2016 FFA Cup preliminary rounds
The 2016 FFA Cup preliminary rounds were the qualifying competition in Australia to decide 21 of the 32 teams which took part in the 2016 FFA Cup Round of 32, along with the 10 A-League clubs and reigning National Premier Leagues champion. The preliminary rounds operated within a consistent national structure whereby club entry into the competition was staggered in each state/territory, with the winning clubs from Round 7 of the preliminary rounds in each member federation gaining entry into the Round of 32. All Australian clubs were eligible to enter the qualifying process through their respective FFA member federation, however only one team per club was permitted entry in the competition.
Schedule
The number of fixtures for each round, and the match dates for each Federation, were as follows.| Round | Number of fixtures | Clubs | ACT | NSW | [Northern Football NSW|NSW Football|NNSW] | NT | QLD | SA | TAS | VIC | WA |
| 22 + 6 byes | 704 → 682 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 20–21 Feb | – | |
| First round | 60 + 7 byes | 682 → 622 | – | – | 27–28 Feb | – | 27 Feb | – | – | 27–29 Feb | 27–28 Feb |
| Second round | 122 + 11 byes | 622 → 500 | – | – | 12 Feb–13 Mar | – | 12 Feb–12 Mar | 18–20 Mar | – | 4–7 Mar | 6–13 Mar |
| Third round | 180 + 24 byes | 500 → 320 | 26–28 Apr | 16–21 Mar | 13 Feb–6 Apr | – | 26 Feb–29 Mar | 1–6 Apr | 5 Mar | 11–14 Mar | 19–20 Mar |
| Fourth round | 145 + 4 byes | 320 → 175 | 10–19 May | 3–13 Apr | 5 Mar–4 May | 19–27 Apr | 24 Mar–12 Apr | 25 Apr | 12–14 Mar | 18–21 Mar | 28 Mar |
| Fifth round | 80 + 4 byes | 175 → 95 | 31 May–2 Jun | 19–25 Apr | 2 Apr–21 May | 3–4 May | 16 Apr–4 May | 28 May–1 Jun | 28 Mar | 19 Apr–4 May | 25 Apr |
| Sixth round | 42 | 95 → 53 | 7–9 Jun | 3–4 May | 18 Jun | 8 Jun | 7–18 May | 14–15 Jun | 30 Apr | 17 May–8 Jun | 14 May |
| Seventh round | 21 | 53 → 32 | 18 Jun | 18 May | 19 Jun | 18 Jun | 3–11 Jun | 25 Jun | 13 Jun | 7–15 Jun | 6 Jun |
- Round dates in the respective Federations overlapped due to separate scheduling of geographic zones.
Format
The preliminary rounds structures are as follows, and refer to the different levels in the unofficial Australian soccer league system :- Qualifying round:
- First round:
- Second round:
- Third round:
- Fourth round:
- Fifth round:
- Sixth round:
- Seventh round:
Other qualification issues
- A-League Youth teams playing in their respective state leagues were specifically excluded from the preliminary rounds as their respective Senior A-League clubs were already part of the competition.
- Blacktown City did not participate in the New South Wales qualifying rounds, as they had already qualified into the FFA Cup as 2015 National Premier Leagues champions.
Qualifying round
| Fed | Zone | Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team |
| VIC | – | 12 | Churchill United | 2–1† | East Bentleigh |
| VIC | – | 13 | Myrtleford Savoy | 3–2 | Old Trinity Grammarians |
| VIC | – | 14 | Forest Rangers | 1–9 | Dandenong Warriors |
| VIC | – | 15 | Monash City | 2–0 | Chelsea FC |
| VIC | – | 16 | Ballarat North United | 1–6 | Swinburne University |
| VIC | – | 17 | Heidelberg Eagles | 0–2 | Lara United |
| VIC | – | 18 | Twin City Wanderers | 4–0 | Pakenham United |
| VIC | – | 19 | Casey Panthers | 0–5 | North Melbourne Athletic |
| VIC | – | 20 | Sandown Lions | w/o | Yarra Jets |
| VIC | – | 21 | Keilor Wolves | w/o | Healesville SC |
| VIC | – | 22 | Mt Lilydale Old Collegians | 3–2 | Greenvale United |
;Notes:
- w/o = Walkover
- † = After Extra Time
- VIC Byes – Chisholm United, Craigieburn City, Moreland Eagles, Old Ivanhoe Grammarians, Reservoir Yeti and Shepparton South.
First round
;Notes:- w/o = Walkover
- † = After Extra Time
- NNSW Byes – Orara Valley.
- QLD Byes – Beerwah Glasshouse United, Coolum FC, Kawana FC, Maroochydore FC, Nambour Yandina and Woombye FC.
Second round
;Notes:- w/o = Walkover
- † = After Extra Time
- NNSW Byes – Tamworth FC.
- QLD Byes – Brothers Townsville, Gold Coast Knights, Rebels Gunners, Palm Beach Sharks, Saints Eagles South, Stratford Dolphins, Surfers Paradise Apollo and Warwick Wolves.
- SA Byes – Fulham United and Noarlunga United.
Third round
;Notes:- w/o = Walkover
- † = After Extra Time
- ACT Byes – ANU FC, Narrabundah FC, Queanbeyan City, Weston-Molonglo and White Eagles.
- NSW Byes – Barden Ridgebacks, Cringila Lions, Normanhurst Eagles, Randwick City, Roselands Raptors, St Clair United, The Entrance Bateau Bay United and West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook.
- NNSW Byes – Bangalow SC, Belmont Swansea United and Coffs City United.
- NT Byes – Casuarina FC, Hellenic AC, Litchfield FC, Mindil Aces, Port Darwin, Shamrock Rovers Darwin and University Azzurri.
- QLD Byes – Mackay Wanderers.
Fourth round
;Notes:- w/o = Walkover
- † = After Extra Time
- NT Byes – Alice Springs Celtic, Alice Springs Vikings and Gillen Scorpions.
- QLD Byes – Kawungan Sandy Straits.
Fifth round
164 teams took part in this stage of the competition, including 153 qualifiers from the previous round and 16 entering at this stage. The lowest ranked side that qualified for this round was Endeavour Hills Fire, the only level 7 team left in the competition.;Notes:
- † = After Extra Time
- NNSW Byes – Belmont Swansea United, Edgeworth Eagles, Singleton Strikers and Thornton Redbacks.
Sixth round
A total of 84 teams competed in this round of the competition. The 42 victorious teams in this round qualified for the Seventh Round. The lowest ranked side that qualified for this round was Killarney Districts. They were the only level 6 team left in the competition.;Notes:
- w/o = Walkover
- † = After Extra Time
Seventh round
A total of 42 teams competed in this round of the competition. The 21 victorious teams in this round qualified for the 2016 FFA Cup Round of 32. The lowest ranked side that qualified for this round was Wagga City Wanderers. They were the only level 5 team left in the competition.;Notes:
- † = After Extra Time