Australia Cup final LIVE: South Melbourne take on Melbourne Victory in historic decider

G’day football/soccer/sokkah fans. What a night we have in store for us.

Vince Rugari here, live from a sold-out AAMI Park in Melbourne ahead of one of, if not the biggest and/or most significant matches in the history of this game at domestic level in Australia.

It’s the one we’ve been waiting for. Well, one of them; we’re still hanging out for that Socceroos vs Iran rematch, but this is the other clash of the titans that has, until now, eluded us. South Melbourne vs Melbourne Victory in the final of the 2026 Australia Cup.

The NSL vs the A-League. ‘Old soccer’ against ‘new football’. Of course, it’s a little bit more complex than that, but that’s the broad framing for this game, and it’s the reason why tickets were snapped up within 48 hours of going on sale.

Will Victory reassert themselves as the big dogs in this part of the world, and clinch their first piece of silverware since 2018? Or will South Melbourne become the first NPL team to win this tournament and strengthen their case for a spot in the A-League?

All will be revealed soon. Kick-off, despite being advertised in various places as 7.35pm AEDT, is expected to be closer to 7.50pm. We’ll have all the action, as it happens, right here for you.