Defined as an NPL club eliminating an A-League club from the competition, there have now been a total of six 'cupsets' in the 2026 Australia Cup, eclipsing the previous record of five set in 2025 - three of which were by eventual runners-up Heidelberg United on their way to the final.
Queensland Lions are setting themselves up as the 'giant killers' of the 2026 competition, having now worked their way past both Perth Glory (1-1p) and Melbourne City (2-0) to set up a quarter-final with either North Sunshine Eagles or Heidelberg United.
They're guaranteed to not face another A-League before the grand finale, with Victory and Sydney FC both being at the other end of the bracket.
Before 2026, we had never seen two 'cupsets' in a single night in the ten-year history of the national knockout cup as we know it.
But this year it has happened on two separate days, with Newcastle Jets and Perth Glory both bowing out on the one day in the Round of 32.
No looking back for Lions after comical opener
Melbourne City were not in a generous mood when the action kicked off at Spencer Park in Brisbane, coming out with an unchanged starting XI from their Round of 32 match against Weston Bears as well as last Friday night's 'Calcio Italiano' friendly against Palerma in Perth.
In just the sixth minute of the match, Max Caputo got onto the end of a Nathaniel Atkinson cross that forced a save out of Lions goalkeeper Jacson Riley, who would be required to make only one more save throughout the entire evening to record his fifth clean sheet since the start of July.
Melbourne City had most of the first half momentum either side of a farcical mix-up between goalkeeper James Nieuwenhuizen and centre midfielder Besian Kutleshi.
Nieuwenhuizen's gentle pass forward to Kutleshi was jabbed straight back at him by the 17-year-old and the goalkeeper was not anticipating the return, failing to trap the pass and then inadvertently dribbling it across the line.
It meant that the own goal went against Nieuwenhuizen's name, though it remains to be seen why Kutleshi opted to immediately give the ball back with a firm kick rather than seeking to move it forward or laterally.
The Lions grew immensely in confidence after taking a half-time lead in spite of just 37% of uncontested possession and they dominated the second, amassing 11 shots and seven corners after the break including the 62nd minute goal from NPL veteran Mitchell Hore that broke City's back.
Of further concern for Aurelio Vidmar is that Andrew Nabbout, who recently re-signed with the club for a seventh season, came off with an injury after just 28 minutes of football.
SD Raiders book quarter-final meeting with Sydney FC
Over at Fairfield Showgrounds, a half-hour drive north of Macarthur FC's home at Campbelltown Stadium, SD Raiders created history with their first 'cupset' despite being five minutes plus change away from a heartbreaking extra time defeat.
Much like their NPL QLD colleagues up north in Brisbane, Raiders managed to turn a minority of possession into a majority of goal creating opportunities, recording three big chances to Macarthur's zero before half-time despite having only 35% of the ball.
Raiders went into the match having recorded four consecutive league wins since eliminating Rochedale Rovers from the Round of 32 to move up to seventh on the standings.
Some silky ball control and a well directed shot from the edge of the box saw 20-year-old Bulls Academy product Zane Helweh open the scoring for Macarthur and give the A-League side a 103rd-minute lead in the local derby.
Macarthur understandably shut up shop from thereon and were doing so successfully until a fortuitous own goal from the home side when Harry Politidis accidentally shinned a Raiders cross into the top of his own net, sending about three thousand Raiders fans into raptures.
Raiders goalkeeper Michael Figueira pulled off an astounding stretching penalty shootout save in front of his left post to deny Luke Vickery with Macarthur's third spot kick and all five of his teammates slotted their penalties to keep the cupsets coming.
It was a remarkable turnaround from when the two sides met in last year's Round of 32, with the Bulls running rampant in a 5-0 win at the same venue.
Full list of Australia Cup 'cupsets'
1. 2014 Round of 32: Adelaide City 1-0 Western Sydney Wanderers
2. 2016 Round of 32: Green Gully 2-1 Central Coast Mariners
3. 2016 Round of 32: Redlands United 2-1 Adelaide United
4. 2017 Round of 32: Heidelberg United 1-0 Perth Glory
5. 2017 Round of 32: Blacktown City 3-2 Central Coast Mariners
6. 2018 Round of 32: Bentleigh Greens 1-0 Wellington Phoenix
7. 2018 Round of 16: APIA Leichhardt 3-2 Melbourne Victory
8. 2019 Round of 32: Brisbane Strikers 2-2(4-2p) Wellington Phoenix
9. 2021 Round of 16: APIA Leichhardt 2-1 Western Sydney Wanderers
10. 2022 Round of 16: Sydney United 1-1(4-3p) Western United
11. 2022 Quarter-Finals: Oakleigh Cannons 2-1 Sydney FC
12. 2022 Semi-Finals: Sydney United 3-2 Brisbane Roar
13. 2023 Round of 32: Campbelltown City 2-1 Macarthur FC
14. 2024 Round of 32: Oakleigh Cannons 3-1 Sydney FC
15. 2024 Round of 32: South Melbourne 1-0 Wellington Phoenix
16. 2024 Round of 32: Heidelberg United 3-1 Central Coast Mariners
17. 2024 Round of 16: Moreton City Excelsior 3-2 Perth Glory
18. 2025 Round of 32: Olympic Kingsway 3-2 Melbourne Victory
19. 2025 Round of 32: APIA Leichhardt 2-0 Melbourne City
20. 2025 Round of 16: Heidelberg United 3-0 Western Sydney Wanderers
21. 2025 Quarter-Finals: Heidelberg United 4-0 Wellington Phoenix
22. 2025 Semi-Finals: Heidelberg United 2-0 Sydney FC
23. 2026 Round of 32: Preston Lions 3-2 Newcastle Jets
24. 2026 Round of 32: Queensland Lions 1-1(4-2p) Perth Glory
25. 2026 Round of 32: Sydney United 1-1(11-10p) Central Coast Mariners
26. 2026 Round of 32: South Melbourne 2-1 Adelaide United
27. 2026 Round of 16: Queensland Lions 2-0 Melbourne City
28. 2026 Round of 16: SD Raiders 1-1(5-3p) Macarthur FC
Most 'cupsets' by an NPL club:
5: Heidelberg United (2017, 2024, 2025 x3)
3: APIA Leichhardt (2018, 2021, 2025), Sydney United (2022 x2, 2026)
2: Oakleigh Cannons (2022, 2024), Queensland Lions (2026 x2), South Melbourne (2024, 2026)
1: Adelaide City (2014), Bentleigh Greens (2018), Blacktown City (2017), Brisbane Strikers (2019), Campbelltown City (2023), Green Gully (2016), Moreton City Excelsior (2024), Olympic Kingsway (2025), Preston Lions (2026), Redlands United (2016), SD Raiders (2026)
Most 'cupsets' suffered by an A-League club:
4: Wellington Phoenix (2018, 2019, 2024, 2025), Central Coast Mariners (2016, 2017, 2024, 2026)
3: Perth Glory (2017, 2024, 2026), Sydney FC (2022, 2024, 2025), Western Sydney Wanderers (2014, 2021, 2025)
2: Adelaide United (2016, 2026), Melbourne Victory (2018, 2025), Macarthur FC (2023, 2026), Melbourne City (2025, 2026)
1: Brisbane Roar (2022), Newcastle Jets (2026), Western United (2022)
Aaron Murphy has been with Flashscore since 2018 and, as the founding editor of the Australian newsdesk, has reported on-site at several major events in Melbourne including the Australian Open, State of Origin, A-League, NBL and international cricket. You can read his pieces here and contact him on X or LinkedIn.
