The South Australian National Football League, who ran the local competition, had been seeking to enter a team in what was then the Victorian Football League since 1981. Protracted negotiations were brought to a head when the Port Adelaide Football Club, by far the strongest club in the local South Australian National Football League (SANFL), was to be granted entry in the competition in 1991. Legal action followed, and eventually the league agreed to enter the composite Adelaide team in 1991.
The Crows did not take particularly long to achieve success, winning back-to-back premiersships in 1997 and 1998 under coach Malcolm Blight.
Their fan base has quickly developed a distinct character of its own, caricatured as chardonnay-swilling yuppies contrasting with the working class Port Adelaide Power which did eventually enter the AFL competition in 1997. Rivalry between the two Adelaide teams, extending to both players and supporters, is fierce, with an edge not present in the West Coast Eagles - Fremantle Dockers situation in Perth. Many Crows fans resent the dominance that Port Adelaide achieved in the SANFL, and continue to enjoy the fact that their AFL team has tasted the ultimate success whilst the Power has not.
The club is based at AAMI Stadium in West Lakes and the club song is "The Pride of South Australia".
Premierships:
Brownlow Medal Winners:
Mark Ricciuto, 2003 (co-winner)
Norm Smith Medal Winners: