New Zealand Football Championship
2680529
224206776
2008-07-07T20:21:00Z
194.97.235.26
/* Current clubs */
{{Infobox sports league
| title = New Zealand Football Championship
| current_season = New Zealand Football Championship 2007-08
| logo = NewZealandFootballChampionship.jpg
| pixels = 150px
| caption =
| sport = [[Association football]]
| founded = 2004
| fame =
| motto = The Local Name of the Global Game
| inaugural =
| teams = 8
| country = {{flagicon|NZL}} [[New Zealand]]
| champion = Champion: [[Waitakere United]] (2007-08, 1st))<br>Premier: [[Waitakere United]] (1st)
| most_champs = Champions:<br>[[Auckland City FC]] (3)<br>Premiers:<br>[[Auckland City FC]], [[Waitakere United]] (2)
| folded =
| website = [http://www.nzfc.co.nz www.nzfc.co.nz]
| singles =
| ceo =
| TV = [[SKY Network Television|SKY]] (Playoffs only)
| related_comps = [[OFC Champions League]]<br>
}}
The '''New Zealand Football Championship''' (NZFC) is the national [[football (soccer)|football]] league in [[New Zealand]]. It is a [[semi-professional]] [[professional sports league organization|franchise]] league, run by [[New Zealand Football]]. The league is run separately from the winter regional club competitions, and many of the teams competing in the NZFC are franchises jointly run winter clubs. The NZFC does not include the [[Wellington Phoenix FC|Wellington Phoenix]] who play in the [[Australian]] [[A-League]].
==Format==
The league is an eight-team system, with each club playing everyone else three times. After the end of the regular season, the top three teams progress to the playoffs. The team that finishes the regular season in first place (the "premier") receives a bye to the final, while the second and third placed teams play-off for the right to play against the premier for the title of NZFC Champion of that season (the "elimination final"). The second placed team earns home ground advantage for the elimination final.
For the [[New Zealand Football Championship 2005-06|2005-06 season]], the NZFC experimented with a five team playoff (''see [[New Zealand Football Championship 2005-06#Playoffs|NZFC 2005-06]]''), however this was discontinued and the league reverted to the present three-team playoff.
The team that wins the NZFC Grand Final qualifies for the [[OFC Champions League]]. Another O-League spot is given to the highest ranked team other than the champion.
As there are no lower divisions in the NZFC, no [[promotion and relegation]] exists, similar to leagues in [[Australia]] and [[North America]] rather than those traditionally found in [[UEFA|Europe]]
==History==
The NZFC was created as a replacement to the former [[New Zealand National Soccer League]], a tournament involving clubs from the regional governing bodies of [[New Zealand Football]]. The NZFC would be run as a summer league involving new clubs created solely for the new competition, with these new clubs being run jointly by existing winter clubs. The only exception to this was [[Napier City Rovers]], whose summer club would be rebranded [[Hawke's Bay United]] during the second season, to be operated jointly by other clubs in the [[Hawke's Bay]] region.
Eleven groups bidded for franchises, with the successful bids being announced on [[April 7]] [[2004]] as [[Auckland City FC]], [[Canterbury United]], [[Hawke's Bay United|Napier City Rovers]], [[Otago United]], [[Team Wellington]], [[Waikato FC]], [[Waitakere United]] and [[YoungHeart Manawatu]], with Olé Madrids, East Auckland and Team Bay of Plenty being excluded. Unhappy at their exclusion, the Olé Madrids bid team took New Zealand Soccer to court, suing for damages and demanding inclusion in the competition, claiming that while they met NZ Soccer's criteria for inclusion, other bids who succeeded did not. The case was dropped by the Madrids team eight days before the commencement of the first NZFC season. <ref>[http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-18341745_ITM BLACK YEAR FOR NEW ZEALAND AFTER ALL WHITES LOSS. | Asia Africa Intelligence Wire (December , 2004)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>. Western Suburbs, the club associated with the Olé Academy, is now a principal member of the Team Wellington franchise.<ref>[http://www.tw.org.nz/index.php?page=home&item=123 Team Wellington :: Home - National Service<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> East Auckland also considered legal action, however this did not occur. <ref>[http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/454218/420535 New soccer franchises revealed | FOOTBALL | SPORT | tvnz.co.nz<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
The first match of the competition was on [[October 15]], [[2004]], with Auckland City defeating [[Hawke's Bay United|Napier City Rovers]] 3-1 at [[Bluewater Stadium|Park Island]], [[Napier, New Zealand|Napier]]. Auckland also won the final match of the inaugural season, defeating Waitekere United to become the first NZFC Champion. Auckland would go on to win the grand final again in the next two seasons, creating the competitions first [[Dynasty (sports)|dynasty]].
