Ahead of the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, we here at For The Win are previewing some key teams to watch in this tournament. Next up is the Argentina women’s national team. You can see the full list of team previews and read about the USWNT here.
The spotlight is on the Matildas in this World Cup.
Australia is co-hosting the tournament for the first time ever – along with New Zealand– and expectations for the squad have never been higher. The team is powered by one of the best scorers in the game today, Chelsea star Sam Kerr, and the group is coming off an impressive fourth-place finish at the Olympics in 2021. That was the Matildas’ first major tournament under head coach Tony Gustavsson, who was hired in 2020. Gustavsson was an assistant coach for the U.S. when the Americans won World Cups in 2015 and 2019.
The Matildas have advanced out of the group stage in their previous four World Cup appearances. They’ll be expected to at least do that again while playing on home soil, but it won’t be easy.
Let’s take a closer look at the Australian national team.
RELATED: The complete USWNT schedule, from group stage to another possible final
Australia group and schedule
FIFA didn’t do Australia any favors when selecting its fellow members for Group B. It includes a talented Nigeria team that advanced to the Round of 16 in the 2019 World Cup, eager and feisty Ireland – making its first-ever World Cup appearance – and Canada, the champions of the Olympics in 2021, the last major international women’s soccer tournament. One could easily make the case that this is the Group of Death for 2023. All four teams are in the top 40 of FIFA world rankings.
Here’s the group stage schedule for Australia, which plays the second game of the tournament in an opening day match against Ireland.
- July 20 vs. Ireland | 6 a.m. ET on FOX
- July 27 vs. Nigeria | 6 a.m. ET on FS1
- July 31 vs. Canada | 6 a.m. ET on FOX
That final match between Australia and Canada could likely determine this group’s winner. Grab some coffee for that one.
Key players for Australia
Sam Kerr: One of the most talented and toughest goal-scorers in the tournament, Kerr is a must-watch player. She is the captain of this team and perhaps the best inside-the-box finisher in women’s soccer at the moment. Kerr grew up playing Australian rules football and has since become a world-class striker and the face of the host country in this World Cup. Her goals have indeed made her a popular player, but so has what comes after she scores, when she often launches into a somersault. Kerr won the NWSL’s Golden Boot as the league’s top scorer in 2017, 2018 and 2019 and is still the league’s all-time leading scorer. After her Chicago Red Stars fell to the Courage in the NWSL final in 2019, she signed a lucrative contract with Chelsea and has continued to tear up Europe, helping the club win four straight Super League crowns. With 63 goals and counting, Kerr is the all-time leading goal-scorer for the Australian national team. This will be the fourth World Cup appearance for the 29-year-old Kerr, who is also the cover co-star of FIFA 23. If her star power needs to be explained any further, it’s worth mentioning that she carried the Australian flag at the coronation of King Charles III.
Sam Kerr with a BACKFLIP celebration at Wembley Stadium 🥶🤸🏻
(via @VitalityWFACup)
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) May 14, 2023
Caitlin Foord: A 28-year-old winger, this is also the fourth World Cup appearance for Foord. After the 2011 tournament, she was named the Best Young Player of the World Cup. Foord has played in the NWSL and the W-League, but has really blossomed as of late with Arsenal in the Super League, where she’s accounted for 20 goals and 14 assists in 56 matches across the past three seasons. Foord will be crucial to the Matildas’ ability to consistently create goal-scoring opportunities.
Alanna Kennedy: While Foord and Kerr will be important to Australia’s efforts to score goals, Kennedy will be key in stopping the other team from doing so. An experienced and skilled defender, Kennedy, 28, plays for Manchester City in the Super League and helped the club win an FA Cup in 2022. She’s a versatile defender, a superb passer, and is often relied on as the heart of the defense for her country. Kennedy has appeared in 108 matches for Australia and this will be her third World Cup.
Australia's recent World Cup history
After losing its opening match of the 2019 tournament to Italy, Australia won two straight to finish out group play in France, beating Brazil 3-2 and then trouncing Jamaica 4-1 in a victory in which Kerr scored all four of the Matildas’ goals. However, Australia would not advance to the quarterfinals for a fourth straight time. The Matildas were ousted in the Round of 16, losing in penalties, 4-1, to Norway.
Never forget Sam Kerr's 4-goal performance vs. Jamaica in the 2019 World Cup 💥
She became the first Australian player to record a WC hat trick 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/SlGS1s8a5C
— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) April 14, 2023
What the experts say
Nicholas Mendola, NBC Sports: “Coached by a former USWNT assistant and led by a two-time NWSL MVP, Australia will have the highest of hopes on home soil this summer. The Matildas are a regular top-10 team in the world for much of the last decade and represent a massive hope for their nation. No pressure.”
Mike Hytner, The Guardian: “Never before has there been more pre-tournament excitement surrounding an Australian national football team. A World Cup on home soil, a squad boasting a golden generation of players and an encouraging run of sustained good form have piqued interest and heightened anticipation in a country where football usually struggles for relevance.”
Jeff Rueter, The Athletic: Led by one of the world’s most in-form strikers in Sam Kerr, Australia will hope that abrupt end to their 2019 tournament was an aberration which can be remedied on home soil. However, just getting out of this group will not be a sure thing… This is arguably the toughest group to predict at World Cup 2023, and that is a beautiful thing.”
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