Australia has a great sporting heritage. They’ve won over 600 medals at the Olympics and been crowned world champions in a range of sports.

While football has often taken a back seat to cricket, both formats of rugby and, of course, Aussie Rules football, the Socceroos have still tasted success of their own. They’ve won four OFC Nations Cups, won the AFC Asian Cup after they switched confederations, and have qualified for every World Cup since 2006.

Participation rates have gone through the roof, with football now the most popular outdoor sport in the country. The A-League, Australia’s top division in domestic football, initially began with just eight teams in 2004. That figure is now 13. Youth development has been a huge focus, with under-23 players accounting for over a third of total minutes played, which has resulted in a wave of player sales that’s seen some club’s transfer income overtake their broadcasting revenue.

Overseas, Australia’s influence has mainly been felt in the Premier League, where more than 50 players from Down Under have featured since 1992. While the league has often been dominated by players from traditional European and South American nations, Australian internationals have steadily carved out their place in English football.

There have been a number of top-quality Australian players over the years, and below are the very best of them.

15

Luke Wilkshire

Career Span: 1998-2018

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Luke Wilkshire enjoyed a long and varied career, earning 78 caps for Australia and representing the Socceroos at two World Cups. It would have been three had then-manager Ange Postecoglou not dropped him on the eve of the tournament.

Wilkshire was a versatile defender, comfortable at right-back or in midfield. He started out in the Premier League with Middlesbrough, before moving to League One with Bristol City. From there, he moved to the Netherlands with FC Twente, before spending six seasons with Dinamo Moscow. It wouldn’t be until his twilight years as a professional that he’d play in Australia, but capped off his career by winning the A-League title with Sydney FC in 2018.

14

Stan Lazaridis

Career Span: 1995-2008

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A reliable and consistent performer for Australia during the late 1990s and early 2000s, Stan Lazaridis earned 60 caps across a decade-long international career. He was comfortable playing in any position on the left side of the pitch and spent the majority of his club career in England, most notably with West Ham and then Birmingham City, where he became a fan favourite for his work rate and whipped crosses.

One of Lazaridis’ best moments of his career came as a Hammer, when his 35-yard screamer against Newcastle was nominated for Premier League Goal of the Season.

13

Mathew Ryan

Career Span: 2009-Present

Most Australian fans would have thought they’d have to spend a long time scratching around for a top-level goalkeeper after the retirement of Mark Schwartzer, but up stepped Mat Ryan, who’s earned over 100 international caps. He became a mainstay of the national team, taking the captain’s armband and representing his country at multiple World Cups in the process.

After beginning his professional career in the A-League with Central Coast Mariners, he became quite the nomad, playing for 11 teams in seven different European leagues. Most of his time at club level was spent playing for Club Brugge and Brighton, but he’s had time at Arsenal, Valencia and Roma.

12

John Aloisi

Career Span: 1992-2011

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John Aloisi will forever be remembered for scoring the penalty that sent Australia to the World Cup for the first time in 32 years. It’s a moment that remains one of the most iconic in the country’s sporting history. Across a career spent largely in Europe, he played the bulk of his matches in Spain with Osasuna and Alaves, as well as spells in Serie A and the Premier League, proving himself a capable forward at a solid top-flight level.

In his second to last season as a professional, he won his first trophy, capturing the A-League with Sydney FC in a season where he finished as the league’s fourth top scorer with Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler.

11

Lucas Neill

Career Span: 1995-2014

Lucas Neill was one of Australia’s most dependable defenders during a long international career that saw him earn 97 caps and captain the Socceroos at two World Cups. After starting out at Millwall, he went on to play in the Premier League with Blackburn Rovers and West Ham.

Neill was a key part of the Australia side that made history at the 2006 World Cup, helping them reach the knockout stages for the first time, finishing second in a tough group that included Brazil, Croatia and Japan. Sadly for Neill, it was his foul in the 93rd minute that led to their exit from the tournament at the hands of the eventual champions, Italy. The foul was hardly clear-cut, and former FIFA President Sepp Blatter even apologised to Neill and Australia in the months following the tournament.

10

Johnny Warren

Career Span: 1959-1974

Johnny Warren was a true trailblazer for football in Australia. Known as “Captain Socceroo”, he was a key player in the Australia team which qualified for the 1974 World Cup in Germany. An attacking midfielder, Warren was capped 43 times, 24 of which were as captain.

After his playing career ended, Warren embarked on a coaching career and continued to promote the sport as a journalist and commentator, until he passed away in 2004. Much of the success the national side have achieved in recent times can be traced back to Warren, who was inducted into the Australian Sports Hall of Fame in 1988.

