‘I know what these women stand for’: Matildas could protest Visit Saudi deal

Australia’s players union has not ruled out protest action from the Matildas – similar to the Socceroos’ statement on Qatar’s chequered human rights history before the men’s World Cup – if FIFA allows Saudi Arabia’s tourism arm to sponsor the Women’s World Cup.

Co-hosts Australia and New Zealand have demanded immediate answers from FIFA after reports emerged this week that Visit Saudi is to become one of the tournament’s major corporate partners, which the global governing body has not denied.

Former Socceroos captain Craig Foster and human rights groups have slammed the prospective deal as a textbook case of “sportswashing” in light of Saudi Arabia’s oppressive treatment of women and LGBTI groups, while there have also been eyebrows raised at FIFA permitting a country aside from the host nations to promote their own tourism industry.

While the kingdom has lifted bans on women being able to drive and travel independently, laws are still in place which require women to have a lifetime male “guardian” who has authority over a range of decisions, including whether they can get married. Same-sex relationships are also illegal in Saudi Arabia.

A letter to FIFA co-written by Football Australia chairman Chris Nikou and his New Zealand Football counterpart Joanna Wood expressed the “serious disappointment and concern” of both federations, according to the Associated Press.

“We cannot express strongly enough the potential repercussions and fallout that could result of this decision,” the letter reportedly says.

Football Australia chairman Chris Nikou with FIFA president Gianni Infantino at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.Credit: Football Australia

“Australia and New Zealand, both as sovereign nations and as football associations, have for decades placed the utmost importance on gender equality, and have sought to promote these ideals around the world. While we acknowledge some important and positive gender equality reforms have commenced in Saudi Arabia, it remains undeniable under any reasonable standard that the rights of women remain severely restricted.”

Professional Footballers Australia has also complained about the lack of consultation with players – who, the organisation says, will ultimately be the faces of FIFA’s tournaments – and took a swipe at FIFA’s failure to meet its own human rights commitments.

If the deal with Visit Saudi is approved, PFA sources say the union will seek the opinions of players, engage with relevant human rights groups and experts, and begin a process similar to the one undertaken by the Socceroos before the World Cup in Qatar, which resulted in a video statement involving 16 players calling for effective remedy for migrant workers and for the ban on same-sex relationships in that country to be overturned.

“In 2016 FIFA made commitments to respect all internationally recognised human rights and to promote the protection of these rights,” said PFA co-chief executive Kate Gill, a former Matildas striker.

Cortnee Vine, Tameka Yallop and coach Tony Gustavsson face the media on Thursday.Credit: Getty

“Unfortunately, FIFA has consistently shown that they lack the willingness to meet their own stated commitments and this has eroded football’s ability to be a genuine force for good. Players continue to be the public faces of FIFA’s major tournaments; however, their voice remains excluded from a decision-making process that would clearly benefit from their involvement.”

An FA spokesperson initially asked reporters at Thursday’s Cup of Nations squad announcement not to put questions about the sponsorship to Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson and three of his players who were up for media duties, although they were later happy to address the issue.

Gustavsson pointed to the Matildas’ historic stance on issues of gender equality and LBGTI rights, Football Australia’s statement on the Saudi sponsorship deal, and the federation’s XI Principles document – which calls for the sport to be more “culturally diverse and inclusive” in Australia – as representative of the team’s position.

“It’s too early to comment right now – they’re getting more information about it, but [FA is] very clear in the statement,” he said.

“What I can say, though, is that I know what these women stand for, and what the team stands for, and what the federation stands for.

“It’s in the XI Principles, and it’s in the team’s core values. And that’s way before my time ... I had the privilege to meet the Matildas’ alumni, the generation before these players. Everyone knows the core values of this team. And that’s all I can say today.”

Matildas midfielder Tameka Yallop, who is married to former New Zealand international Kirsty Yallop, said players were already thinking about what the sponsorship could mean for them.

“It’s hard to comment at the minute without anything being confirmed. There’s a lot more discussion to be had about it,” she said.

The deal would be a continuation of Saudi Arabia’s increasing involvement and visibility as a backer of elite sport, and particularly football, with the country said to be preparing a bid to host the men’s World Cup in 2030. Visit Saudi was a key sponsor of the Qatar World Cup and paid a reported $35 million per year to secure Lionel Messi as an ambassador and frontman for their advertising campaigns.

