The 2024 A-League Men finals series was the 19th annual edition of A-League finals series, the playoffs tournament staged to determine the champion of the 2023–24 A-League Men season. The series was played over four weeks culminating in the 2024 A-League Men Grand Final.
| Season | 2023–24 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 4–25 May 2024 |
| Champions | Central Coast Mariners |
| Matches played | 7 |
| Goals scored | 12 (1.71 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Róbert Mak (2 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Sydney FC 4–0 Macarthur FC (Elimination-finals, 4 May 2024) |
| Biggest away win | Sydney FC 1–2 Central Coast Mariners (Semi-finals, 10 May 2024) Wellington Phoenix 1–2 Melbourne Victory (Semi-finals, 18 May 2024) |
| Highest scoring | Sydney FC 4–0 Macarthur FC (Elimination-finals, 4 May 2024) |
| Highest attendance | 33,297 Wellington Phoenix 1–2 Melbourne Victory (Semi-finals, 18 May 2024) |
| Lowest attendance | 11,792 Sydney FC 4–0 Macarthur FC (Elimination-finals, 4 May 2024) |
| Total attendance | 138,011 |
| Average attendance | 19,716 |
← 2023 2025 → | |
On 18 October 2023, the decision to host the 2023, 2024 and 2025 A-League Men Grand Finals in Sydney was reversed and renegotiated into Unite Round.[1][2][3]
Qualification
editThe top two teams; Central Coast Mariners and Wellington Phoenix, qualify directly for the semi-finals. The teams placed third through to sixth play in the elimination-finals, with the third and fourth placed teams; Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC, hosting the matches.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Central Coast Mariners (C) | 27 | 17 | 4 | 6 | 49 | 27 | +22 | 55 | Qualification for AFC Champions League Elite and Finals series |
| 2 | Wellington Phoenix[a] | 27 | 15 | 8 | 4 | 42 | 26 | +16 | 53 | Qualification for Finals series[b] |
| 3 | Melbourne Victory | 27 | 10 | 12 | 5 | 43 | 33 | +10 | 42 | |
| 4 | Sydney FC | 27 | 12 | 5 | 10 | 52 | 41 | +11 | 41 | Qualification for AFC Champions League Two and Finals series[c] |
| 5 | Macarthur FC | 27 | 11 | 8 | 8 | 45 | 48 | −3 | 41 | Qualification for Finals series[b] |
| 6 | Melbourne City | 27 | 11 | 6 | 10 | 50 | 38 | +12 | 39 | |
| 7 | Western Sydney Wanderers | 27 | 11 | 4 | 12 | 44 | 48 | −4 | 37 | |
| 8 | Adelaide United | 27 | 9 | 5 | 13 | 52 | 53 | −1 | 32 | |
| 9 | Brisbane Roar | 27 | 8 | 6 | 13 | 42 | 55 | −13 | 30 | Qualification for 2024 Australia Cup play-offs |
| 10 | Newcastle Jets | 27 | 6 | 10 | 11 | 39 | 47 | −8 | 28 | |
| 11 | Western United | 27 | 7 | 5 | 15 | 36 | 55 | −19 | 26 | |
| 12 | Perth Glory | 27 | 5 | 7 | 15 | 46 | 69 | −23 | 22 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) wins; 3) goal difference; 4) goals scored; 5) head-to-head results; 5a) head-to-head points; 5b) head-to-head goal difference; 6) Fair Play points; 7) away goal difference; 8) away goals per match; 9) home goal difference; 10) home goals per match; 11) toss of a coin in an event of a tie of two clubs.[4][5]
(C) Champions
Notes:
- ^ Wellington Phoenix cannot qualify for Asian Football Confederation competitions as they are based in New Zealand, which is part of the Oceania Football Confederation.
- ^ a b The top two teams enter the finals series at the semi-finals, while the teams ranked third to sixth enter the finals series at the elimination-finals.
- ^ Qualified for AFC Champions League Two as the 2023 Australia Cup winners.
