It is set to be a huge month for Australian football as the country prepares to co-host the Women's World Cup alongside neighbouring New Zealand.
Some of the world's biggest and best players will grace Australian shores in July and August, with 32 teams starting the tournament with dreams of the August 20 final in Sydney.
The Matildas are expected to be a contender, backed by passionate home fans following a strong run of form in recent months. The notable scalps have come against Spain, and against European champions England in London.
Led by coach Tony Gustavsson and superstar Sam Kerr, the Matildas will look to get off to a flying start in their opening match of the highly anticipated tournament.
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What is the Matildas first World Cup game?
The Matildas will begin their World Cup campaign with a clash against Women's World Cup debutants Republic of Ireland.
While Australia will be favourites due to homefield advantage and their world ranking 12 places above their opponents, Ireland were actually victorious over the Matildas the last time the sides met in 2021.
On that day, the Matildas went down 3-2 in Dublin despite Mary Fowler scoring twice in what was the first meeting between the sides.
It should be noted it was not a full strength Matildas side playing in that match, with a slew of debuts handed out by Gustavsson, something not to be repeated at the World Cup.
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When is the Matildas first World Cup game?
The Matildas' opening clash of the 2023 World Cup will take place on Thursday, July 20 at 8 p.m. local time.
While the clash is Australia's first at the tournament, it is not the opening game of the tournament as a whole, with co-hosts New Zealand kicking off the tournament hours earlier against Norway.
Below is a list of kick off times for timezones around Australia:
| Timezone | AEST | ACST | AWST |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time | 8 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | 6 p.m. |
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Where is Matildas first World Cup game?
The Matildas' first Group B match against the Republic of Ireland will take place at Stadium Australia in Sydney.
The game was initially slated to be played at the nearby Sydney Football Stadium, however in January the decision was made to move the game to the larger 84,000 capacity Stadium Australia due to high ticket demand for the match.
It is a decision that has paid off, with multiple reports stating the game is now sold out, with a crowd of 80,000-plus expected to attend the game, making it by far the largest crowd for a women's football clash in Australia (and one of the largest for football in the country as a whole).
Stadium Australia has seen some of the biggest moments in Australian football, with the famous Australia vs Uruguay intercontinental playoff match in 2005 taking place at the ground, while the Socceroos also won the 2015 AFC Asian Cup at the venue.
Matildas World Cup schedule
After the Matildas begin their campaign against Ireland, they travel to Brisbane to face African side Nigeria.
Their final match in Group B could be their most important against 2021 Olympic Gold medalists Canada in Melbourne, with both sides tipped to be fighting for top spot in the group.
Canada notably defeated Australia twice in Australia last year, boosting their confidence of repeating the trick on July 31.
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| Date (AEST) |
Time (AEST) |
Match | Stadium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu, July 20 | 8 p.m. | Australia vs. Rep. of Ireland | Stadium Australia |
| Thu, July 27 | 8 p.m. | Australia vs. Nigeria | Brisbane Stadium |
| Mon, July 31 | 8 p.m. | Australia vs. Canada | Melbourne Rectangular Stadium |