Socceroos set to play upcoming World Cup qualifiers away from home

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The Socceroos’ upcoming World Cup qualifier against China will prove to be an even greater test with the match set to take place away from home.

Originally slated for Sydney’s Bankwest Stadium, the Socceroos’ opening match of the third round of the Asian Football Confederation’s qualifiers will instead be played at a neutral venue in Asia on September 2.

Efforts to secure a travel bubble that would allow the Socceroos’ travelling overseas-based players to avoid a two-week quarantine period upon their arrival in Australia have proven challenging to navigate with state and federal governments.

Australia and China are the only two countries of the 12 remaining AFC nations in the running for World Cup qualification to have faced such problems with bringing players back home.

Football Australia (FA) is considering its options in the lead up to the FIFA 2022 World Cup in Qatar, but a prospective home game against China in Europe is not allowed under AFC qualifying rules.

A decision is expected next week, with UAE, Qatar and a host of South-East Asian nations being considered to stage the match.

FA Chief Executive Officer James Johnson acknowledged the challenging circumstances of losing a home game.

“Our home game in September will be away, and that’s a significant sporting disadvantage,” he said.

“If you look at home records versus away records at this level, home records count for a hell of a lot – it’s an extra player on the pitch. That’s our big challenge at the moment.”

The Socceroos’ subsequent qualifier against Vietnam will go ahead in Hanoi on September 7 as planned.

Continued discussions with government, and an eventual drop in COVID-19 cases around Australia, could potentially see the Socceroos host previously scheduled home qualifiers in October and November against Oman and Saudi Arabia.

“I’m confident that we will be playing at home by the end of the year if we can get things under control, particularly in Sydney,” Johnson said.

“We’re talking to governments trying to get similar exemptions to other countries around the world so that our sporting teams can play at home, and of course that would be under strict bubbles.

“The players wouldn’t have any interaction with the community. The transmission of Covid would be zero.

“The players are tested every day at their clubs, and they’re monitored every day. They’re already in bubbles.”

Socceroos head coach Graham Arnold flew to Dubai following the completion of the Olyroos’ Tokyo Olympics campaign and will remain in the UAE, rather than return to Australia and be forced to serve a two-week quarantine period.

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Football Victoria recognised in Pride in Sport Index 2026

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Image credit: Parilov / Shutterstock.com

The Silver Status shows Football Victoria‘s commitment to providing Victorians with a safe, inclusive landscape for all to enjoy the beautiful game.

Everyone’s game

Earlier this month, the Australian Pride in Sport Awards recognised several organisations and individuals across the nation who continue to champion inclusive spaces in the world of sport.

Among the nominees was Football Victoria, who received the Silver Status. FV Executive Manager Equity, Programs and Government Relations, Karen Pearce, expressed her pride at the achievement.

“Achieving Silver Status in the Pride in Sport Index is an important reflection of the work being done across Football Victoria to ensure LGBTQ+ people feel safe, welcomed and included in our game,” Pearce said via official press release.

“We remain committed to embedding inclusive practices across all levels of football, and continuing to create environments where everyone can belong, participate and thrive.”

 

Inclusion matters

While recognition is always a positive reflection of successful work behind the scenes, it is important to remember what the work intends to achieve.

Football – and sport in general – is a unique opportunity to bring diverse communities together, and to compete, spectate and enjoy the game on an equal playing field.

Furthermore, as custodians of ‘the world’s game’, governing bodies, fans and players around the world all share the responsibility to empower marginalised groups to feel included.

Two months ago, The Premier League introduced their own initiative – Premier League With Pride – reflecting their own commitment to ensuring football grounds, schools and academies remain welcoming.

 

Final thoughts

There is no place for hate or abuse in football, whether on a grassroots field or professional stadium.

Football Victoria will continue its journey and commitment to supporting the LGBTQ+ community – at all levels of the game – for many seasons to come.

Football Queensland to celebrate Female Football Week with statewide events, awards and coaching programs

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Brighton women's football motion
Image Credit: Shutterstock

Football Queensland will mark the 2026 Female Football Week with a program of statewide events, competitions and professional development opportunities running from May 8-17, as the governing body continues to push for broader access and representation across all levels of the women’s game in Queensland.

The nationwide initiative, now a fixture on the Australian football calendar, provides a concentrated period of visibility for female participation across playing, coaching, officiating and administration: areas where structural underrepresentation has historically limited both the growth of the game and the opportunities available to women and girls within it.

“Female Football Week provides us with a valuable opportunity to celebrate the contributions of women and girls across our game while continuing to increase the accessibility of football in Queensland,” said Football Queensland CEO Robert Cavallucci. “We encourage our clubs to host their own Female Football Week events and activations for female participants.”

 

Elite Competition Meets Community Access

The centrepiece of Football Queensland’s program is the return of the NPL Women’s Magic Round to Nudgee Recreation Reserve on May 8 and 9, featuring five NPL Women’s Round 13 clashes alongside a Girls United Junior Carnival and family-friendly activations. Each Magic Round game will feature an all-female refereeing panel, a deliberate and visible commitment to developing the next generation of female match officials at a moment when referee shortages are among the most pressing structural challenges facing the game nationally.

A Women in Football networking event will be held on the opening night of Magic Round, bringing together coaches, match officials and administrators. The inclusion of that event alongside elite competition is significant because it positions professional development and community building not as supplementary activities but as core components of what Female Football Week is for.

The Central Coast region will host its own Magic Round on May 16, featuring a Youth Girls game and three FQPL Central Coast Women’s matches, while a Darling Downs Junior Girls Day will take place at Captain Cook Park on the same day, extending the reach of the week’s programming beyond the southeast corner of the state into regional Queensland.

 

Coaching access as a structural priority

Football Queensland will deliver a series of female-only coaching courses around Female Football Week, with clubs also able to express interest in hosting their own. The initiative addresses one of the most persistent barriers to female representation in football administration- its coaching pipeline.

Female coaches remain significantly underrepresented at all levels of the game in Australia, and the barriers to accreditation, including cost, availability and the cultural environment of mixed coaching courses, compound one another in ways that individual ambition alone cannot overcome. Female-only courses create environments where women can develop without those barriers, and their delivery during Female Football Week signals that the commitment extends beyond celebration into structural change.

The Girls United Carnivals, running in both Metro and Far North and Gulf regions alongside the Q-League Schools program at Meakin Park, extend that access to players at the earliest stages of their football journey.

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