The 1896 Victorian Football Association season was the 20th season of the Australian rules football competition. It was the final season in which the Association was the highest level of senior football competition in Victoria, with eight of its strongest members leaving the league and establishing the rival Victorian Football League from 1897. The season was opened on 2 May, and concluded on 3 October with a playoff match for the premiership between the top two teams, in which Collingwood defeated South Melbourne by one goal. It was Collingwood's first VFA premiership.