Football Australia has confirmed the introduction of new Player Roster Principles for National Premier League Senior Men's competitions across Australia from 2026.
The current Player Points System (PPS) will be phased out over the next 12-months and replaced by the Player Roster Principles (PRP) in time for the 2026 National Premier League (NPL) Senior Men's season.
Football Australia's XI Principles for the Future of Australian Football, outlines the importance of alignment in the Australian football pyramid, which is connected through optimised and consistent competition structures, as well as an evolving growing modern Domestic Transfer System (DTS).
From the 2026 NPL Senior Men's season, competitions will be subject to below PRP.
| Category | Player Roster Principles from Season 2026 |
Player Roster Age Composition |
The minimum number of players on a First Team Roster will be 20, with a maximum of 23 players. A minimum of five (5) youth players (23 years of age and under) are required on the Match Day Team Sheet, of which at least two (2) must be 20 years of age and under. |
Visa Players |
Player Rosters will have a 2+1 Visa Player limit, comprising of two (2) players from any Confederation and one (1) from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) or Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) on their NPL First Team Player Roster at any one time. *An AFC/OFC Visa Player is any player who is not an Australian player and who holds a citizenship from an AFC or OFC Member Association nation. |
Goalkeepers |
Goalkeepers who are not classified as an Australian Player will not be permitted on an NPL First Team Player Roster. |
Homegrown Players |
An NPL Club must have a minimum of three (3) Homegrown Players on their NPL First Team Player Roster. * Homegrown Player means a player, who between the ages of 15-21, were registered for a period of three (3) entire seasons or 36 months in total (noting such periods are aggregate and not required to be continuous) with their NPL Club |
Loan Provisions |
Loan Provisions will apply as per FIFA and Football Australia Regulations. The Football Australia National Registration, Status and Transfer Regulations outline the current limited, however, the rule is a maximum of six (6) domestic loans out of the club, with no more than three (3) players loaned out to the same club. |
In aligning this Strategy and the implementation of a functioning DTS, along with the new PRP in 2026, this will support the following key areas by:
- Connecting the professional football pyramid through consistent principles that are adopted to the relevant competition.
- Maintaining incentives for Australian clubs who retain, train, and develop youth players within the one club structure and ensure NPL Men's First Team Match Day Rosters promote match minutes for these players.
- Encouraging long term professional contracts along with the ability to loan players between professional clubs to provide greater opportunities for players to increase match minutes whilst staying within professional competitions across Australia.
- Encouraging collaboration with neighbouring Member Associations and relevant Confederations through providing one (1) increased opportunity for a Visa Player from the AFC or OFC to form part of an NPL Men's First Team Player Roster.
- Promoting the development of Australian Goalkeepers.
- Creating greater operational efficiencies for Australian clubs, as well as removing any unnecessary restrictions on NPL Men's First Team Player Rosters.
In preparation for the mandatory implementation of the PRP by all nine Member Federations ahead of the 2026 season, there will be changes to the current PPS for 2025 NPL Senior Men's competitions.
| Category | Player Points System Changes for 2025 |
Visa Players |
An NPL Club may have a maximum of two (2) outfield Visa Players plus one (1) outfield AFC/OFC Visa Player on their NPL First Team Player Roster at any one time. *An AFC/OFC Visa Player is any player who is not an Australian player and who holds a citizenship from an AFC or OFC Member Association nation. **AFC/OFC players will incur 0 Visa Category points under the points adjustments table but will still accrue switching points. |
Goalkeepers |
Goalkeepers who are not classified as an Australian Player will not be permitted to be on an NPL First Team Player Roster. *Goalkeepers who are not Australian Players but who have pre-existing professional contracts with an NPL Club in place prior to 19 September 2024 for the 2025 season will be permitted to be listed on the NPL First Team Player Roster in 2025. Where this is applicable, the team will be required to nominate one (1) less outfield Visa Player. |
Homegrown Players |
An NPL Club must have a minimum of three (3) Homegrown Players on their NPL First Team Player Roster who between the ages of 15-21, were registered to the Club for a period of three (3) entire seasons or 36 months in total (noting such periods are aggregate and not required to be continuous) with their NPL Club |
The new PRP principles were developed by an internal Football Australia Working Group, which utilised a data-driven approach and focused on alignment with technical objectives following the release of the Football Australia Performance Gap Report in 2021.
Over the past 12-months, Football Australia consulted with all Member Federation Competition Managers to ensure the relevance and applicability of these Principles in the context of NPL competitions.
Football Australia will review the Roster Principles on an annual basis.
