Western Sydney Wanderers will host Macarthur FC in the 2020-21 season opener on December 27, it was revealed on Tuesday.
The other opening games will see Western United host Adelaide United, Wellington Phoenix visit Brisbane Roar, Sydney FC take on Melbourne City and the F3 Derby between Central Coast Mariners and Newcastle Jets.
The opening round would seem like just another game, but history shows otherwise.
With the help of Opta data, we assess just what round one means in the A-League.
Opening loss and trophies become difficult
Incredibly, only twice in A-League history has a team that lost in round one gone on to be crowned champions or premiers of that season.
The first instance came in 2011-12, when the Mariners were edged by Brisbane in round one, but went on to win the Premiers' Plate, finishing two points clear of the Roar.
Melbourne Victory were the second, going on to be crowned champions in 2017-18 despite a 1-0 loss to Sydney FC in round one.
In all, six of the nine teams to do the A-League double of being crowned premiers and champions in a single season have done so far after winning in round one. The other three drew. Of the 15 champions, seven have won and seven have drawn, to go with Victory's 2017-18 defeat, in round one. Nine of the 15 premiers have won in the first round, alongside five draws and the Mariners' loss.
Round one looks hugely important in the A-League.
Fast-starting Sydney, Glory woes
Sydney have scored more goals (21) in round one games than any other team in the competition, while earning the most points per game (1.7) of teams to have featured in at least five seasons.
The Sky Blues have lost just two round one matches in their history, and the most recent of those was in 2012-13. They face a huge test to begin 2020-21 season, hosting Melbourne City in a Grand Final rematch at ANZ Stadium.
On the other hand, Perth Glory have lost more games in round one than any other team in A-League history with seven.
In contrast to Sydney, Perth are winless in their past five openers, their last win coming in 2014-15.
The 2019-20 A-League campaign has been suspended since March due to the COVID-19 crisis, but Australia's premier football competition is set to restart on July 16 followed by a five-game finals series – the Grand Final to take place on August 23.
A derby between Melbourne Victory and Western United – originally scheduled for AAMI Park in Melbourne – will be played at a stadium still to be determined due to a spike in coronavirus cases in the state.
Six venues will be used in New South Wales and Queensland with the potential for more to be added subject to government regulations – ANZ Stadium (NSW), Bankwest Stadium (NSW), Central Coast Stadium (NSW), McDonald Jones Stadium (NSW), Jubilee Stadium (NSW) and Cbus Stadium (QLD).
"Over the past three months all stakeholders have been working hard together with one goal in mind – To finish what we started," FFA's Head of Leagues Greg O'Rourke said on Wednesday.
"We know the COVID-19 environment has been very difficult for many people in our community and we hope that delivering an extravaganza of matches will allow our fans to basically see a game everyday will be a unique experience for those who have stood by us.
"As we are a truly national game, the current border controls means that some of the match day venues may need to change, however we have secured venues in both a NSW Hub model and a hybrid hub model which has most games in NSW but allows for a few games in other states.
"Whilst we don't see the draw changing, the planning we have undertaken provides us with agility to shift between certain states if required. This version of the draw displays our current venue plan.
"We will continue to work with the Federal and State governments to ensure the health and safety of our players, coaches and other stakeholders and have detailed and practical protocols in place for all parties involved in training and match days.
"I am excited to see us kick off the restart and ultimately finish off what we started last October, with our priority always being to be in a position to crown our Hyundai A-League premiers and champions for this season."
Defending champions Sydney FC top the table by eight points through 20 matches, though second-placed Melbourne City have played three games less.
Most events have been put on hold or cancelled across the world due to the spread of COVID-19.
There are still some competitions going ahead on Friday, though, and here are five of the best to look forward to.
Central Coast Mariners v Melbourne City - A-League
Australia's top football division continues, albeit with a reduced schedule and games being staged behind closed doors - including both of Friday's matches.
The Mariners will be out to avoid unwanted club history as they host Melbourne City. Alen Stajcic's team are on a nine-match losing run, just one short of their previous worst streak of 10 in a row.
Dundalk - horse racing
Horse racing has been suspended in the United Kingdom until the end of April, but Horse Racing Ireland has opted to carry on racing after implementing stringent controls.
Friday's sole meeting will take place at Dundalk, where Cautious Approach, Juliet Rose and Sebs Star are all in action.
Cage Warriors 113 - MMA
Friday's blockbuster will now be held in Manchester after moving from London and is another event being held without spectators in attendance.
Darren Stewart and Bartosz Fabinski meet in the headline fight, while Mason Jones and Joe McColgan will battle it out for the vacant lightweight title.
