On July 20, Australia and New Zealand will commence FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023, jointly organised by the two nations. This comes in the wake of a shooting incident near the Norwegian team hotel in Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city, which resulted in three deaths and six injuries.
Authorities confirmed that the shooter was among the deceased, and they have assured the public that the situation is now under control. New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins further reassured the nation, stating that there was no risk to national security.
As per the original schedule, New Zealand’s Football Ferns will kick off the tournament at Eden Park in Auckland, facing Norway on July 20 at 7 pm local time (12:30 PM India time). The match is anticipated to attract a substantial crowd, potentially surpassing the record for the largest audience at an international soccer match in the host nation.
“Everyone woke up pretty quickly when the helicopter hovered outside the hotel window and a large number of emergency vehicles arrived – at first we didn’t know what was going on, but eventually there were updates on TV and the local media,” newspaper Verdens Gang quoted Norway captain Maren Mjelde as saying.
The Matildas, which the Australia women’s national football team is known as, will begin their campaign against the Republic of Ireland at 3:30 PM (India time) in front of a sellout crowd of around 70,000 fans at Stadium Australia in Sydney – a record attendance for a women’s football match in the country.
Until 1970, women were banned from accessing official facilities related to football in England, the birthplace of the sport. Similar discriminatory practices were prevalent in various other nations, impacting female players’ opportunities.
However, in recent times, football has witnessed a significant rise in prominence, with a substantial increase in the number of female players and spectators worldwide.
According to Tracey Taylor, a sports management professor at RMIT University in Melbourne, the upcoming tournament is anticipated to bring about a substantial change in women’s sports participation in Australia, as grassroots football club members are hopeful about its transformative impact.
“They say it’s such a game changer for them in positioning the sport, not only globally, but also within the local community and raising awareness,” Reuters quoted her as saying.
(With Reuters inputs)
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Updated: 20 Jul 2023, 06:42 AM IST
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