South Melbourne Districts was formed in 1912, although its origins can be traced back to the Pembroke Juniors who played in the mid-1890s.[8][9] The club entered the Victorian Junior Football Association (VJFA) in 1914, finishing fourth on the ladder, before being defeated by Port Melbourne Railway United by 51 points in the grand final.[10][11][12][13]
The club made its second grand final in 1922 after another fourth-placed home-and-away finish, where they lost to North Melbourne Juniors by 22 points.[14][15][16] In 1924, the club won its first premiership with a 33-point victory over Hawthorn Juniors.[17][18] The club did not have a home ground for the 1925 season, and did not find a permanent home ground until the mid-1930s.[8][19][20][21]
The Districts had a close relationship with the South Melbourne Football Club (now Sydney Swans) from its formation, with many players going on to play for both clubs.[22] In the late 1920s, the Districts donated 40 guineas to South Melbourne to stop them from folding, and often provided assistance payments to players when needed.[23][24]
In the 1920s and 1930s, MLCRobert Williams served as the club's president, while senatorJoseph Hannan served as vice-president.[25][26][27] Williams died in a car crash at Wagga Wagga in March 1938, and his son − Alf Williams − took over as acting president until officially becoming club president in February 1939.[28][29]
South Melbourne Districts' last season in the VJFA was in 1926, where they made the semi-finals.[30] By this point, the VJFA had started to formally become the reserves competition for the Victorian Football Association (VFA), and South Melbourne Districts left the VJFA to join the VFL Sub-Districts in 1927.[31][32][33]
The club made a grand final in its second Sub-Districts season in 1928 under captain-coach Joe Russell, then won a premiership in 1930 against Sunshine.[34][35] At some stage in the 1930s they moved to the VFA Sub-Districts and continued in that competition until at least the end of the 1936 season.[a][41][42]
South Melbourne Districts joined the Metropolitan Football League (MFL), the successor to the VFL Sub-Districts, when the competition was formed in 1950.[43][44][45]
In 1974, South Melbourne Districts joined the South East Suburban Football League (SESFL) as the MFL was struggling at the time.[46] The club won its first SESFL premiership in 1976 with a 15-point victory over Carnegie in Division 2, and a second premiership came in 1983 against North Kew.[47]
South Melbourne Districts joined the VAFA for the 2000 season, entering D4 Section.[48] The club started strong, winning a premiership in its inaugural VAFA season after defeating Bentleigh (who also joined the VAFA in 2000) by 27 points in the grand final.[49][50]
The club went back-to-back with a Division 3 premiership in 2006 and a Division 2 premiership in 2007.[23]
In 2024, the club was the subject of controversy after being asked by animal rights activist Sheena Chhabra to cut ties with Ralphs Meat Company and to end its Auskicksausage sizzle "on the grounds of animal cruelty, the impact of farming livestock for meat and the negative health effects of red meat".[52]
^"JUNIOR ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL". Trove. The Argus. 10 August 1914. p. 4. Retrieved 26 July 2024. The Railways United team, Port Melbourne, met South Melbourne District on Saturday at the North Melbourne ground in the first semi-final
^"SOUTH-EAST SUBURBAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE"(PDF). Southern Football Netball League. p. 9. Archived from the original(PDF) on 25 February 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024. South Melbourne District entered Division two transfering from the struggling Metropolitan F.L