Competitive Football

ANUFC enters teams at all levels of Capital Football open/men's competitions that run each year from approximately April to September. Competitions are usually 18 rounds followed by a finals series (note that games continue thru the 

Capital Premier League (CPL) - Capital Football have restructured the ACT Premier Leagues for 2026, so there will be no CPL in 2026. ANUFC were not invited to join the expanded NPL (on account of having no junior program).  As such, our top squad in 2026 will be in Capital League 1 (see below).

Capital Leagues - previously known as State or Community Leagues, there will likely be 10 divisions in 2026, and ANUFC will enter at least one team in every division. Higher grades are very competitive, with lower grades still competitive, but more social. Matches are on Saturdays at either 11am, 1pm or 3pm, depending on the grade.

Masters Leagues - age restricted leagues for those turning 35 or older this year. We will enter teams in all 3 over 35s divisions, and also in the over 45s competition. Matches are on Sunday mornings at 9m or 11am.

In all leagues, ANUFC home games will be played on either ANU Willows Oval, ANU South Oval, or Lyneham playing fields, but for away games you may need to get yourself anywhere in Canberra, or even as far as Yass, Braidwood at Cooma (car-pooling with teammates is common).

Registration fees for Competitive Memberships for 2026 will be as follows:

• ANU Students: $340 (including FFA/CF fee)
• Non-Students: $570 (including ANU Sport Associate membership fee, and FFA/CF fee)

Playing shirts/jersey's are provided as part of team kits, but players will need to provide their own boots and shin guards, royal blue shorts, and royal blue socks. Shirts and socks can be purchased either from sports stores or from the Club Shop on the website. 

Registration for Competitive Membership (Capital Football Competitions) requires that you have been selected by the coach of an ANUFC team participating in Capital Football-sanctioned competitions, and asked by the coach to register.  Team selections are usually finalised in March.

The ANUFC Registrar will only approve registrations of players that are included in the final team list received from coaches. For some divisions, team selections may continue up until the first round.

Once selected by the coach, you MUST register before you will be allowed to play in matches. Registration includes payment of the membership fee.

The Competitive registration process has two parts:

1. Registration with ANU Sport as an ANUFC member - This is done through the ANU Sport website here. This is also where you will pay the ANUFC Competitive Membership fee.
2. Registration with Capital Football as an ANUFC player - This is done through the PlayFootball website here. This is also where you will pay the FFA/Capital Football fee.

Detailed instructions on how to register will be provided later in the pre-season, once you are asked to register.

Trial sessions for new Capital League players will commence on Monday 9th February  and will continue on Monday's and Wednesdays through February.      

New Players

6:00 to 7:30pm, Monday & Wednesday evenings at ANU Willows synthetic oval.

Returning Players

Returning players should check with their coach from last year for training times.

Notes on pre-season trials for new players

• Given the huge demand for limited spaces, preference will be given to ANU students (or staff) and previous ANUFC players. If you don't fit into those groups, our advice if that you'll likely be better off looking at other clubs to avoid disappointment (see capitalfootball.com.au/club-directory).
• We have an enormous amount of players every year, both returning and new.  With such a large number of teams and players, and variance in playing level across 10 divisions, it is logistically impossible for us to hold traditional open trials and team selections, such as you might be used to in junior age groups.  So our pre-season is generally run on a squad basis at different levels, with each coach selecting his own squad. Inevitably, many teams will have a core of returning players, but every coach is on the look out to fill holes and open to new players. 
• At the trial sessions, we will direct players into different playing levels so that the relevant coaches can view and assess.  Coaches and other club representatives will help move you further up or down as appropriate, or a coach may invite you to join their squad. If still not quite right, coaches and other club representatives will help move you further up or down as appropriate.
• Please try to come to as many sessions as possible - with so many players, if we don't see you, we can't select you. 
• Also have an open mind on division level - the higher teams are mostly selected earlier in the process to allow time for non-selected players to trickle down for consideration at lower levels.  We know this makes it a challenge for new players and students (particularly 1st years) not arriving in Canberra until late in pre-season to get into the higher divisions.  Please don't be disappointed if you don't get into the division you want and be open to playing lower - you'll still meet a great group of guys and have a fun year - and once coaches get to know you, it's easier to move up to a higher division next year.
• We do our absolute best to nominate as many teams as possible to give everyone the opportunity to play, but unfortunately we always have more players than we have capacity for.  If you don't make a competitive team, we can still offer social football (see the Social Football page for details). 

Pre-season training for Masters will commence on 11 February.  

6:30 to 8:00pm Wednesday evenings at Lyneham 206/206.

Any players turning 35 or older in 2026 are welcome, and we also encourage any players interested in the over 45s competition.  Preference for places will be given to ANU students (or staff) and returning players.

Regular season training will usually be on Monday and/or Wednesday’s for 90 minutes.

Teams are allocated a slot at either 6:00pm-7:30pm, or 7:30pm-9:00pm, and will usually split sessions between Willows, South and Fellows Ovals at ANU, or possibly off-campus at another inner north location.

You coach will let you know your regular training time and location during the regular season. However, training times & locations can often change at late notice (especially when there is weather around), so we recommend following our Facebook page.