The Australian Powerchair Football Club Championships take place each year and bring together the best powerchair footballers from across Australia and New Zealand. The 2022 APFA Club Championships took place from 28 April to 3 May at the Quaycentre, Sydney Olympic Park.
Congratulations to the Newcastle Jets, the 2022 APFA Club Champions! The Jets defeated Hills United 1-0 to claim their second consecutive Club Championship title and third overall!
2022 APFA Club Championships
The 2022 APFA Club Championships took place at the Hall of Legends, Quaycentre, Sydney Olympic Park from Thursday 28 April to Tuesday 3 May. Check out all the results via the button below!
About the APFA Club Championships
The Club Championships came about as a way to bring the best athletes from across the nation together each year. Initially the tournament took place in addition to annual national titles, however it is now the premier national tournament.
Taking place over a week, the Club Championships see teams battle through either a round robin or group stage format, before a knockout format sees the week’s best two teams meet in the final.
The 2019 and 2020 titles featured matches being decided via a penalty shoot-out, including both semi finals in the 2020 event. The standard of play continues to improve each year, with the 2022 edition including a team from Canberra for the first time.
Classification
In powerchair football, players undertake classification to determine their sports class and their eligibility to compete at national or international level. For an overview of the classification process, check out this helpful guide from Cindy Evans.
At the APFA Club Championships, players have the opportunity to be classified during the tournament by our growing team of classifiers. These classifications are then applied during the tournament.
For more information about classification, check out FIPFA’s Classification section on their website – click here!
History
The inaugural APFA Club Championships were held in January 2016 at Sydney’s Kevin Betts Stadium in Mt Druitt. The event featured 6 teams, including Brisbane Roar and Melbourne City coming from interstate and NSW-based sides the Central Coast Mariners, Newcastle Jets, Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers. The final took place at Sydney Olympic Park’s QuayCentre as part of the annual Australian futsal national titles, with Brisbane Roar winning in front of a healthy crowd.
The field expanded to 7 teams in 2017, before 8 teams participated in the 2018 edition, its final appearance at Kevin Betts Stadium. The 2019 APFA Club Championships saw all matches played in the Hall of Legends at the QuayCentre for the first time, with a bumper field of 12 teams taking part, with 11 teams featuring in 2020, the final January edition of the tournament. COVID meant that the 2021 edition of the event was cancelled, but the 2022 event took place in April / May 2022.
The Newcastle Jets (2017, 2020 and 2022) are the most successful team in the tournament’s history with three titles to their name.
APFA Club Championship Results
| Year | Champions | Runners-up | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 |  | Hills United |  | Melbourne City |
| 2022 |  | Newcastle Jets | | Hills United |
| 2020 | | Newcastle Jets |  | Central Coast Mariners |
| 2019 |  | Sydney FC | | Central Coast Mariners |
| 2018 |  | Brisbane Roar |  | Western Sydney Wanderers |
| 2017 | | Newcastle Jets | | Brisbane Roar |
| 2016 | | Brisbane Roar | | Central Coast Mariners |