The Australian Powerchair Football National Championships are an annual competition bringing together State Representative sides from all of our Member Associations. Running since the inception of APFA in 2011, the National Championships provide elite level competition for Australia’s best.
Queensland are the current National Champions, having won the last three editions (2016 to 2018), claiming the last title in front of a raucous Brisbane crowd. Who will win the next National Championship when the competition resumes once more in 2023?
About the APFA National Championships
The National Championships bring together representative teams from our Member Associations, with eight editions taking place from the birth of APFA in Australia. Initially the premier powerchair football event on the calendar, the addition of the APFA Club Championships has seen it set to become a bi-annual event in the future.
This week-long tournament sees teams face-off over a round robin of group stage format, before a semi-finals decide who the week’s best two states are.
The rivalry between Queensland and New South Wales has continued throughout the history of the tournament, with some years’ titles being decided via extra time or penalties.
History
The first Australian Powerchair Football National Championship was held in Sydney in 2011 following an international development event at Narrabeen’s Academy of Sport and Recreation. The following year the event became a stand-alone competition and was held at Kevin Betts Stadium in Sydney’s west from 2012 until 2017. Brisbane State High School and the QPFA played host to the 2018 edition, the first time the event has moved outside of New South Wales. The National Championships will undergo changes moving forward, with a new format expected from 2023 onwards.
New South Wales and Queensland have dominated the competition since its inception, with both teams facing off in each year’s championship match. New South Wales and Queensland have both won 4 titles each, with Queensland having won the previous three titles.
APFA National Championship Results
| Year | Champions | Runners-up | Host city | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 |  | Queensland | New South Wales | Brisbane |
| 2017 | | Queensland | New South Wales | Sydney |
| 2016 | | Queensland | New South Wales | Sydney |
| 2015 |  | New South Wales | Queensland | Sydney |
| 2014 | | Queensland | New South Wales | Sydney |
| 2013 | | New South Wales | Queensland | Sydney |
| 2012 | | New South Wales | Queensland | Sydney |
| 2011 | | New South Wales | Queensland | Sydney |