Venues
editThis year would see the first finals match played in New Zealand since 2015.
| Melbourne | Gosford | |
|---|---|---|
| AAMI Park | Industree Group Stadium | |
| Capacity: 30,050 | Capacity: 20,059 | |
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| Sydney | Wellington | |
| Allianz Stadium | Sky Stadium | |
| Capacity: 42,500 | Capacity: 34,500 | |
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Bracket
editThe system used for the 2024 A-League Men finals series is the modified top-six play-offs by the A-Leagues. The top two teams enter the two-legged semi-finals receiving the bye for the elimination-finals in which the teams from third placed to sixth place enter the elimination-finals with "third against sixth" and "fourth against fifth". Losers for the elimination-finals are eliminated, and winners qualify for the two-legged semi-finals.
First placed team in the semi-finals plays the lowest ranked elimination-final winning team and secon placed team in the semi-finals plays the highest ranked elimination-final winner. Home-state advantage goes to the team with the higher ladder position.
| Elimination-finals | Semi-finals | Grand final | ||||||||||||||
| 4 | Sydney FC | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| 5 | Macarthur FC | 0 | 4 | Sydney FC | 1 | 0 | 1 | |||||||||
| 1 | Central Coast Mariners | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Central Coast Mariners (a.e.t.) | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| 3 | Melbourne Victory (p) | 1 (3) | 3 | Melbourne Victory | 1 | |||||||||||
| 6 | Melbourne City | 1 (2) | 3 | Melbourne Victory (a.e.t.) | 0 | 2 | 2 | |||||||||
| 2 | Wellington Phoenix | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
Elimination-finals
editSydney FC vs Macarthur FC
editThis was the 11th overall meeting between the two teams and their first in the finals series.
       Sydney
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   Macarthur
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Assistant referees:[6]
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Melbourne Victory vs Melbourne City
editThis was the 45th overall meeting between the two teams and their second in the finals series. The last time a Melbourne Derby was contested in the finals series was in 2015, which Melbourne Victory won 3–0.
| Melbourne Victory | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Melbourne City |
|---|---|---|
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Report |
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| Penalties | ||
| 3–2 | ||
 Melbourne
Victory |
 Melbourne
City |
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Assistant referees:[6]
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Semi-finals
edit| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Coast Mariners | 2–1 | Sydney FC | 2–1 | 0–0 |
| Wellington Phoenix | 1–2 | Melbourne Victory | 0–0 | 1–2 (a.e.t.) |
Sydney FC vs Central Coast Mariners
edit| Sydney
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    Central Coast
Mariners |
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Assistant referees:[7]
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Central Coast Mariners vs Sydney FC
edit|
Assistant referees:[8]
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Melbourne Victory vs Wellington Phoenix
edit| Melbourne
Victory |
   Wellington
Phoenix |
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Assistant referees:[7]
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Wellington Phoenix vs Melbourne Victory
edit| Wellington Phoenix | 1–2 (a.e.t.) | Melbourne Victory |
|---|---|---|
Zawada  90+9' |
Report |
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| Wellington
Phoenix |
Melbourne
Victory |
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Assistant referees:[8]
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Grand Final
edit
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ "A-Leagues announce first ever Unite Round to take place this season". A-Leagues. 18 October 2023. Archived from the original on 18 October 2023.
- ^ "A-Leagues scrap controversial Grand Final decision in favour of Unite Round". ABC News. 18 October 2023. Archived from the original on 17 October 2023.
- ^ Lynch, Joey (18 October 2023). "A-Leagues scrap Grand Final deal in favour of 'Unite Round". ESPN. Archived from the original on 18 October 2023.
- ^ "A-League Competition rules". A-Leagues. Archived from the original on 29 October 2023.
- ^ "Explained: Why the A-Leagues ladder sorting rules have changed this season". A-Leagues. 2 January 2024. Archived from the original on 2 January 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Match Official Appointments: Isuzu UTE A-League 2023/24 Elimination Finals". Football Australia. 1 May 2024. Archived from the original on 2 May 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Match Official Appointments: Isuzu UTE A-League 2023/24 Semi-Finals - First Leg". Football Australia. 9 May 2024. Archived from the original on 9 May 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Match Official Appointments: Isuzu UTE A-League 2023/24 Semi-Finals - Second Leg". Football Australia. 14 May 2024. Archived from the original on 14 May 2024.