season, with only 1 point after three matches, Wanderers found their winning ways with a seven-game winning streak to see the team top the league table. The club was unable to stay on top of the league however, and after mixed results in the final half of the season they finished 2nd below Adelaide United, who the Wanderers had failed to beat in the last few weeks of the season.

In their final series semi-final match, Wanderers hosted Brisbane Roar at Parramatta Stadium in the last game before the stadium was demolished. In front of a sold-out crowd of 20,084 Brisbane started the game strongly by racing to a 3–0 lead inside 23 minutes but the Wanderers responded with two goals to make it 3–2 at half time. Romeo Castelen scored an equaliser then put the Wanderers 4–3 in front, only for Brisbane to score again to take the game to extra time. In the 102nd minute substitute Dario Vidosic scored the decisive goal to send Wanderers to a third Grand Final in four years.[67] In the 2016 A-League Grand Final Adelaide United defeat Wanderers 3–1 in front of a crowd of 50,119. 15 players left the club at the end of the season.

The 2016–17 A-League season began when Western Sydney Wanderers played home to Sydney FC at ANZ Stadium, with Sydney FC winning 4–0. This game would also be Wanderers Captain Nikolai Topor-Stanley's last game for the Wanderers before he moved to Hatta Club of the United Arab Emirates. After three years without a derby win, on the 18th of February, Western Sydney Wanderers, beat Sydney FC 1–0 at ANZ Stadium, Brendon Santalab scoring off a Mitch Nichols cross in the first-half. Three days after the Sydney Derby they started their Asian Champions League campaign by losing 4–0 to Urawa Reds, and subsequent results saw them fail to qualify from the Group Stage. After defeating Wellington Phoenix 3–1 they confirmed their place in the A-League finals, with Brendon Santalab scoring twice to make him the Wanderers all-time leading goal scorer. The team qualified for the A-League finals to played the 3rd place Brisbane Roar. The game ended 1–1 after extra time and Wanderers lost the penalty shoot-out, ending their domestic season.

The Wanderers began this season with the FFA Cup. They started by defeating Wellington Phoenix 1–0 with new marquee signing Oriol Riera scoring in the 120th minute of the game. A routine 4–0 defeat of Bentleigh Greens followed in the Round of 16. The quarter final match against Blacktown City FC was an epic encounter. The Wanderers went out to an early 1–0 lead through an Oriol Riera penalty kick. Blacktown hit back in the second half and took the game to extra time, where substitute James Andrew scored to put Blacktown ahead. Riera popped up again in the 111th minute to equalise, and the Wanderers held their nerve in the shootout to win it 4–2.

In a huge shock for the A-League and the Wanderers in particular, on 1 October 2017, foundation coach Tony Popovic quit the club to join Karabükspor in the Turkish Super Lig, taking with him assistant manager Andres Carrasco & goalkeeping coach Zeljko Kalac. The Wanderers installed Hayden Foxe as caretaker manager while they looked to appoint a full-time manager. After defeating Perth Glory in the opening round, they lost the FFA Cup Semi-Final against Adelaide United.

Josep Gombau was announced as the new manager for the Wanderers on 1 November 2017.[68] His first game in charge was a 1–1 home draw against Melbourne City. The team then lost 3 in a row against Adelaide, Brisbane and a 5-0 drubbing against city rivals Sydney FC. Gombau stabilised the team somewhat in the busy January new year period, where he went 4 games without loss between January 1 to January 18, but the team were unable to string together more than 2 wins in a row. A 3–0 win against Brisbane in the penultimate week of the season put them in the last play-off position, 1 point ahead of Brisbane and Perth, who were facing each other in the final week.

While a win would have secured a finals berth as Brisbane defeated Perth 3–2, the Wanderers season fell apart in the second half. Having taken an early lead with an Oriol Riera goal, the Wanderers conceded two goals to Adelaide before Marcelo Carrusca levelled the game heading into half-time. The 62nd minute sending off of Keanu Baccus for kicking out at an opponent left them a man down and needing to attack. As they pushed players forward Adelaide kept breaking on the counter-attack, eventually scoring the winning goal in the 80th minute through Ryan Kitto.