9

Mile Jedinak

Career Span: 2001-2019

Defensive midfielder Mile Jedinak won 79 international caps, scoring 20 goals. He played in three World Cups, captaining the side in 2014 and the Socceroos’ victory in the 2015 Asian Cup. Jeninak was a competitive player with leadership qualities, adept at breaking up the play and protecting the back four. He was also an accomplished penalty taker, scoring all 16 spot kicks during his professional career.

Jedinak spent five years at Crystal Palace, becoming a fan favourite at Selhurst Park. At Palace, he was part of the side which was promoted to the Premier League via the play-offs in 2013. He then went on to establish himself in the English top flight. Jedinak moved to Aston Villa and played for three seasons in the Championship, helping them to win the promotion play-offs in 2019.

8

Brett Emerton

Career Span: 1996-2014

Reliable and durable, Brett Emerton was a key man in the Australian National Team from his initial call-up in 1998 until 2012. He captained the Australian side at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney and played in the 2006 World Cup, helping the Socceroos to the knockout stages.

Emerton could play as a full-back or a wide midfielder. After starting his career with Sydney Olympic, he made a move to Europe, where he won a UEFA Cup winners medal in 2002 with Feyenoord, though he missed the final through suspension. After being linked with several clubs, including Newcastle United, Emerton moved to the Premier League, joining Blackburn Rovers in 2003. Emerton clocked up 247 appearances for Blackburn over eight years before returning to Australia with Sydney FC.

7

Craig Johnston

Career Span: 1977-1988

Unlike the other players on this list, Craig Johnston never represented Australia at international level. During the peak years of Johnston’s career in the 1980s, the standard of football in the country was not what it is today. Based in England, Johnston was unwilling to compromise his club career with regular trips to the Southern Hemisphere, and he once described playing football for Australia as to surfing in the UK.

Johnston was born in South Africa to Australian parents and lived in Australia for most of his formative years, before moving to England to join Middlesbrough. Johnston earned a transfer to Liverpool, winning nine major trophies in seven years at the club, including five league titles and the European Cup. He was highly valued at Anfield for his athleticism, work-rate, trickery and creativity.

6

Mark Bresciano

Career Span: 1995-2015

Melbourne-born Mark Breciano was a creative midfielder who represented Parma, Palermo and Lazio in Serie A. Bresciano made 84 appearances for the Australian National Team, scoring 13 goals. He played in three FIFA World Cups and was part of the winning squads at the AFC Asian Cup in 2015 and the OFC Nations Cup in 2004.

Though not a prolific goalscorer, he had a knack for notching important strikes. His goal against Uruguay in the 2006 World Cup qualification play-off sent the match to a penalty shootout. Australia claimed victory to qualify for the World Cup finals for the first time since 1974.

It has become extremely difficult to keep up with the many travel and entry issues faced by 2026 World Cup fans, teams and officials over recent days and weeks.

First, Iran were denied a training camp in the United States, despite all their group games being in the country, and were forced to prepare in Mexico instead. Top African referee, Omar Artan, was then refused entry to the States and had to fly home.

As recently as Sunday evening, one day before their opening match, Uruguay were stopped from flying to America and were stranded in Mexico. While all that was going on, fans from many participating nations have had a nightmare trying to secure visas and enter the country for a variety of reasons.

Argentina Request FIFA Ban For Their Own Fans

Andres Cuenca via Reuters

Lionel Messi is looking to make history and lead his country to back-to-back successes on the biggest stage in international football. However, Argentina are also actively trying to stop around 13,000 of their own supporters from being inside the ground.

According to Spanish outlet AS, officials from the South American giants have provided the US government with the names of 13,000 parents who have defaulted on child payments.

Jorge Macri, the Buenos Aires mayor, has claimed that anyone unwilling or unable to provide for their own children shouldn’t be allowed to attend football matches. He said: “If they don’t provide for their children, they will not be allowed into the stadium.”

The government have a ‘Safe Stands’ program, which looks to punish those who find the cash to attend sporting events while being in arrears and owing child support money.

The initiative was expanded in 2023 and has screened over four million individuals. Bans have been handed out, with outstanding arrest warrants identified.

The US government will also be notified to prevent any Argentine fan with a history of violence from entering stadiums. Minister of National Security Patricia Bullrich has previously said:

Argentina begin their World Cup defence at Kansas City Stadium against Algeria on Wednesday. Lionel Scaloni’s side will then play Austria and Jordan with the expectation of progressing to the Round of 32 as one of the favourites to win the competition.

The World Cup of Darts, where two representatives of several countries battle it out to crown the best darting nation on earth, is over for 2026.

