Matildas playing schedule, tickets, how to watch: your complete guide to the FIFA Women’s World Cup
The hype surrounding the Matildas is about to kick into overdrive as one of the world’s biggest sporting events hits our shores.
Australia’s Matildas, led by captain Sam Kerr, are already among the nation’s most popular sporting teams and the hype surrounding this promising group of players is about to kick into overdrive as the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup begins on Thursday, July 20.
Co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, it is set to be the highest-attended women’s sporting event in history, and sits alongside the Olympics and men’s FIFA World Cup as the biggest global sporting competitions.
When do the Matildas play?
The Matildas begin their FIFA Women’s World Cup campaign on Thursday, July 20 at 8pm (AEST) against the Republic of Ireland at Stadium Australia (Accor Stadium) in Sydney. The match was initially scheduled to be played at the recently re-opened Sydney Football Stadium (Allianz Stadium), but was moved to allow more fans to attend. It proved to be a shrewd decision, with the 83,500-capacity former Olympic venue sold out for the first match of the tournament on Australian soil.
Co-hosts New Zealand will officially open the tournament against Norway at 5pm (AEST) at Eden Park, Auckland on Thursday night.
Australia’s next match is against Nigeria at Lang Park (Suncorp Stadium) in Brisbane a week later on Thursday, July 27 at 8pm AEST. Their final group match is against Canada, who won gold at the Tokyo Olympics, on Monday, July 31 at AAMI Park in Melbourne. Kick-off is 8pm AEST.
How to watch the Matildas play
The broadcast rights are shared between Channel 7 and Optus, with the latter predicting at least 20 million Australians will view at least five minutes of the tournament.
Optus Sport, which also holds the Australian rights for the Premier League, will show all 64 matches live and on demand. The service is available via a $24.99 subscription ($6.99 for eligible Optus customers).
Seven will provide a free-to-air broadcast and free live stream through 7plus for 15 matches, including the Matildas’ three group games, and every match from the quarter-finals onwards.
Who made the Matildas squad?
While Chelsea forward Kerr is among the game’s elite, the Australian squad is stacked with world-class talent playing at the biggest clubs in Europe and the US.
Defensive powerhouse Ellie Carpenter plays for eight-time UEFA Champions League winners Olympique Lyonnais, Alanna Kennedy and attacking x-factor Mary Fowler are on the books at Manchester City, while winger Hayley Raso has recently signed with Real Madrid.
Who are the favourites for the tournament?
Australia ($13) are sixth in the line of betting with Sportsbet, with favourites USA ($3.50), England ($5) and Spain ($6) all fancied. That hasn’t stopped punters backing the home nation, with Australia holding three times more money than the US.
Kerr is a $13 chance for the golden boot as the tournament’s leading goal-scorer, behind US stars Alex Morgan ($6) and Sophia Smith (7.50).
Can I still buy tickets for matches?
Tickets for select matches are still available via the FIFA ticketing portal. Tickets start for as low as $15 for adults and $8 for children. As of June 9, 1,032,884 tickets had been sold for the tournament.
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