Australia is one of the newest nations in the modern world, having been founded in 1770 as a British penal colony but not gaining independence in their own right until 1901. However, since then, the country has been peaceful and democratic and is favoured by travellers from all over the world as a result of its friendly people and warm climate. The primary language is English with the main currency being the Australian Dollar. Contrary to popular belief, Sydney is not the capital city, with that honour instead going to Canberra, which can be found in the Australian Capital Territory. The total population stands at just over 21 million as of the 2007 census, with a high percentage of that figure living in major cities such as Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Brisbane.

Football is commonly referred to as soccer in Australia so as to distinguish it from the Australian Rules Football in which players can pick up the ball if they wish. The national side was founded in 1922 and is today commonly known as the Socceroos! They are ranked at number 52 in the world by FIFA, with their highest ranking having come in July 1997 when they peaked at 31, although their lowest of 92 came just three years later. They have only appeared in the World Cup twice, in 1974 and 2006, and have not made it past the second round, but they have dominated the Oceania tournaments in recent years. They won the OFC Nations Cup four times in 1980, 1996, 2000 and 2004, despite only appearing six times, and a further once since the cup has been repackaged as the AFC Asian Cup. The Socceroos have also appeared three times in the Confederations Cup, coming second in 1997 for their best result to date.

As Australia has such a huge land area, there is one national league (A-League) and several area Football Federation leagues (New South Wales Premier League, NBN State Football League, Brisbane Premier League, South Australian Super League, Southern Premier League, Victorian Premier League, Football West State League and the ACT Premier League). This has been the set up sine 1977 and is unique in that there is no promotion or relegation between the A-League and Football Federation Australia. There are no domestic cups toaccompany the league but certain states do have cup competitions for the local teams.

The top teams in Australia all play in the A-League and are Melbourne Victory FC (the reigning champions), Sydney FC and Adelaide United, with the Central Coast Mariners, Queensland Roar, Wellington Phoenix, Newcastle Jets and Perth Glory making up the numbers!