Brisbane Broncos v South Sydney Rabbitohs - NRL
The NRL has introduced a self-isolation programme for its players in a desperate attempt to keep games on.
And that means plenty of focus will be on the grudge match between the Broncos and the Rabbitohs, who will both be looking to maintain winning starts to the season.
Western Bulldogs v Collingwood - AFL
Aussie Rules football got under way at an empty MCG on Thursday and the action continues with Western Bulldogs taking on Collingwood Magpies.
The Magpies begin their assault for a record-equalling 16th title - and a first in a decade - against their Melbourne rivals at Docklands Stadium.
The A-League clash between Victory and City on December 17 saw flares thrown by both sets of fans during the opening quarter of the game at AAMI Park.
Trouble escalated when a flare hit a pitchside cameraman before exploding, with City keeper Glover throwing two flares off the field, one of which landed in the stands.
Fans behind the goal stormed the pitch and Glover was hit in the face with a metal bucket, while referee Alex King was also struck, leading to the game being brought to an end.
Three men have subsequently been charged by Victoria Police, while an independent match review panel (MRP) was tasked with determining if Glover deserved to be punished.
After reviewing the match footage and consulting referee King's match report, it was announced on Tuesday that no further action will be taken against Glover.
King confirmed in his report that he saw the incident involving Glover and he did not in any way feel the 25-year-old intentionally meant to throw a flare into the stands.
"Since the independent MRP was satisfied that the incident had not escaped the referee's attention, the MRP did not proceed to consider whether Glover should have been sanctioned with a direct red card," a Football Australia (FA) spokesperson said.
"Accordingly, the MRP has not cited the incident pursuant to the regulations."
Glover was therefore cleared to play for City in Tuesday's A-League encounter with Central Coast Mariners.
Victory were last week hit with a range of attendance-related sanctions by FA, with the club unable to sell tickets for any game up to and including January 15.
Additionally, the "active supporter bays" at both ends of AAMI Park are to be shut, and Victory fans will be unable to attend away games unless they appear on a pre-approved FA list of individuals who can qualify for complimentary tickets, though there will only be 1,000 of those available.
Even more significant punishments are still expected to be dished out to Victory, with FA adding "no determination regarding the final sanctions" had been made yet, with potential fines or points deductions reportedly on the table.
The game at AAMI Park saw flares thrown by both sets of fans during the first 22 minutes, before trouble escalated when a flare seemed to hit a pitch-side cameraman before exploding, while City goalkeeper Tom Glover threw another flare back into the crowd.
This led to many fans storming the pitch, with Glover being hit in the face with a metal bin that had been used for other flares. His club later said the 24-year-old "likely has a concussion" and was being treated by medical staff.
Football Australia was dismayed by what it called "shocking scenes", saying the match officials had rightly abandoned the game, while Melbourne Victory said the club were "devastated" and condemned the actions of their supporters.
In a statement, Football Australia said: "Such behaviour has no place in Australian football, with a full Football Australia investigation to commence immediately, where strong sanctions will be handed down."
The Australian Professional League (APL) said referee Alex King had also been injured in the melee.
The referee was standing next to Glover as fans poured onto the pitch from behind the goal and was covered in ash as smoke filled the air, before he took the players off the pitch.
Melbourne Victory said the behaviour of the club's supporters was "not acceptable under any circumstance" and apologised to Glover, King and the cameraman.
The club said: "Tonight, Melbourne Victory Football Club is devastated. The club unequivocally condemns the actions of fans at Saturday night's match against Melbourne City at AAMI Park.
"The actions that occurred, that saw spectators enter the pitch and injure a Melbourne City FC player, an official and a Network Ten cameraman, are not acceptable under any circumstance and have no place in football.
"The security and welfare of everyone involved in a football match is paramount and the club will not accept this behaviour.
"The club would like to formally apologise to Tom Glover, match official Alex King and the camera operator as well as all players, officials and those who witnessed the appalling behaviour.
"This conduct will not be tolerated and the club, along with AAMI Park and Victoria Police, will undertake a full investigation into the incident.
"Melbourne Victory would like to reiterate there is no place in football for what was witnessed tonight."
The game was played against the backdrop of fan protests earlier in the week after both the men's and women's A-Leagues announced the sale of the rights to their grand finals to the New South Wales government.
Both finals will be played in Sydney for the next three years after a deal reported to be worth eight figures was reached, with several prominent individuals involved in Australian football speaking out against the move away from the tradition of the highest-placed team hosting the game.
A 10-point suspended deduction has also been imposed on the club, along with restrictions on fan attendance at games, with Victory found to have brought the game into disrepute.
