2023 is a Huge Year for Australian Football
The Australian football ecosystem will undergo a major transformation in 2023, hosting the Women’s World Cup, reforming A-League, and launching a campaign of Football For Good. By all measures it’s a massive year for the country’s football ambitions – delivering the spectacle of the World Cup and reforming their national league will invigorate the government’s push to use football as a means for social-reform and restitution.
The Australian football team have been firing on all cylinders – in both the men and women’s game. With the women’s World Cup due to be hosted in Australia this year, the Football Australia organization sits at a precipice. ©terimakasih0/Pixabay
New year’s resolutions run awry across the sporting world – a reflection on the previous 12 months of Australian football is certainly something that will be carefully considered. If there’s any sport in Australia that will need to have a long, introspective look at itself, it’s football. The year ended on a bitter note, with a string of fan violence across the A-League, and the league has indicated that they’ll be needing to make some very tough decisions regarding the future of the sport.
But despite some of the difficult decisions that will have to be made this year, it’s clear that the country enjoyed multiple highs off the back of the Qatar World Cup. The Socceroos put in the strongest performance ever achieved by Australia at a major football tournament. After putting in two splendid 1-0 wins against Tunisia and Denmark, the team found themselves in the final 16 of the tournaments for the first time in their history.
The match would be against Argentina, who of course went on to put in a historical display against France and win the entire tournament. The match against Argentina was much closer than many fans could have anticipated – reaching this stage of the tournament just the 2nd time in the history of football for Australia, the team pushed Argentina to the final whistle in what would finish a 2-1 win for the South Americans. Even up until the final seconds of the match, the young Australians pushed and battled to create scoring chances against seemingly the best team at the tournament. All of which is highly encouraging for the future of the sport in Australia.
Matildas Follow in Footsteps of Socceroos
The Women’s World Cup will be co-hosted by Australia, starting in July 2023. It’s a chance for the Matildas to continue the strong international showing of football talent that the men had showcased in Qatar. It’s unlikely that the hosts will go on to win the entire tournament given the quality of the opposition, but to put in a strong display on this great tournament will go a long way to restoring faith in the quality of the team and its players.
The tournament is billed to be the biggest ever in the women’s game – with 32 teams for the first time and playing in one of the countries to first champion women’s football. It’s a huge opportunity for the Australian football pyramid to reap the rewards and benefits that come from having the increased attention of the footballing world. From the grassroots to the A-League, the World Cup is always a major opportunity for the domestic game to grow.
Football Australia is keen not to miss the mask this year – as football has shown us in the past, there are ample opportunities that can be reaped. The delivery of the tournament can set a precedent that can transcend generations of players and leave a lasting impact on the communities that are wrapped up in its organization. The opposite is also true, and a poorly executed tournament can create a rift – both financially and politically.
As for the A-League, there are also big reforms planned in the preparation for the tournament. The Melbourne derby debacle that resulted in a pitch invasion and a player being physically assaulted made global headlines. Troubles have been brewing in stadiums across the league as decision makers aggravate an already mis-represented supporter base. But even so, some of these scenes are inexcusable and more will need to be done to clean up the atmosphere inside A-League soccer stadiums.
