New South Wales
New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a state on the east coast of Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria to the south, and South Australia to the west. Its coast borders the Coral and Tasman Seas to the east. The Australian Capital Territory and Jervis Bay Territory are enclaves within the state. New South Wales' state capital is Sydney, which is also Australia's most populous city.[7] In December 2023, the population of New South Wales was over 8.3 million,[2] making it Australia's most populous state. Almost two-thirds of the state's population, 5.3 million, live in the Greater Sydney area.[7]
For the historical region of Canada, see New Britain (Canada).
New South Wales
26 January 1788
6 June 1856
1 January 1901
12 senators (of 76)
47 seats (of 151)
801,150[1] km2 (309,330 sq mi)
2,228 m (7,310 ft)
10.15/km2 (26.3/sq mi) (3rd)
2020 estimate
AU$76,876 (4th)
- UTC+10:30 (Lord Howe Island)
- UTC+10:00 (AEST) (most of NSW)
- UTC+09:30 (ACST) (Broken Hill)
Kookaburra
(Dacelo gigas)
Blue groper
(Achoerodus viridis)
Platypus
(Ornithorhynchus anatinus)
The Colony of New South Wales was founded as a British penal colony in 1788. It originally comprised more than half of the Australian mainland with its western boundary set at 129th meridian east in 1825. The colony then also included the island territories of Van Diemen's Land, Lord Howe Island, and Norfolk Island. During the 19th century, most of the colony's area was detached to form separate British colonies that eventually became the various states and territories of Australia. The Swan River Colony was never administered as part of New South Wales.
Lord Howe Island remains part of New South Wales, while Norfolk Island has become a federal territory, as have the areas now known as the Australian Capital Territory and the Jervis Bay Territory.
The most popular sports by participation in the state are soccer and tennis.[124] The National Rugby League, which is based in Sydney, is the dominant professional spectator sport.[124] In rugby league, the state is represented by the New South Wales Blues in the State of Origin series. The state hosts 10 of the 17 NRL teams: the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks, Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, Newcastle Knights, Parramatta Eels, Penrith Panthers, St George Illawarra Dragons, South Sydney Rabbitohs, Sydney Roosters, and Wests Tigers. Other rugby league competitions in the state include the NSW Cup, the Sydney A-Grade, and regional competitions administered by the NSWRL's Country Rugby League division.
The main summer sport is cricket and the Sydney Cricket Ground hosts the 'New Year' cricket Test match in January each year. The NSW Blues play in the One-Day Cup and Sheffield Shield competitions. Sydney Sixers and Sydney Thunder both play in the Big Bash League.
The state is represented in the Australian Football League by the Sydney Swans, who won the AFL premiership in 2005, and the Greater Western Sydney Giants who entered the competition in 2012.
The state is represented by five teams in soccer's A-League: Sydney FC, Western Sydney Wanderers (2014 Asian champions), Central Coast Mariners, Newcastle Jets and Macarthur FC.
Other teams in major national competitions include the Sydney Kings and Illawarra Hawks in the National Basketball League, Sydney Uni Flames in the Women's National Basketball League, New South Wales Waratahs in Super Rugby and New South Wales Swifts in Super Netball.
Sydney was the host of the 1938 British Empire Games and 2000 Summer Olympics. The Stadium Australia hosts major events including the NRL Grand Final, State of Origin, rugby union and soccer internationals.
The annual Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race begins in Sydney Harbour on Boxing Day. Bathurst hosts the annual Bathurst 1000 as part of the Supercars Championship at Mount Panorama Circuit.
The equine sports of campdrafting and polocrosse were developed in New South Wales and competitions are now held across Australia. Polocrosse is now played in many overseas countries.
Other professional teams include:
New South Wales in recent history has pursued bilateral partnerships with other federated states/provinces and metropolises through establishing a network of sister state relationships. The state currently has 7 sister states:[130]
