Molto bene: Australia in line to host world-first Italian Serie A match

Italy’s Serie A is poised to become the first major European league to play matches for points on foreign soil, with Perth’s Optus Stadium in line to host one – or both – of the Milan clubs in competitive fixtures next season.

A report in Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera claims the competition’s chief executive, Luigi de Siervo, has received an offer to play a Serie A game in Australia. Sources familiar with negotiations, who were not authorised to speak publicly, say the groundbreaking offer is from Western Australia’s tourism body, and that a deal is close to being completed.

One or both of the Milan clubs could be bound for Australia – and not for a friendly.Credit: AP

No major European league has yet staged a competitive match in another country, but Serie A has been exploring opportunities to do so, most publicly in the United States. Serie A’s commercial and marketing director, Michele Ciccarese, told reporters in March that work was being undertaken to stage a match in America, but there were “barriers” that needed to be overcome.

FIFA recently rescinded a ban on domestic leagues playing regular-season games on foreign territory, paving the way for such agreements.

Serie A’s hand has been forced to some degree by the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, the opening ceremony for which is being held at the San Siro – home to both AC Milan and Inter Milan – on February 6.

That means the storied 80,000-seat venue is off limits for the two Milan clubs between January 10 and February 8, and that they will need to take matches elsewhere during that time.

The major remaining obstacle is approval from UEFA, which needs to provide the green light for any matches to go ahead – something it has never done before. Football Australia would also need to provide sanctioning, but that is certain to be given, sources say.

Optus Stadium hosted a post-season friendly between AC Milan and AS Roma almost 12 months ago that attracted a crowd of 56,000. The relationship built from those discussions has put Perth, rather than Sydney or Melbourne, in the box seat for the possibility of a full-blown Serie A match, and high-ranking government representatives have been involved in the recent talks.

“We’re always looking for unique major sporting and cultural event opportunities for WA to drive visitation, inject millions into our economy and support local jobs,” a WA government spokesperson said.

“We have a track record of successfully hosting a variety of world-class sport and entertainment content, including European football teams, FIFA Women’s World Cup matches and more recently, Italian powerhouses AC Milan and AS Roma.”

WA deputy premier Rita Saffioti is also the state’s treasurer and minister for sport and recreation and, until recently, tourism. She said after last year’s friendly that her government was keen to bring more European content to Perth.

Playing games for points in other countries is a hugely contentious topic in European football, but it is seen by Serie A as a way to combat the growing global dominance of the English Premier League, which has streaked away from the other top-five competitions in recent years to become by far the biggest and most-watched in the world.

Ciccarese told reporters in New York two months ago that it had to be done in a way “that is respectful of our audience”, given that many fan groups in Italy are firmly against the idea of exporting league matches. The Winter Olympics conundrum arguably gives them cover in that respect.

The Italian Supercoppa, now a four-team mini tournament between the winners and runners-up of the Serie A and Coppa Italia, has routinely been played on foreign soil, most recently in Saudi Arabia for the past three years but previously in China, the United States, Qatar and even Libya.