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NPL 2026

NicCarBel said:
Interesting to see if Capital Football will go ahead with their 10 team NPL now or keep it to 9.

If they go 10 - do they allow Yoogali back in? Or do they bring up from CPL? Based off the exemptions and such, the next clubs in line are:

6th placed of 8: Canberra White Eagles
7th placed of 8: Wagga City Wanderers - removed from senior Capital Football pathway
8th placed of 8: West Canberra Wanderers

Logic suggests they'll go with White Eagles, but if West Canberra get back in the top flight, then this process is even more corrupt than we thought.
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It's anyones guess about the mens but surely this means Monaro NPLB go up as they finished 11th in club championship. Monaro have trials next week for boys so will be interesting to see how many Gungahlin players show up.

This also means another slot for the NPLG open up.
 

Hugh_Mungus said:
It's anyones guess about the mens but surely this means Monaro NPLB go up as they finished 11th in club championship. Monaro have trials next week for boys so will be interesting to see how many Gungahlin players show up.

This also means another slot for the NPLG open up.
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Wow

CAPITAL FOOTBALL STATEMENT: UPDATE ON GUFC WITHDRAWAL FROM COMPETITIONS​


October 22, 2025

Capital Football (CF) is actively working with clubs, participants and stakeholders to minimise the impact of Gungahlin United Football Club’s (GUFC) recent decision to commence winding up the Club.

The unprecedented events of the past week have had widespread impacts not only for those involved at GUFC but also across the broader local football landscape. We encourage the entire football community to remember that GUFC players, coaches and volunteers require support from the loss of their club.

Players who have had commitments made to them at other clubs should not be affected by this announcement, and their offers and opportunities for development should remain intact. Finally, if all clubs work together alongside CF, we can make the necessary adjustments to support all participants well before the start of the 2026 season in February.

Our immediate priority is to support displaced players, particularly juniors, by helping them find new clubs. In addition, CF is working to create as many playing opportunities as possible in the Gungahlin region for affected National Premier League players following GUFC’s announcement on 18 October.

To reduce disruption to NPL competitions, CF has implemented the following measures:

NPL Men:

  • Increasing from 10 to 11 teams
  • Invitations to join the competition have been extended to Canberra Juventus and White Eagles.
NPL Boys:

  • Increasing from 10 to 12 teams
  • Invitations have been extended to Monaro Panthers, Majura and West Canberra Wanderers.
NPL Girls:

  • Remains 8 teams
  • Bella Monaro has been invited to join the competition.
NPL Women:

  • The competition will continue with the six existing teams. These are Belconnen United, Canberra Croatia, Canberra Olympic, Majura, Tuggeranong United and West Canberra Wanderers.
  • An expression of interest will be released seeking a possible 7th team for 2027.
While CF has acted swiftly to provide continuity for NPL players, we remain committed to working with existing clubs and the Gungahlin community to find solutions for the 1,300 MiniRoos and Junior League players previously registered with GUFC.

We are grateful to the clubs that have already welcomed affected players. CF continues to encourage all NPL clubs to extend their trial periods to support those who have been displaced.

Capital Football will continue to provide updates and work collaboratively to ensure all players have the opportunity to remain engaged in the game. We are also working to ensure that football-based infrastructure in the Gungahlin region remains allocated to football.

Capital Football remains committed to supporting the football community through this transition and ensuring a strong, inclusive start to the 2026 season.

No further comment will be made at this time.
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So after all that, they're expanding to 11 clubs in NPL, and attempting to bring in Canberra Juventus (right call) and White Eagles (probably not as right a call, but given the circumstances, about the only thing they could do - but why 11? Me thinks they were going to bring in White Eagles, but there's been a bit of support to get Juventus in properly, given how much they've proven Capital Football's doubts at getting a youth program off the ground within 12 months (the reason for their exemption being denied, and Brindabella being brought in) being proven wrong.