Saudi Arabia was also confirmed on Wednesday as the hosts of the 2027 men’s Asian Cup at the AFC congress in Bahrain, which Nikou, FA chief executive James Johnson and FIFA president Gianni Infantino are all attending.

This year’s edition is the first Women’s World Cup where FIFA has sought separate sponsorship and broadcast arrangements from the men’s tournament, and Infantino has previously accused European networks of lowballing TV rights offers.

Gustavsson’s World Cup squad all but settled

The door is all but closed on any players aspiring to crack Tony Gustavsson’s Matildas squad before the Women’s World Cup, with the coach to depend on his tried and tested stars for a competition he says will be a dress rehearsal for the real thing in almost every way.

With less than six months to go until Australia’s opening Group B clash with Ireland in Sydney, Gustavsson says he has officially flicked the switch back into “tournament mode” in the lead-up to the Cup of Nations in two weeks.

Kyah Simon’s World Cup chances remain uncertain.Credit: Getty

Aside from injured trio Ellie Carpenter, Kyah Simon and Chloe Logarzo, it appears time has almost run out for players outside the national team set-up to impress the Swede, who on Thursday unveiled an otherwise full-strength 25-player squad for the upcoming friendlies with Czechia, Spain and Jamaica.

It is filled with familiar faces, with the selection of uncapped Western Sydney Wanderers defender Clare Hunt the only real surprise – and even then, Gustavsson said he had been tracking her for a while, and would have picked her earlier but for a shoulder injury.

Unlike his Socceroos counterpart Graham Arnold, who could pick 26 players for last year’s men’s World Cup, Gustavsson is expecting to only be allowed to pick a squad of 23 for the Women’s World Cup, which kicks off on July 20.

Tony Gustavsson has flicked the switch back into “tournament mode” for the Matildas.Credit: Getty

While the likes of Sydney FC’s Princess Ibini, Melbourne Victory’s naturalised Aussie Kayla Morrison and Melbourne City teenager Daniela Galic have mounted strong cases with their A-League form, barring an injury crisis between now and then, it is hard to see how anyone on the fringes can break into World Cup selection contention from here – let alone who from the current 25, which still needs to be reduced by two, would make way for them.

“It’s a bit too early to say it is the World Cup squad,” Gustavsson said of his Cup of Nations contingent, having cast his eye over almost 100 different players during his tenure as coach.

“There’s still competition for spots, but if you backtrack all the way back to September, you see that maybe 80 to 85 per cent of the roster has been very consistent over a period of time.

“It doesn’t mean that those players are guaranteed a spot, but it won’t be too many spots that will be different in the World Cup.”

Carpenter, who is close to making a full recovery from the ACL injury she suffered in last year’s UEFA Women’s Champions League final, was almost picked for this window but Gustavsson and his medical staff decided it was better to leave her with her French club Olympique Lyonnais, where she is closing in on a playing return.

But Gustavsson wouldn’t be drawn on the prospects of Simon, who also did her ACL in October and looks at long odds to be fit for the Women’s World Cup, or Logarzo, who is back from her own ACL rehab but has played only six times off the bench for Western United this season.

“With respect to Chloe ... I don’t want to go into details,” he said.

“It’s not about her knee. She has a little bit of a foot problem, so she hasn’t been really able to play at 100 per cent. In this case, we chose not to select her so that she can take care of that foot.

“When it comes to Kyah, it’s way too early to speculate. Seeing the passion and drive in her, I just wish her the best of luck in rehab and I hope she’s available for selection.”

MATILDAS SQUAD FOR CUP OF NATIONS

Mackenzie Arnold (GK), Steph Catley, Alex Chidiac, Kyra Cooney-Cross, Larissa Crummer, Caitlin Foord, Mary Fowler, Emily Gielnik, Katrina Gorry, Charlotte Grant, Clare Hunt, Elise Kellond-Knight, Alanna Kennedy, Sam Kerr, Aivi Luik, Teagan Micah (GK), Courtney Nevin, Clare Polkinghorne, Hayley Raso, Amy Sayer, Emily Van Egmond, Cortnee Vine, Clare Wheeler, Lydia Williams (GK), Tameka Yallop.

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