Matildas Olympic qualifier moves to Optus Stadium to accommodate 40,000 extra fans

An extra 40,000 fans will be able to cheer on local legend Sam Kerr and the Matildas with the Olympic qualifier originally scheduled to be played at HBF Park moved to Optus Stadium.

Sam Kerr celebrates scoring a goal at the World Cup. Picture: Getty Images

An extra 40,000 fans will be able to see the Matildas and homegrown hero Sam Kerr in action with Football Australia confirming one of the three Olympic qualifiers will be relocated to Optus Stadium.

Football Australia CEO James Johnson told CODE Sports last week it was an option they had been exploring with the Western Australian Government on the back of tickets selling out to all matches more than a month from the tournament.

Australia will play Chinese Taipei, the Philippines and IR Iran as part of the Group A Asian Qualifiers round robin – with a spot at the Paris Olympics on the line.

HBF Park seats just 20,000 while Optus Stadium has room for 60,000 fans.

Just one of the Matildas’ games, the round two match against the Philippines, on September 29 will be played at Optus Stadium, as well as the following clash between IR Iran and Chinese Taipei.

It is not the first time Football Australia had fought to relocate a match – moving the opening World Cup game against Ireland to Stadium Australia – which was a sell out attracting 75,784 fans.

Sam Kerr celebrates scoring a goal during the World Cup. Picture: Getty Images

Johnson said the FIFA Women’s World Cup demonstrated the “drawing power” of the Matildas with almost 450,000 fans attending the send-off match against France and their World Cup fixtures.

“The CommBank Matildas are one of the strongest sporting brands in the country, and it has become strongly evident that passionate support for this iconic team continues to grow and, for the second time in 12 months, because of the popularity of the CommBank Matildas, we need to relocate to a venue with a higher capacity to accommodate the demand,” Johnson said.

“We thank Premier Roger Cook, the Western Australian Government and Tourism Western Australia for their co-operation in ensuring a significantly greater number of fans cannot only watch the team live, but also be a part of the journey towards the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.”

Optus Stadium can accommodate 60,000 fans. Picture: AAP Image

Premier of Western Australia Mr Cook, said he could not be more thrilled to bring the Matildas to Western Australia.

“The football fanfare has been overwhelming, and to ensure we give more Western Australians and travelling fans the opportunity to experience the Matildas play in our great State we’ve partnered with Football Australia to transfer the Sunday match day to Optus Stadium,” he said.

“Although the rectangle stadium at HBF Park is best suited for football, given all three match days have sold out, on balance it made sense to move one to Optus Stadium, so that as many fans as possible could see the team.

“My government is proud to secure this week of football events and I thank all parties involved in making this a reality and ensuring it will be a huge success for football and our local economy.”

The Matildas will play all three games in Western Australia. Picture: Getty Images

The games will be the first time the Matildas have played in Perth since 2018 – when they battled with Thailand in a friendly in the lead up to the 2018 AFC Women’s Asian Cup. It will be the first competitive Matildas match played in Perth.

Kerr grew up in Perth and said post World Cup that she was excited to play back in front of her home crowd.

“I’m sure the Perth people will be out in force to watch the Matildas,” Kerr said.

“It’s been a while and we get three games so we’re really lucky.

“I can’t wait to go back there and play in front of friends, family, and then all the West Australians that didn’t get the Tillies over there.”

All existing ticket holders for Match Day 2 and those who purchased a 3-Day Pass have received an email about this venue change and will receive further correspondence prior to September 24 with instructions on accessing an exclusive window to select new seats in the same category at no charge for the Optus Stadium Match Day.

This exclusive window will commence at 10.00am AWST on September 26 and run until 5.00pm AWST October 9 2023 via Ticketmaster.

Remaining tickets for this Optus Stadium Match Day will go on Pre-Sale at 2.00pm AWST on September 26 with general public sale at 2.00pm AWST September 28.

The Matildas other matches against Chinese Taipei and IR Iran will remain at HBF Park.

The games will be played from October 26 to November 1.

Originally published as Matildas Olympic qualifier moves to Optus Stadium to accommodate 40,000 extra fans