New ‘Home of the Matildas’ to be built ahead of Australia’s World Cup tilt on home soil

Aussie soccer team the Matildas will be gunning for glory in 2023 when the women’s World Cup is played on our soil — and now a new home base now planned to help them get there.

Emerging Matildas player Nia Stamatopoulos and friend Eleni Georgopoulos. Picture: Wayne Taylor

A new state-of-the-art soccer centre is set to be built for the Aussie women’s team as they gun for World Cup glory on home soil.

Planning for the training and high-performance facility, to be the Home of the Matildas as well as a new rugby union base, will get underway with a $1.5 million state grant to be announced today.

Construction would likely form part of a building blitz needed to kickstart the Victorian economy after the coronavirus pandemic passes, with $15 million already locked in from the Commonwealth.

The facility will be created at La Trobe University’s Bundoora Sports Park, which has already had an $80 million upgrade with a six-court indoor stadium, research laboratories, and facilities for cricket, soccer, Aussie rules and baseball.

Sports Minister Martin Pakula said the plan would provide “A-grade facilities for stars of all ages” ahead of the World Cup bid by the Matildas in 2023.

“The Matildas have captured Australia’s imagination with magnificent performances across the globe and it’s fantastic that soccer has identified Melbourne as the best place to build a permanent home for the team.”

Player Nia Stamatopoulos. Picture by Wayne Taylor 29th August 2020.

Soccer superstar and Australian captain, Sam Kerr, said it was “amazing news for the Matildas”.

“We love playing in Melbourne and we really look forward to having a dedicated base where we can train and prepare for matches,” she said.

Young gun Nia Stamatopoulos, the youngest player in Melbourne City Football Club history to make her debut, visited the area yesterday and said it would be a “dream” to represent her country in 2023 at the World Cup.

The facility would be the Victorian base for Football Federation Australia’s national women’s programs and the training, high-performance and administration centre for Football Victoria.

Rugby Victoria is also involved in the planning, with an eye to boosting the profile of the game in Melbourne.

The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup will be played in Australia and New Zealand, with AAMI Park to host five games and a quarterfinal.

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Originally published as New ‘Home of the Matildas’ to be built ahead of Australia’s World Cup tilt on home soil