Australia and England have a centuries-long sporting rivalry which spans disciplines from men’s cricket and rugby to women’s netball. On Wednesday, the tension will ramp up in women’s football, as the two countries witness their biggest ever face-off.
The crowd will be tipped heavily in favour of the Australians: local fans are expected to outnumber the visitors by about 10 to one at the 83,500-seat Stadium Australia in Sydney.
Their ranks may be further swelled by Australian fans who claimed to have poached seats intended for England supporters after uncovering exclusive booking codes.
But Sam Quek, a former England hockey player and team captain on the BBC One’s Question of Sport quizshow, thinks this is unlikely to dampen enthusiasm around the match: “It’s going to be an amazing opportunity.”
She recalled her own experience of playing in Argentina, where field hockey is one of the most popular sports. Although most of the crowd supported her opponents, the fact it was the largest she had ever played to – the stands were “literally swaying” – made it an unforgettable moment.
“I remember walking in and thinking: ‘I can thrive in this.’ For a sports person it gives you swagger. That’s the pinnacle of your sport to play in an arena like that, because the energy is fantastic. I think the Lionesses are going to be fine. They’ve done it at Wembley with a home crowd, and that’s more pressure to be honest,” she said.
She added that although there was a mutual rivalry in cricket between Australia and England in the Ashes, it was less balanced in football. “Everyone I know from Australia, the team they want to beat is England but for us the team we want to beat is the Germans.”
She added that while Australians cared deeply about beating England, the English approach was: “You don’t scare us, but let’s not be beaten by you.”
She noted an interesting symmetry in the two football teams, with both hosting major tournaments recently. “The Australian team are really riding that wave of support and media attention, and they seem to be thriving as the Lionesses did in the Euros.”
The comedian Mark Steel, now on tour, said he thought the wider sporting rivalry was “healthy, fun … [and] very respectful”, with a lot of mutual appreciation for each team’s players, and was far less toxic than the standoffs between many other countries. “We don’t really dislike them, it’s not like a [men’s] football rivalry.”
He expected a “brilliant atmosphere” in pubs across England, more notable for the likelihood many would be packed with women, in a “brilliant sign of a huge cultural shift that’s happened in the last 30 years or so”.
Emma Franklin-Wright, who helps run the female football collective Baller FC, which is hosting World Cup viewing parties, said all their Matildas screenings have had big turnouts, reflecting the large number of Australians living in the UK.
She was puzzled by the way the media had covered the competition: “In men’s cricket and rugby they’re one of our major rivals. I think it’s a bit odd that people are trying to retrofit that narrative into the Lionesses v Matildas game.”
Her colleague Kate Sullivan, who is Australian, said many Australians loved English players for their “spectacular performances” in the Women’s Super League. “The atmosphere will be full of joy from the fans of whoever wins but also I think compassion for the fans of whoever bounces out as there’s so much respect for both.”
Lisa Parfitt, a director at Women in Football who runs The Space Between sports marketing agency, agreed the semi-final would be “full of intensity and passion on and off the pitch”.
She added: “Rivalry can come with some negativity but in the women’s game it can start to build a tension, a story and reason for new audiences to get on board. You only need to take the record-breaking TV audiences and fans at the women’s Ashes this summer to see how the history and meaning behind the series boosted interest.”
Karen Greig, a former England netball player and the head coach at Manchester Thunder in the Netball Super League, has experienced first-hand the longstanding rivalry in netball, a sport in which Australia is one of the leading teams.
She said the country’s strong sporting culture, where it was “a way of life”, resulted in strong, fit teams and clued-up audiences. “The fans are super passionate and they know their sport. For a lot of Australians they’re not just spectators, they live and breathe the sport and understand it.”
She added: “It’s fitting that those two teams, which have put out some great performances in the World Cup, face off in the semi-final. I think it’s going to be brutal – England are probably the favourites, if you look at what they’ve achieved. But the Matildas are on home soil and you can’t [over]estimate what that can bring to a team.”