On the 19 April, after a disappointing season where the Wanderers failed to qualify for the 2017–18 A-League finals and players making problems with his management style known to reporters and the public, Gombau was fired.[69] The Wanderers finished the season in 7th place on 33 points, two behind Brisbane, one ahead of Perth, having won 8 games, drew 9, lost 10, scoring 38 goals and conceding 47 against.

After Gombau was sacked the Wanderers looked to Europe and appointed former German international player Markus Babbel to take over the side, on 19 May 2018.[70] The team stumbled through to the Semi-Final of the FFA Cup with narrow victories over far inferior competition, requiring a 92nd-minute winner from Roly Bonevacia to defeat the amateur Darwin side Hellenic Athletic 4–3, before a 2–1 win against 3rd tier side Bonnyrigg White Eagles FC in the Round of 16. They faced A-League opposition in the Quarter Finals, defeating Melbourne City FC in a scrappy 2–1 game before bowing out of the competition in a comprehensive defeat by rival side Sydney FC in the first FFA Cup Sydney Derby. The A-League season began poorly for the Wanderers, winning just two games in the first half of the season in Rounds 3 and 7. That second win against the Central Coast Mariners was the last win for 10 games, and included losing 6 games in a row in the congested January period.

Babbel made multiple signings in the January transfer window, bringing in Mitchell Duke, Kwame Yeboah and Giancarlo Gallifuoco as an injury replacement for Jordan O'Doherty who suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament injury. Performances improved in the second half of the season, winning games against the Mariners, Adelaide & Brisbane Roar as well as a shock 3–0 win against Melbourne City. Ultimately their early season form ensured that the 3-2 Round 24 loss against Newcastle Jets was the final blow in their hopes to play in the A-League finals series. The final Sydney Derby to be played at ANZ Stadium was a 1–1 draw, leaving games against the Central Coast and then Melbourne Victory to end their three-year nomadic existence away from their newly opened Western Sydney Stadium.

The Wanderers began the season, their first at the Western Sydney Stadium in Parramatta, with a stadium opening friendly against English EFL Championship side Leeds United on Saturday 20 July 2019. Leeds won 2–1. The Wanderers played their first A-league match at their new home Bankwest Stadium on 12 October 2019. They defeated the Central Coast Mariners 2–1. They then won their next 2 matches with a 2–1 win against Melbourne Victory and a 1–0 victory over Sydney FC in front of a record crowd of 28,519.

On 16 January, striker Simon Cox joined the Club after his departure from English, League One outfit, Southend United, replacing Alexander Meier.

On 20 January, Babbel was sacked due to a run of poor performances, and Jean-Paul de Marigny was named as the caretaker.[71]

The 7 games played under the interim leadership of de Marigny saw the club win 3, draw 3 and lose 1 game. The 1-1 draw with Sydney FC during the final Sydney Derby of the season saw the Wanderers go through a season without losing a game to Sydney FC since the Wanderers joined the competition in 2012. When the league was suspended in March as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, the results did little to improve the club position on the competition ladder and entered the suspension period in 8th place, four points behind the last finals position.

On 14 July 2020, de Marigny was elevated to the full time position, with his contract to run until the end of the 2020/21 A-League season. The league resumed in July, with the club playing 5 games to finish the season. They drew the first game, won the second, lost two games that effectively ended their chances of making the finals series, including a heavy 5-3 loss against Western United and ended the season with a narrow win against Melbourne Victory. The club ended the season in 9th place with 33 points, coming from 9 wins, 6 draws and 11 losses from 26 games. The Wanderers then sacked de Marigny on 12 October 2020, offering a short statement that they had 'parted ways' and were going to appoint a new coach in the coming days.[72]

Three days after the sacking of de Marigny, the club appointed Carl Robinson on 15 October 2020 as the new head coach. Robinson, an Welsh ex-international was the current head coach of fellow A-League side the Newcastle Jets and had lost only a single game since his arrival at Newcastle earlier in the year. It was reported in the media that Robinson had a release clause in his contract that allowed him to leave the Jets, with the dire financial situation of Newcastle, whose owner Martin Lee had decided to sell the club and refused any additional funding played a role in his exit.[73]

The Wanderers began the 2020–21 A-League season by releasing Radosław Majewski, Nicholas Suman, Mathieu Cordier, Nick Sullivan, Tristan Prendergast, Matthew Jurman and Mitchell Duke. Pirmin Schwegler also retired from professional soccer. Several youth players were promoted, including Jarrod Carluccio and 16 year old Allesandro Lopane while German winger Nicolai Muller earned a contract extension. Although Daniel Lopar had left Australia during the COVID lockdown which saw him miss the end of the previous season, he returned to Australia in late October.

