The match was originally scheduled to take
place at the Sydney Football Stadium, which seats 45,500, but
FIFA decided to change the original plan for the Australia
Stadium to only host knockout games.
This will allow up to 100,000 fans to attend the tournament's
opening matchday games, with the showdown between Australia's
fellow co-hosts New Zealand and Norway taking place hours before
at Eden Park in Auckland.
"FIFA’s mission is to organise the biggest and best Women’s
World Cup in history this year and fans, those who bring colour,
passion, and atmosphere to Stadiums, will be such an integral
part of the tournament's success," said FIFA Secretary General,
Fatma Samoura in a statement.
"With this in mind, we have taken a decision that will enable
over 100,000 fans to attend the opening matchday, providing more
opportunities for supporters to engage with the FIFA Women’s
World Cup as a month of football we will never forget gets
underway."
The New Zealand-Norway opening match will be on July 20 at 1900
local time. The Matildas face Ireland at 2000 hours AEST and the
sale of extra tickets for that game begins on Feb. 24.
(Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios in Mexico City; Editing by Ken
Ferris)
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