The second season saw Napier City Rovers rebrand and re-organize their NZFC team as Hawke's Bay United, forming an amalgamated franchise with other local clubs. It also saw the first instance of a NZFC team winning the [[OFC Champions League|O-League]], with Auckland City FC defeating [[French Polynesia]]n team [[AS Pirae]] 3-1.
The third season saw two NZFC teams qualify for the O-League, with Grand Final runner-up [[Waitakere United]] qualifying in place of [[Vanuatu Premia Divisen|Vanuatu's]] [[Port Vila Sharks]] withdrawing. Waitakere capitalized on this opportunity by winning that year's O-League competition.
With the first three seasons completed, the NZFC granted three-season license extensions to seven of the eight franchises - all but YoungHeart Manawatu, who had to re-apply on account of the NZFC's concerns towards the clubs financial and organizational situation. However YoungHeart managed successfully earn reinstatement after beating out four rival bids - one based in [[Gisborne]], one from [[North Shore City]], and two from [[Manukau]]. Olé Madrids also applied for the license, however they withdrew early. <ref>[http://www.sportsweb.co.nz/cgi-bin/control.pl?Function=News&Item=soccer_nzfc_20061017.txt&pageid=1161025585 ::: Sportsweb :::<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
In [[2007]], the NZFC was represented at the [[2007 FIFA Club World Cup]], with [[Waitakere United]] qualifying as the [[Oceania Football Confederation]] champion. Waitakere's only match was a 1-3 loss to [[Iran Pro League|Iranian]] club [[Sepahan F.C.|Sepahan]]. After this match, [[FIFA]] chairman [[Sepp Blatter]] hinted that the [[Oceania Football Confederation|OFC]] may lose qualification rights for the Club World Cup due to the gap in competition quality, stating that "professional teams" and giving the OFC a deadline of two years to raise their standards. A possible solution has been suggested in allowing the [[Wellington Phoenix FC|Wellington Phoenix]], a New Zealand-based team playing in the Australian [[A-League]] (an Asian competition) to qualify for the O-League, which may cause the NZFC to lose one of its two qualifying spots. <ref>[http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=86&objectid=10482644 Soccer: Fifa gives Oceania two years to improve - 16 Dec 2007 - Soccer news - NZ Herald<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
2008 saw the end of the Auckland City FC dynasty, with Team Wellington eliminating them in the preliminary final. Waitakere United went on to win the Grand Final - in doing so, completing "the treble" - winning the Youth League, the Premiership and the Championship all in one season.
==Current clubs==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!
! Club Name
! Home City
! Stadium
! Highest Placing
! Championships
! 2007-08 Placing
! 2007-08 Notes
|-
| style="background:silver" | [[Image:Aucklandcolours.png|20px|]]
| [[Auckland City FC]]
| [[Auckland]]
| [[Kiwitea Street]]
| 1st (2004-05, 2005-06)
| 3
| 2nd
| Premiership Runner-Up<br />Qualified for [[OFC Champions League 2008-09|O-League 2008-09]]
|-
| style="background:silver" | [[Image:Cantabcolours.png|20px]]
| [[Canterbury United]]
| [[Christchurch]]
| [[English Park]]
| 3rd (2005-06)
| 0
| 8th
|
|-
| style="background:silver" | [[Image:Hawkesbaycolours.png|20px]]
| [[Hawke's Bay United]]<ref>Operated as Napier City Rovers during the 2004-05 season</ref>
| [[Napier, New Zealand|Napier]]
| [[Bluewater Stadium]]
| 4th (2007-08)
| 0
| 4th
|
|-
| style="background:silver" | [[Image:Otagocolours.png|20px]]
| [[Otago United]]
| [[Dunedin]]
| [[Carisbrook]]
| 5th (2005-06)
| 0
| 7th
|
|-
| style="background:silver" | [[Image:WellingtonPhoenixColours.png|20px]]
| [[Team Wellington]]
| [[Wellington]]
| [[Newtown Park]]
| 3rd (2007-08)
| 0
| 3rd
| Championship Runner-Up
|-
| style="background:silver" | [[Image:Waikatocolours.png|20px]]
| [[Waikato FC]]
| [[Hamilton, New Zealand|Hamilton]]
| [[Waikato Stadium]]
| 3rd (2004-05)
| 0
| 5th
|
|-
| style="background:silver" | [[Image:Waitakcolours.png|20px]]
| [[Waitakere United]]
| [[Waitakere City]]
| [[Trusts Stadium|Douglas Field]]
| 1st (2006-07, 2007-08)
| 1
| 1st
| 2007-08 Premier<br />2007-08 Champion<br />Qualified for [[OFC Champions League 2008-09|O-League 2008-09]]
|-
| style="background:silver" | [[Image:yhmcolours.png|20px]]
| [[YoungHeart Manawatu]]
| [[Palmerston North]]
| [[FMG Stadium]]
| 2nd (2005-06, 2006-07)
| 0
| 6th
|
|}
==NZFC Champions to date==
Regular season winner in bold.