Essentially:
  • I reckon what’s happened, is they were gonna bring just white eagles in, but Juventus (rightfully) made a case that they’ve done everything Capitfail Football doubted they could do in 12 months, in the space of 2, and essentially they got forced to add both
  • And then, because that meant the senior comp was bigger than the junior comp (and the review made it clear the junior comp needed a long season to aid development), they expanded that to 12 instead of 10 as well
  • Then they can’t include ANU or Wagga, because it would make it very obvious that this whole process was a Yoogali extermination project from the get go - as ANU doesn't have a junior set up in Canberra (so including them means they could have included Yoogali), and whilst Wagga does have the youth program, they're a Riverina club (so, again - including them means they could have included Yoogali).
  • And West Canberra they’d get laughed at for including them over all the others that have missed out
  • I mean.. there's a reason White Eagles (finished 6th in last year's CPL/2nd division) had a post ready to go with a statement on their inclusion into next season's NPL, and Juventus (finished 3rd in last year's CPL/2nd division) hasn't said cazzi yet.
 
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Beretta said:
Did canberra white eagles replace them?
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and also Canberra Juventus.

So essentially what happened was:
  • 10 team NPL for 2026 announced (Review announced mid-May. Exemptions announced July 30. Declaration of Leagues announced/formalised October 1)
    • All NPL clubs to either have a full youth program in pace
    • Removal of Riverina clubs (Yoogali from NPL, and Wagga from NPLY and not eligible for promotion to NPL) due to travel concerns for youth clubs from Canberra to the Riverina
    • Promotion of the top 3 clubs from 2nd Division (CPL) that are eligible (which ended up being the clubs in 1st, 2nd and 5th - of 8 clubs)
    • All remaining clubs to be sent down to what is currently the 3rd Division (CLO1), which is now the 2nd Division following the Review
    • 3rd placed ANU was listed initially as "Decided not to participate in NPL Men in 2026" rather than "Relegated from CPL Men to Capital League Opens Division 1" - this has since been updated to "Eligible for promotion based on performance, but did not to apply for a Juniors exemption in order to be able to participate in NPL Men in 2026"
    • 4th placed Canberra Juventus were not granted an exemption, despite beginning to implement an full youth program from next season (with the criteria pointing towards having these programs completed and running for the 2027 season), as 'The Board expressed concern over the feasibility of establishing a full junior pathway within a 12-month timeframe.'
    • 6th and 8th placed White Eagles and West Canberra Wanderers were granted exemptions, as White Eagles already had a partial program set up ('subject to quarterly reporting on the club’s progress against key deliverables. The exemption will not be extended beyond 2026, and eligibility for NPL Men in 2027 is contingent on establishing Division 1 junior teams or NPL Boys promotion'), and West Canberra already has a full program set up.
    • 7th placed Wagga City were not invited on the mens side, but Capital Football backflipped on removing the youth teams from NPL, contradicting the original reason to remove Yoogali and Wagga from the senior pyramid due to concerns over travel for youth sides - as they are now subjecting the youth sides to travel.
      • Yoogali, West Canberra and Wagga City initially planned to form a partnership in the youth pyramid, which would ideally allow at least Yoogali to have remained in the NPL from 2026 - according to Capital Football - "the submission did not meet the clearly communicated requirements. It lacked critical elements such as formalised agreements, a defined governance structure, and a detailed operational plan. Capital Football had invited the club to submit a formal proposal to the Board, specifically addressing how it intended to meet the 2026 competition requirements and justify its continued inclusion in ACT-managed competitions. This included a clear expectation to demonstrate how a compliant youth development pathway would be established and delivered within Capital Football’s competition frameworks. However, no such formal proposal was received." (probably because only a month was given to develop this)
    • Gungahlin United were also noted as required to respond to existing issues already raised by CF separately as part of an ongoing compliance requirement.
  • Then, Gungahlin United folded after the declaration of leagues, leaving the all 4 NPL leagues 1 club short. So, naturally:
    • Capital Football decided to promote two clubs (Canberra Juventus and White Eagles) to replace the one club that had folded, and leave an 11 club NPLM for 2026 (also expanding the NPLB from the originally proposed 10, back to 12)
    • I reckon what’s happened, is they were gonna bring just White Eagles in (as the next eligible club on the ladder after the exemptions were announced) , but Juventus (rightfully) made a case that they’ve done everything Capitfail Football doubted they could do in 12 months, in the space of 2, and essentially they were forced to add both. There's a reason that White Eagles had a post announcing their inclusion with a statement from the committee ready to go within minutes, and Juventus only have put something together this morning.
    • And then, because that meant the senior comp was bigger than the junior comp (and the review made it clear the junior comp needed a long season to aid development), they expanded that to 12 instead of 10 as well
    • Then they can’t include ANU or Wagga, because it would make it very obvious that this whole process was a Yoogali extermination project from the get go - as ANU doesn't have a junior set up in Canberra (so including them means they could have included Yoogali), and whilst Wagga does have the youth program, they're a Riverina club (so, again - including them means they could have included Yoogali).
    • And West Canberra they’d get laughed at for including them over all the others that have missed out

