Nita Green (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) | Hansard source

Well, it is game day tonight, guys! Tonight the mighty Matildas will take on Canada in Melbourne to keep their World Cup dreams alive. Like most football fans I'm in equal parts terrified and excited about the game tonight. But the Matildas have come so far. Women's football has come so far from where it started, so before the game tonight we should reflect on that achievement. Women's soccer was effectively banned in the 1920s, a ban that wasn't lifted until 1971. From humble beginnings the pioneers of women's football in Australia slowly started to build the game that we can see now. From those early days where players had to pay their own way to play overseas to where we are now where the professional and full-time squad will take to the pitch tonight, it hasn't been easy and their work to achieve equality is not over. But it wouldn't have been possible without the work of so many players, coaches and fans, and a little bit of unionism thrown in with good benefit.

As a long-term supporter of the Matildas I'm not surprised by the success of the Women's World Cup, but I think it's worth mentioning just how record-breaking this event has been. More than 1.5 million tickets to the event have been sold, with 1.1 million sold to Australian matches alone. The previous best attended World Cup was in Canada, in 2015, with 1.35 million spectators across that tournament. The average attendance for the matches to date is 30,000, and the Matilda's opening encounter against Ireland, which I had the privilege of attending, drew a record-breaking 75,000 fans. The Matildas opening World Cup match reached almost five million people across the world.

Australian football is full of myths, legends and miracles. We don't need a miracle tonight, but maybe we just need a Hail Mary. We are praying to the football gods. The Matildas' motto is, 'We're not done till it's done,' so we'll keep cheering until the final whistle tonight.