{| class="toccolours" border="1" cellpadding="2" style="border-collapse: collapse; text-align: center; width: 80%; margin: 0 auto;"
|- style="background: #efefef;"
!Season
!width="20%"|Winner
!Score
!width="20%"|Runner-up
!Grand Final Venue
!Playoff Runner-up
|-
|[[New Zealand Football Championship 2004-05|2004/05]]
|'''[[Auckland City FC]]'''
|'''3 - 2'''
|[[Waitakere United]]<br />
|[[Kiwitea Street]],<br />[[Auckland]]
|[[Waikato FC]] (Lost 1-4)
|-
|rowspan="2"|[[New Zealand Football Championship 2005-06|2005/06]]
|'''[[Auckland City FC]]'''
|'''3 - 3'''
|[[Canterbury United]]<br />
|[[Kiwitea Street]],<br />[[Auckland]]
|[[Team Wellington]] (Lost 1-2)
|-
|colspan="4"|'''[[Auckland City FC]]''' won 4-3 on [[Penalty shootout (football)|penalties]].
|
|-
|[[New Zealand Football Championship 2006-07|2006/07]]
|[[Auckland City FC]]
|'''3 - 2'''
|'''[[Waitakere United]]'''<br />
|[[Trusts Stadium]],<br />[[Henderson, New Zealand|Henderson]]
|[[YoungHeart Manawatu]] (Lost 1-3)
|-
|[[New Zealand Football Championship 2007-08|2007/08]]
|'''[[Waitakere United]]'''
|'''2 - 0'''
|[[Team Wellington]]<br />
|[[Trusts Stadium|Douglas Field]],<br />[[Henderson, New Zealand|Henderson]]
|[[Auckland City FC]] (Lost 3-4)
|}
==National Youth League==
The NZFC also runs the Under-20's National Youth League. The league is contested by eight academy teams affiliated with the NZFC franchises, a [[Papakura]]-based franchise [http://www.aucklandmanukauunited.co.nz/index.php Auckland-Manukau FC], and a "New Zealand Development Squad" consisting of 12 New Zealander Under-16 players, and additional players from the [[Auckland City FC]] and [[Waitakere United]] franchises. The ten teams are split into two regions, with each team playing its regional opponent twice. At the conclusion of the youth league regular season, the top ranked Northern team will host the second ranked Southern team, and the top ranked Southern team will host the second ranked Northern team for the semi finals. The winners of these matches will face each other in the grand final. The New Zealand Development team will not be eligible for the playoffs.
On March 22, Waitakere United's academy team won the youth league grand final at [[English Park]], [[Christchurch]], defeating [[Canterbury United]]'s academy team 6-3.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Northern Conference
! Southern Conference
|-
|Auckland City FC
|Canterbury United
|-
|Auckland-Manukau FC
|Hawke's Bay United
|-
|NZ Development Squad
|Otago United
|-
|Waikato FC
|Team Wellington
|-
|Waitakere United
|YoungHeart Manawatu
|}
==See also==
*[[New Zealand Football Championship Records]]
*[[New Zealand Football Championship 2004-05]]
*[[New Zealand Football Championship 2005-06]]
*[[New Zealand Football Championship 2006-07]]
*[[New Zealand Football Championship 2007-08]]
*[[New Zealand champions (soccer)|New Zealand Champions (Soccer)]]
*[[New Zealand National Soccer League]]
==Notes==
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
*[http://www.nzfc.co.nz NZFC Official Site]
*[http://www.nzsfootball.co.nz NZ Football Official Site]
{{fb start}}
{{New Zealand Football Championship}}
{{OFC Leagues}}
{{NZ fb general}}
{{fb end}}
[[Category:National football (soccer) premier leagues|New Zealand]]
[[Category:New Zealand soccer competitions]]
[[Category:New Zealand Football Championship| ]]
[[Category:Summer football (soccer) leagues]]
[[de:New Zealand Football Championship]]
[[fr:Championnat de Nouvelle-Zélande de football]]
[[ko:뉴질랜드 축구 선수권대회]]
[[it:Campionato di calcio neozelandese]]
[[nl:New Zealand Football Championship]]
[[ja:ニュージーランド・フットボールチャンピオンシップ]]
[[zh:新西兰足球锦标赛]]