So, it's become very apparent that the primary objective of the initial NPL Review and re-structure was a Yoogali extermination project.
 
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NPL Victoria 2026 season dates confirmed,
opening weekend: Friday February 13th/Saturday February 14th/Sunday February 15th/Monday February 16th
catch up round (Easter weekend): Friday April 3rd/Saturday April 4th/Sunday April 5th/Monday April 6th
catch up round (opening weekend FIFA World Cup & Dockerty Cup semi finals): Friday June 12th/Saturday June 13th/Sunday June 14th/Monday June 15th
catch up round (Dockerty Cup final): Friday August 7th/Saturday August 8th/Sunday August 9th/Monday August 10th
final day: Saturday August 29th or Sunday August 30th
NPL Victoria Grand Final Day: Saturday September 19th or Sunday September 20th

Victorian Premier League 1 & 2 season dates confirmed,
opening weekend: Friday February 13th/Saturday February 14th/Sunday February 15th/Monday February 16th
catch up round (Easter weekend): Friday April 3rd/Saturday April 4th/Sunday April 5th/Monday April 6th
catch up round (start of winter school holidays): Friday June 26th/Saturday June 27th/Sunday June 28th/Monday June 29th
catch up round (Dockerty Cup final): Friday August 7th/Saturday August 8th/Sunday August 9th/Monday August 10th
final day: Saturday August 29th or Sunday August 30th
promotion playoff semi finals: Friday September 11th/Saturday September 12th/Sunday September 13th
promotion playoff final: Saturday September 19th or Sunday September 20th

VETO SPORT Men's State League season dates confirmed,
opening weekend: Friday March 20th/Saturday March 21st/Sunday March 22nd/Monday March 23rd
catch up round (Easter weekend): Friday April 3rd/Saturday April 4th/Sunday April 5th/Monday April 6th
catch up round (Kings Birthday weekend): Friday June 5th/Saturday June 6th/Sunday March 7th/Monday June 8th
catch up round (Dockerty Cup final): Friday August 7th/Saturday August 8th/Sunday August 9th/Monday August 10th
final day: Saturday September 5th

 
NicCarBel said:
wait - so is that both NSW and VIC premiers coaches going to new teams for next season?
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Seems so
Dont know bout NSW but this seems win win for Preston & Markovski regarding 2026 NPL but would assume its a little deglating to current coaching staff and any confidence they had in turning this around in the championship!
 
Hellenic_blue&white said:
Seems so
Dont know bout NSW but this seems win win for Preston & Markovski regarding 2026 NPL but would assume its a little deglating to current coaching staff and any confidence they had in turning this around in the championship!
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Acevski has been managing Preston for what? 8? 9? seasons now. I imagine its less about an inability to turn around the championship form (I'm still a believer), but more about getting the best out of quite an expensive NPL squad next season (this year was a decent season, just consistency doesn't seem to be there). Needs to be a change eventually and Acevski has pretty much done everything there is to do at this point.
 
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