SBS goes to football’s heartland to broadcast the opening fixtures of the Australian Championship this week

Historic clubs will reignite old rivalries, new heroes will rise on the national stage, and football fans can experience it all as part of SBS’s broadcast of the new Australian Championship competition, which kicks off this Friday (10 October).

SBS and Football Australia announced a landmark two-year agreement last month to broadcast the exciting new competition, featuring 16 of the nation’s best club teams.

The much-anticipated opening match between South Melbourne FC and Sydney Olympic FC at Lakeside Stadium in Melbourne will be broadcast free-to air on SBS VICELAND at 7pm (AEDT) on Friday (10 Oct0ber), setting the stage for a highly competitive and unpredictable inaugural season.

That opening broadcast will be followed by a fascinating Super Saturday doubleheader on the SBS main channel from 1pm to 5pm on 11 October, featuring Metrostars vs Wests APIA at TK Shutter Reserve in Adelaide, and Preston Lions vs NWS Spirit at Genis Steel Stadium in Melbourne.

The remaining first round fixtures, to be held on Sunday 12 October, will be broadcast live and free on SBS On Demand and available on catch up.

Here’s a taste of what is to come: Could the Australian Championship look like THIS? 😍 and Australian Championship coming to SBS!

SBS will broadcast Super Saturday doubleheaders throughout the regular season, accompanied by an innovative second screen watchalong show, which will be broadcast live via SBS Sport YouTube and Tiktok, and hosted by presenters Claudio Fabiano and Adamo De Nigris.

The watchalong will feature special guests, pre-match previews, crosses from the grounds, sideline updates, alternative commentary, live fan comments and polls, designed to take fans to the heart of all the action.

Other broadcast highlights:

• SBS will be the exclusive free-to-air broadcast partner of the Australian Championship for the next two years with an option to extend.

• All fixtures streamed live and free on SBS On Demand, ensuring fans never miss a minute of the action.
• 17 of 55 matches broadcast live and free-to-air; commencing with ‘Super Saturday’ double header matches plus access to Finals Series matches televised nationally on SBS, bringing quality football content into millions of homes.
• The Championship Final will be played on Saturday 6 December at 3:00pm AEDT, following coverage of the FIFA Men’s World Cup 2026 Final Draw which will be broadcast on SBS main channel.

The Australian Championship will celebrate 16 of the nation’s highest-performing teams in a competitive and commercially appealing format, featuring eight Foundation Clubs and eight state champions from the National Premier Leagues (NPL). This innovative and sustainable format bridges the gap between the Isuzu UTE A-League Men’s competition and domestic state-based competitions, helping connect the Australian football pyramid and unlock new opportunities for aspirational clubs and players.

Four seeded Foundation Clubs including South Melbourne FC (Group A), Marconi Stallions FC (Group B), Avondale FC (Group C) and APIA Leichhardt FC (Group D), will be joined by the remaining Foundation Clubs and eight NPL Premiers to create four balanced groups.

SBS Director of Sport Ken Shipp said: “As the spiritual home of football in Australia, SBS is the natural home for the Australian Championship, an aspirational competition that will create a pathway for many of Australia’s brightest young players from the sport’s grassroots to the highest-level competition in the land, the Isuzu UTE A-league Men’s competition.

“SBS’s football offering now includes compelling competitions at every level and for every fan – including, of course, the FIFA World Cup 2026™.’’

Football Australia Interim Chief Executive Officer Heather Garriock said:

“Accessibility sits at the heart of this agreement. Whether you’re watching on free-to-air television or streaming on SBS On Demand, every fan – from the city to our local football communities – can experience the very best of the Australian Championship through our Super Saturday format.

“The historic opening clash between South Melbourne FC and Sydney Olympic FC is a fitting way to launch this competition – two iconic clubs, a national audience, and the country watching via SBS VICELAND. It’s going to be a blockbuster start to the next era of Australian football.

“SBS shares our passion for uniting the game and our commitment to making it accessible to everyone. Together, we’re not just broadcasting matches – we’re building a national platform that celebrates Australian football’s storied past whilst also investing in future generations.”

SBS provides a depth and breadth of football coverage for Australian fans that no other network or platform can match – from clubland to the FIFA World Cup™.

The SBS broadcast schedule over the coming months includes a feast of national and international games, building momentum towards the FIFA World Cup 2026™, which will be broadcast live and exclusively on SBS and SBS On Demand.

The slate includes the Australian Championship; the featured match of the week from the MLS ’Sunday Night Soccer’ program; the FIFA World Cup 2026™ draw; and the Road to FIFA World Cup 2026^TM Hub on SBS On Demand, featuring match replays, highlights, classic finals and iconic Socceroos moments.

The FIFA World Cup 2026™ will be hosted in 16 cities across Canada, Mexico and the United States, from 11 June to 19 July 2026. All 104 games will be broadcast live, free and exclusively on SBS, SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand, with 30-minute, 12-minute and 3-minute highlights packages available for every match.

For comprehensive information, visit SBS Sport’s dedicated FIFA World Cup™ page.

For a pdf version of this media release, click here.