South Australia will play host to England, China, Brazil, South Korea and Morocco when the world's largest women's sporting event kicks off next year for the FIFA Women's World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023.
In massive news for women's football, the world's number 4 ranked England has drawn to play in Adelaide/Tarntanya - they will take on world's number 15 ranked China at Hindmarsh Stadium on 1 August as part of the tournament, which runs from 20 July to 20 August next year.
Other teams to be confirmed include the Group B Play-Off Winner (winner of Chile, Haiti and Senegal) and Group C Play-Off Winner (winner of Papua New Guinea, Chinese Taipei, Panama and Paraguay).
Hindmarsh Stadium will host five FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 matches, including four Group Stage matches and a Round of 16 match.
The venue is undergoing a $53 million upgrade, including a major overhaul of the stadium's change rooms, a shade covering over the eastern grandstand, a full replacement of the pitch, new arena lighting and improved media and corporate facilities.
The FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 is being hailed as a tournament of firsts - the first tournament to be co-hosted by two nations, the first to feature 32 teams and the first time it will be held in the Asia-Pacific region, with 64 matches to be played across nine host cities in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.
Team representatives will this week travel to the city of their first match, with senior staff arriving to inspect Hindmarsh Stadium, team hotels and other training venues on Monday.
The event is expected to have a global viewing audience of more than 1 billion people, with a further 1.5 million fans expected to fill stadiums across Australia and New Zealand.
Hailing from South Australia's key international market of the United Kingdom, the world's number 4 ranked England is set to draw strong visitation to Adelaide.
Pre pandemic, the UK was worth $77 million to South Australia's visitor economy. It is a priority market for the state's international tourism recovery.
Minister for Tourism, Zoe Bettison said it is exciting to be welcoming England, China, Brazil, South Korea and Morocco to our great state.
"We will be able to showcase South Australia to a global television audience through this event," she said.
"We're going to be offering a world-class experience to some of the best players in the world, and it is a huge win for tourism to secure England - which will no doubt attract visitors from the once $77 million market of the UK.
"This will be a terrific opportunity not only for the teams to come and explore South Australia, but they also bring a big supporter base, and we'll be rolling out the red carpet to show them all a good time, and a successful tournament."
Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing, Katrine Hildyard said the FIFA Women's World Cup will provide an unprecedented opportunity to grow participation in football, inspire the next generation of footballers, showcase all that South Australia has to offer and advance gender equality.
"Our Government is deeply committed to backing women in sport, to doing its part as a host city ahead of next year's FIFA Women's World Cup, and is determined to ensure being a host enables us to leave a legacy for future generations of women in sport and our state as a whole," she said.
Chief Operating Officer, FIFA Women's World Cup, Jane Fernandez said the FIFA Women's World Cup Draw is a monumental milestone on the road to the tournament in 2023.
"We now know where each of the 32 teams will begin their journey and importantly who is coming to South Australia," she said.
"We are excited to see each and everyone one of these teams in action next year and I look forward to seeing the fans get behind the teams at every venue including Hindmarsh Stadium, which we now know will play host to England, China, Brazil, South Korea and Morocco."
Tickets for the tournament are now on sale at https://tickets.t20worldcup.com/Content/wt20/matches.
