The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup will be the best attended in history, with ticket sales for the tournament breaking a new record with more than 1.5 million now sold.
FIFA made the announcement on Monday night, with the record broken less than one week into the tournament. A woman from New Zealand, Maria Strong, purchased the 1,500,000th ticket while organising for her family to attend a match to celebrate her son’s 12th birthday.
The highest attended match of the tournament so far has been the Australia v Ireland match, held last week in Sydney at Stadium Australia. The match broke a record for the most attended women’s football match ever held in Australia. The opening match held in New Zealand, also broke a domestic record.
The overall ticket sales have surpassed the previous record set in 2015, when the Women’s World Cup was held in Canada.
According to Football Australia, Australia alone has contributed over 1.1 million to the total ticket sales for the tournament. James Johnson, CEO of Football Australia, said the soaring ticket sales are a reflection of the overwhelming support and enthusiasm for women’s football in the region.
“We are seeing a surge in support for women’s football, not just in ticket sales, but also in broadcast viewership, fan festival participation and merchandise sales,” Johnson said.
“This heightened interest in our national iconic brands is also reflected in record CommBank Matildas merchandise sales online and in retail stores.
“These numbers reflect the growing strength and appeal of the women’s game, particularly the CommBank Matildas, and it’s a testament to the incredible athletes who are providing us with such thrilling football.”
Ticket sales for the tournament had surpassed 1.3 million before the opening match was played. Interest in attending Matildas matches has been the strongest, with tickets to all three of the Matildas’ group stage matches in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne the most popular events.
The Matildas won their opening match against Ireland 1-0, and are now scheduled to play Nigeria on Thursday night at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. Their third match will be against Canada, on Monday 31st July, in Melbourne.