In line with what many had predicted, the victors were the super team of the world number one and two in the PDC Order of Merit, the two Lukes, Littler and Humphries, who took home the crown for England.

While Littler and Humphries took home the biggest payday, the money on offer, considering the tournament only consists of four days, would’ve made it worthwhile for all participants.

World Cup of Darts 2026 Summary

There was extra pressure on the English pair this year, as they were desperate to make up for their poor showing in 2025. Having come in as massive favourites, they were beaten in their first appearance, courtesy of an 8-4 defeat by Martin Schindler and Ricardo Pietreczko of the host nation, Germany.

Despite some rocky moments along the way, they eventually claimed England’s sixth World Cup of Darts trophy.

Before the big boys entered at a later stage, the tournament got underway with the group stage, consisting of 12 groups of three teams. This year, the first day of action included last year’s runners-up, Wales, now seeded number seven due to the withdrawal of Gerwyn Price. Instead, the 2021 Premier League champion and winner of two World Cups alongside Price, Jonny Clayton, was partnered with Nick Kenny.

Despite the absence of the 2021 world champion, Wales progressed to the second round alongside Germany, Belgium, Republic of Ireland, Poland, Sweden, United States, Czech Republic, France, Latvia, Spain, and Norway. Their progression came at the expense of several seeded nations as Australia, Austria, Croatia, and Finland suffered early eliminations.

The first session of round two saw no upsets. The Republic of Ireland were able to see off Poland by eight legs to five. Latvia followed by surviving a persistent France to escape with an 8-7 victory having only averaged a score of 79. There was little that Norway could do against the Scotland team of 2015 and 2016 world champion, Gary Anderson and Cameron Menzies, to send the Scandinavians home on the receiving end of an 8-0 scoreline. In the final game of the first second stage fixtures, Wales got past the USA, also by eight legs to five.

Then came the entry of the big boys. Defending champions, Northern Ireland, came back from a losing position to defeat Dimitri Van den Bergh and Mike De Decker of Belgium by one leg. Despite finding a checkout first on six occasions, the Czech Republic were bested by Germany as the hosts secured an 8-6 victory.

The first appearance of Littler and Humphries saw them matched with Spain, who held their own throughout the contest, and caused some scares for the favourites, but eventually, England advanced thanks to another 8-5 win. The final encounter of the session saw Michael van Gerwen and Gian van Veen of the Netherlands beat a resistant Sweden by a margin of only two legs.

The final eight saw two victories by a single leg, as England and Northern Ireland had their nerves tested against Wales and Latvia, respectively. The southern part of the island across the Irish Sea were eliminated, losing 8-5 to Anderson and Menzies, while the hosts’ brave effort was eventually ended by Van Gerwen and Van Veen whose 8-4 win saw them book their place in the final four.

England found their way into the final in convincing fashion, beating another old enemy in Scotland by five legs, included in that was an average of over 100. With England waiting, Northern Ireland and the Netherlands played for the final place in the last two. As the dust settled, the result of a crushing 8-2 victory, with a 101 average for the Dutch, ensured that there wouldn’t be Northern Ireland’s name on the trophy for a second year in a row.

The name that would go on it was left for England and the Netherlands to decide. For older fans of the game of arrows, it was a bit of a nostalgia trip, remembering the early days of the tournament when the last men standing were often Adrian Lewis and Phil Taylor versus Van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld. It was the nation of the former who came out on top this time around, with Littler and Humphries’ 104 average taking them to an 8-4 triumph to lift the trophy, Humphries’ second in two years after winning it in 2024 with Michael Smith.

World Cup of Darts 2026 Salaries

Regardless of the stage they got to, everyone competing was in for a decent payday for a maximum of four days’ work. Even those that went out after just two games in the group stage and finished last in their respective group, being 12 nations, took home a combined £5,000, meaning each player earned £2,500 individually.

The 12 that did one better and came second in the group earned £3,000 each. Getting to the round of 16 would net a player a sole paycheck of £5,000. If a team got to the final eight, each would receive £10,000. The earnings would go up to £15,000 for a semi-final appearance. For falling short in the final, a consolation prize of £24,000 would be awarded, and the winners of the whole thing would each become £50,000 richer.

In terms of the big names, that means Littler and Humphries now have an extra 50 grand they didn’t have before last Saturday, while Van Gerwen and Van Veen are the beneficiaries of £24,000 each. Josh Rock, Daryl Gurney, Anderson, and Menzies have £15,000 to hopefully cheer them up, and those that were eliminated before the semi-final, the eight representatives from Wales, Germany, Latvia, and the Republic of Ireland still took home £10,000 for their efforts.