Matildas locked in to return to Sydney
THE Matildas will play a twomatch series against Brazil in October, sealing their first matches at home in 20 months after Football Australia’s landmark quarantine management plan paved the way for internationals to resume.
The NSW government’s acceptance of the plan - which allows visiting teams to play inside what would usually be a hard quarantine period - means the Socceroos are a step closer to being given the green light to play an AFC Asian qualifier against Saudi Arabia on November 11.
A two-test series between the Matildas and world champions America is also in the works for November 27 and 30 under a quarantine management plan.
The series against Brazil will be played on October 23 and 26 at Parr a m a t t a ’ s Commbank Stadium, their first match in Australia since an Olympic qualifier in March 2020.
F o o t b a l l Australia chief executive James Johnson said it had been a priority for the organisation to bring national teams home for international football.
“This is a phenomenal outcome for Australian football and one which we have been working tirelessly towards behind the scenes with both the federal and NSW government for a considerable amount of time,” Johnson said.
“International football is unique in that players are only made available during an international window of nine days.
“With many of our Matildas and Socceroos based overseas, the 14-day compulsory quarantine period for international arrivals effectively rendered any international football in Australia impossible. ”
That previously forced the Socceroos to play an Asian qualifier in Qatar, with the next designated home match in the series, against Oman, also to be played outside of Australia.
“We’re delighted that Australian Football has paved the way for international sport to be played in Australia under this arrangement,” Johnson said.