Australia's sleeping football giants are dreaming big again. But what comes next?

Adelaide City president Angelo Carrozza declared the three-time national champions ready for a potential return to Australia's top flight, more than two decades after the club disappeared from the national league landscape.

One of Australian football's most decorated institutions, Adelaide City are back competing nationally through the Australian Championship, but their ambitions extend well beyond the new competition.

Carrozza outlined the historic South Australian club's desire to compete at the highest possible level, provided a financially sustainable pathway exists.

“Our club is 100 per cent devoted to being at the highest possible level afforded to us,” Carrozza said, speaking exclusively to Building Blocks in conjunction with Football360.

“If there was a model that was sustainable, affordable, gave us the opportunity to promote our (club) … the sky is the limit.

“In our heart of hearts, we’re ready. In my opinion, we could be asked tomorrow. Providing it’s affordable.”

Few clubs can point to a history quite like Adelaide City's.

Founded in 1946 by Italian migrants as Juventus, the Black and Whites became a foundation member of the National Soccer League in 1977, having already established themselves as a powerhouse of South Australian football.

Their breakthrough on the national stage came in 1986 under legendary coach Zoran Matic, when City overturned a first-leg deficit against Sydney Olympic to win their maiden NSL Championship.

That triumph laid the foundations for a golden era that delivered further national championships in 1992 and 1994, three NSL Cups and the 1987 Oceania Club Championship.

Between 1990 and 2001, Adelaide City qualified for 11 consecutive NSL finals series - a remarkable record of sustained success at the highest level of Australian club football.

Their influence extended far beyond trophies.

The club helped shape the careers of some of Australia's most celebrated footballers, including Socceroos greats Aurelio Vidmar, Alex Tobin, Damian Mori, Carl Veart and Milan Ivanovic. The likes of Ross and John Aloisi also passed through the club, reinforcing Adelaide City's reputation as one of the country's great producers of football talent.

Tobin went on to become one of Australia's most-capped internationals, while Mori established himself among the most prolific goalscorers in Australian football history.

But Adelaide City's place in the national game changed dramatically with the demise of the NSL and the subsequent establishment of the A-League.

After withdrawing from the national competition in 2003, City returned to South Australian football, where they continued collecting silverware without a permanent pathway back to the national stage.

Now, in their 80th anniversary year, the Black and Whites have returned through the Australian Championship after winning the 2026 NPL South Australia premiership-championship double.

For Carrozza, the ambition is to see the competition evolve into a permanent national second division, potentially featuring 10 or 12 clubs, with promotion and relegation eventually connecting Australia's football pyramid.

“We all need to be sustainable,” Carrozza said.

“I don’t want to be that guy that’s come in 80 years and … the bricks have tumbled because we bit off more than we can chew.

“But without ambition and without risk, there’s no reward.”

His comments come as several former NSL clubs use the Australian Championship to re-establish themselves nationally, raising fresh questions about what the competition could eventually become.