Photo shows just how far the Matildas have come in less than 10 years

Australia has come together to get behind the Matildas during their World Cup run, but not so long ago it was a completely different story.

The Matildas have taken the country by storm with their barnstorming run into the World Cup semi-final.

They’ve captured the hearts and the imaginations of Australia as fans turn out in droves to watch the action unfold.

Record crowds rolled through the turnstiles for their World Cup opener against Ireland before they unofficially eclipsed that mark in their round of 16 clash against Denmark.

Capacity crowds have become second nature for the Matildas during the 2023 tournament with 75,784 turning out twice at Sydney’s Stadium Australia.

But the days of sold out stadiums and record-breaking viewership numbers are new territory for the Australian squad.

And it’s a stark contrast from what they endured years ago on Australian shores.

Back in 2014 the Matildas welcomed football giants Brazil for two matches Down Under at the Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre.

Matildas get ready for Brazil. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

Unlike what we’ve seen in recent days, tickets for the matches back in 2014 couldn’t even be given away.

The first match attracted a crowd of only 2583 fans. The second match however saw Football Federation Australia shut the doors to the stadium.

A lack of demand for tickets ultimately resulted in the match being played in front of 50,000 vacant seats as opening the venue up for a few fans would have been too costly.

Seven players from that 2014 squad remain among the Matildas group now with Clare Polkinghorne, Steph Catley, Emily van Egmond, Alanna Kennedy, Hayley Raso, Mackenzie Arnold and Katrina Gorry still donning the green and gold.

Sadly the stands were empty. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

Fast forward to 2023 and the Matildas are obliterating the record books and it’s not just attendance records.

The thrilling penalty shootout win over France smashed Australian TV rating records as the most watched event since Cathy Freeman won gold at the Sydney Olympics.

Channel 7’s coverage of Saturday night’s World Cup quarterfinal had an average audience of 4.17 million, an incredible number given many Australians were out and about watching the games in pubs or public spaces.

According to the OzTAM ratings, the free-to-air viewership was a staggering 3.8 million and another 427,000 watched on 7plus, making the game the most streamed TV program ever in Australia.

The total overall audience peaked at 7.2 million during the penalty shootout.

It was another huge increase on the more than 3.5 million Aussies that tuned into watch the Matildas’ 2-0 win over Denmark in the round of 16.

The bonkers ratings figure of more than 4 million surpassed the 3.6 million that watched Ash Barty’s droughtbreaking Australian Open win last year.