Women’s football is set to truly enter Australia’s mainstream consciousness after the nation’s joint bid with New Zealand was awarded the 2023 World Cup hosting rights.
Former Matilda Joey Peters believes while a large portion of the Australian public may not grasp the magnitude of the news just yet, they’ll be in no doubt once it rolls around.
“I don’t think Australia knows what’s coming. There’s a billion viewers of this event!” she told Box2Box.
“It is going to rival anything we’ve seen here, thinking back to the Sydney Olympics. The Women’s World Cup is growing every time… we’ve got to make the most of this because it really is a huge event within our lifetime.”
The Trans-Tasman bid secured 22 votes to Colombia’s 13. While the Asian and Oceanic Confederations had already backed the bid (along with FIFA President Gianni Infantino), it was the ability to secure ‘swing’ votes in Africa and North America that proved decisive.
Despite the ultimately clear victory, the politicking synonymous with FIFA had Peters, and many others, uncertain heading into the vote.
“I didn’t get my hopes up because you just never know what FIFA is going to do… (but) we’ve already won now in some ways.”
“We can enjoy what a winner would enjoy and that is being able to come back to what the game represents, and that’s equality, that’s inclusion, that’s diversity. You’re going to see that in this event.”
“The party starts now, and we can keep it going for three years and beyond!”