June 11 – The prospects of an Australasian women’s World Cup in 2023 has received a significant boost after the joint Australia-New Zealand bid received a higher rating by FIFA’s evaluation team than rivals Japan and Colombia.
FIFA’s bid evaluation report scored Australia-New Zealand 4.1 points from a maximum five for the first ever 32-team women’s tournament. Japan scored 3.9 and Colombia trailed with 2.8.
The 37-strong FIFA ruling council will vote on June 25 and seems likely to support the 200-plus page report which rated Australia-New Zealand as the “most commercially favourable” contender.
Welcoming the news, Australian Football Federation chairman Chris Nikou said: “We are two nations from two confederations, united in proposing a historic and exciting step forward for world football.”
“It will be a tournament of firsts. The first ever co-confederation hosted FIFA World Cup, the first ever FIFA Women’s World Cup to be held in the Asia-Pacific region, and the first ever to be held in the southern hemisphere… we believe this represents a compelling offer to the global football family.”
New Zealand FA boss Johanna Wood added: “With technical excellence, commercial certainty and a historic tournament of firsts, Australia-New Zealand offers FIFA a unique opportunity to move the dial for women’s football.”
Brazil withdrew its candidacy on Monday saying the government could not offer the required financial guarantees in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
FIFA’s report said all three remaining bids met the requirements but questioned whether the Colombian bid had the necessary financial backing.
The report said Colombia would need “a significant amount of investment and support from both local stakeholders and FIFA in order to elevate organisational conditions to those of the other two bids.
“Based on the documentation submitted and the information provided, it is not clear if this level of investment will be available.”
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