Five Australian cities and four in New Zealand will host matches at the Women’s World Cup in 2023, with the tournament kicking off in Auckland and concluding with the final at Sydney’s Stadium Australia.

FIFA made the host city announcement with the World Cup – the first women’s edition to feature 32 teams – a little more than two years away.

“The appointment of the nine host cities represents a major milestone for the next FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023, as well as for players and football fans across Australia, New Zealand and around the world,” FIFA president Gianni Infantino said.

Of the 10 stadiums named to host the 64 matches, two will be in Sydney – including the soon to be completed Sydney Football Stadium – while one has been selected from each of the other host cities.

Those other cities for the Women’s World Cup in the southern hemisphere are Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth in Australia and Dunedin, Hamilton and Wellington.

The decision on where the games will be played was made after an eight-month review process involving each of the 12 candidate cities and 13 stadiums.

Australia and New Zealand will each host one semi-final each with the full schedule to be announced later this year.

“The FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 will be the biggest sporting event on Australian soil since the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, showcasing Australia and New Zealand to a global audience of over one billion people,” Football Australia president Chris Nikou said.

Tweet from @FIFAWWC

“Today’s announcement of the Host Cities and match venues for the tournament is a major milestone in the build-up to the next FIFA Women’s World Cup – a tournament that will unite nations, inspire generations, and provide our diverse and multicultural game with the perfect platform to grow over the coming years.”

The five-week tournament will kick off at Eden Park in Auckland in July 2023.

“It is a privilege to co-host the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2023 with Australia and we look forward to welcoming the world’s best athletes and their supporters to Aotearoa New Zealand,” New Zealand Football president Johann Wood said.

The host cities and stadiums are:
Adelaide – Hindmarsh Stadium
Auckland – Eden Park
Brisbane – Brisbane Stadium
Dunedin – Dunedin Stadium
Hamilton – Waikato Stadium
Melbourne – Melbourne Rectangular Stadium
Perth – Perth Rectangular Stadium
Sydney – Stadium Australia and Sydney Football Stadium
Wellington – Wellington Stadium

-AAP