Players Sue Football Australia Over Revenue Share

The Professional Footballers Australia union has launched legal action in the NSW Supreme Court on behalf of Socceroos and Matildas players.

Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Soccer

Wide photograph of an empty grass football pitch beneath tall floodlight towers at dusk, with a single goal frame and open sky. — The Professional Footballers Australia union has sued Football Australia in the NSW Supreme Court over revenue share owed to Socceroos and Matildas players under a 2023 collective bargaining agreement. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Professional Footballers Australia has launched legal action in the NSW Supreme Court on behalf of Socceroos and Matildas players, pursuing Football Australia for a seven-figure sum. The dispute centres on the share of national team revenues players receive under a collective bargaining agreement signed in 2023.

Why it matters

National teams contribute up to half of Football Australia's revenues, and players receive an 18 to 20 per cent cut of relevant commercial arrangements. The players feel they are not getting their fair share of those revenues, and the union is expected to argue the revenue share agreement is not being serviced properly.

The collective bargaining agreement is due to lapse in September 2027, meaning the revenue dispute will shape negotiations over the next set of player terms. The outcome of the NSW Supreme Court action remains unknown.

The players

Professional Footballers Australia

The union representing professional footballers in Australia, which launched the legal action on behalf of Socceroos and Matildas players.

Football Australia

The national governing body for soccer in Australia, responsible for the Socceroos and Matildas and the defendant in the legal action.

The details

The PFA launched legal action in the NSW Supreme Court on the players' behalf, targeting Football Australia over revenue share under the collective bargaining agreement. The union's case rests on the share players receive from Football Australia's national team revenues, which the players argue is not being paid fairly.

2023: Collective bargaining agreement signed between players and Football Australia.
November 2026: Socceroos play Middle East matches during the November window.
September 2027: Current collective bargaining agreement expires.

Season Trajectory

Football Australia has already settled out of court with Macarthur FC over claims the club was misled before its 2020 A-League entry, and has also settled an unfair dismissal case with former chief football officer Ernie Merrick. The PFA legal action adds a further dispute to that record of contested governance matters.

The outcome of the revenue dispute could change how national team earnings are shared with players, affecting the commercial arrangements that fund player pay. Fans following the Socceroos and Matildas may see the result shape squad availability and the national team calendar in the coming seasons.

The takeaway

Collective bargaining terms can determine how commercial revenue from national teams flows to players, so the outcome of this dispute will matter well beyond the courtroom. Readers following Australian soccer should watch the September 2027 expiry date, when renegotiation begins in earnest.

What happens next

The Matildas will host Colombia in a two-match friendly series in Canberra and Geelong, and the Socceroos travel to Doha to face Qatar and to Amman to face Jordan.