Western Sydney Stadium, current home ground

Sydney Showground Stadium, former home ground of Wanderers.

A Wanderers match in progress at Parramatta Stadium

On 26 July 2012, it was officially announced that Parramatta Stadium would be the home ground of the club for all its home games.[93] Lyall Gorman, the club's Chairman, acknowledged that the feedback he had received from the fan forums was in favour of a single home ground and that the club must be based in the Greater Western Sydney.[94] Parramatta Stadium was seen as ideal compared to other alternatives at Sydney Olympic Park, Penrith or Campbelltown as its rectangular size is better suited for games, and it has a capacity of over 20,000.[95] The prospect of the club one day owning its own stadium was also initially brought up.[96] During Western Sydney Wanderers home games, the stadium is commonly referred to as "Wanderland". Named after the team name and reference to former theme park in Western Sydney, Wonderland.

Since 2010 plans to redevelop Parramatta Stadium were in the works, with some smaller expansion taking place. With soccer being played year-round at Parramatta Stadium by Western Sydney Wanderers and the Parramatta Eels rugby league club, the potential for an upgrade and expansion of the stadium was heightened. By mid-2015 a refurbishment of corporate facilities, player facilities and stadium amenities had been complete, while a decision to increase the capacity to the ground had stalled.[97]

In September 2015, the state government announced that the stadium would be demolished and replaced with the Western Sydney Stadium, a new 30,000 seat boutique venue on the same site. Construction is expected to be completed by 2019.[98] The club announced that it would shift home games for the 2016/17 season to a combination of Sydney Showground Stadium, a 25,000 seat oval-configured stadium and Stadium Australia, an 83,000 seat rectangular venue, both of which are located in Sydney Olympic Park.[99]

Campbelltown Stadium is a sporadically used stadium for the Wanderers. The stadium has hosted two A-League games between the Wanderers & the Newcastle Jets, an FFA Cup game against Wellington Phoenix, and all 3 home matches of the 2017 AFC Champions League Group Stage. Penrith Stadium hosted a Wanderers pre-season game against Adelaide United in 2013, an A-League game against Wellington Phoenix & an FFA Cup game against Brisbane Roar in 2015, and also sees occasional use by the Women's W-League team.

As of 5 January 2021[147][148]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 2 DF  SCO Ziggy Gordon 4 DF  AUS Dylan McGowan (captain) 5 DF  MKD Daniel Georgievski 6 DF  AUS Tass Mourdoukoutas 7 FW  AUS Bruce Kamau 8 MF  AUS Jordan O'Doherty 9 FW  AUS Bernie Ibini 10 FW  IRL Simon Cox 11 FW  AUS Kwame Yeboah 13 DF  AUS Tate Russell 14 MF  AUS James Troisi 17 MF  AUS Keanu Baccus 18 MF  SCO Graham Dorrans 20 GK  AUS Vedran Janjetovic 23 MF  AUS Kosta Grozos 24 MF  AUS Anthony Lesiotis

No. Pos. Nation Player 25 DF  AUS Phillip Cancar 26 MF  AUS Jarrod Carluccio (scholarship) 27 FW  GER Nicolai Müller 29 DF  AUS Daniel Wilmering (scholarship) 30 GK  AUS Daniel Margush 33 DF  AUS Mark Natta (scholarship) 34 DF  GER Patrick Ziegler 36 MF  AUS Alessandro Lopane (scholarship) 37 FW  AUS Stefan Nikolic (scholarship) 39 DF  AUS Thomas Aquilina (scholarship) 40 GK  AUS Noah James (on loan from Newcastle Jets) 50 GK  AUS Oliver Kalac — DF  AUS Mohamed Al-Taay (scholarship) — FW  AUS Mitchell Duke (on loan from Al Taawoun) — MF  ENG Jordon Mutch

• A-League

Premiers (1): 2012–13

Runners-up (2): 2013–14, 2015–16

• A-League Grand Finals

Runners-up (3): 2013, 2014, 2016

• AFC Champions League

Champions (1): 2014

• FIFA Club World Cup

Sixth-place (1): 2014