The December 17 game saw flares thrown by both sets of fans during the opening quarter at AAMI Park. Trouble escalated when a flare hit a pitchside cameraman before exploding, with City keeper Tom Glover throwing two flares off the field, one of which landed in the stands.
Fans behind the goal stormed the pitch at that point, and Glover was hit in the face with a metal bucket, while referee Alex King was also struck, leading to the game being brought to an end.
More than 30 people have been charged by Victoria Police, with fans now barred from sitting behind the goals in the North End of AAMI Park for the rest of the season, and no areas at away grounds will be allocated to away supporters for the same duration.
Football Australia (FA) warned in a statement: "The suspended 10-point deduction – ending at the end of the 2025-26 Isuzu UTE A-League season – may be triggered for each instance of serious supporter misconduct during this term and the next three campaigns."
FA said the derby game would resume on April 23 from the 22nd minute, the point at which it was abandoned, with City leading 1-0.
FA CEO James Johnson described the behaviour of the Victory fans who invaded the field as "inexcusable", saying it meant the club "committed a serious breach of our rules and regulations".
"The sanctions we have issued against Melbourne Victory are the heaviest in the A-League era," Johnson said. "These sanctions are reflective of our desire to remove this behaviour, and those that perpetuate it, from our game."
He added: "The field of play is sacred and the safety of our players and match officials is paramount. Those individuals that illegally entered the field of play, caused damage, and verbally and physically assaulted players and officials, crossed the line.
"We have worked closely with Victoria Police to identify these individuals and will continue to do so to ensure those that display anti-social and criminal behaviour at football events are not involved in our game in any way."
Melbourne Victory said they would "comply with all sanctions handed down by FA".
Portuguese winger Nani has experienced derbies in some of the world's great football cities, having played for Sporting CP, Manchester United, Lazio and Fenerbahce during an illustrious career.
Now an A-League derby awaits the 35-year-old, and he says the occasion will be comparable to his previous experiences of gunning for local bragging rights.
"A derby is a derby. You need to take it the way it is, you need to win," Nani said.
"Derbies are there to win, not to lose, because if you lose, it is the worst day of your life. You cannot go out. I don't feel in the mood to walk around, and you know you feel the shame.
"This is a moment of pride, so you want to give your fans a beautiful night, special feelings, and make them feel we are the best in the country."
Nani said hosts Victory will need to put in an almighty effort to earn all three points in front of a sell-out crowd at AAMI Park.
"We know it's a tough game," he said. "They are a strong opponent as well, so to win we need to give everything we've got and let's wait for the game and see what we can do."
Victory began the season with a 3-2 win over Sydney FC, before falling 1-0 to Western City Wanderers last week.
Last season saw Victory finish one point behind their neighbours, who topped the table in the regular season. Melbourne City then went on to lose to Western United in the Grand Final.
Melbourne City have begun this campaign with two wins, an early indication they should be challengers again.
Nani sees Victory as underdogs this weekend, saying Melbourne City "have a fantastic squad".
"I think probably they've been showing they're better than us on the field, the way they've been performing," Nani said. "So, it will be very tough for us. We need to be a compact team, we need to work very hard, and then try our best to beat them."
At the age of 35, Nani says he is putting in the hours to get in the best possible shape for his latest career challenge in Australia.
Asked if he might produce one of his famous backflips should he grab a derby goal, Nani said: "Yeah, why not? Let's see. I let the environment and the moment make the decision. So, what comes in the brain, we will do."
The A-League Men's clash between Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory had already seen flares thrown by both sets of fans during the first 22 minutes, before things escalated.
With hosts City 1-0 up at AAMI Park thanks to an 11th-minute goal from Aiden O'Neill, a flare seemed to hit a pitch-side cameraman before exploding, while City shot stopper Glover threw another flare back into the crowd.
This led to a number of fans storming the pitch, with Glover being hit in the face with a metal bin that had been used for other flares. The club later said the 24-year-old "likely has a concussion".
The referee had been stood next to Glover and was covered in ash, before taking the players off the pitch, with the game later being abandoned.
There had already been fan protests earlier this week after both the men's and women's A-Leagues announced the sale of the rights to their grand finals to the New South Wales government.
Both finals will be played in Sydney for the next three years after a deal reported to be worth eight figures was reached, with several prominent individuals involved in Australian football speaking out against the move away from the tradition of the highest-placed team hosting the game.
Protests also took place at other A-League games, including Central Coast Mariners fans leaving just 20 minutes into their clash with Sydney FC, while Newcastle Jets supporters also left during the first half of their match against Brisbane Roar.
APL chief executive Danny Townsend, who has come under fire for the decision, described the deal as "a unique opportunity" for a week-long "festival of football" around the men's and women's grand finals.
