Newcastle Council has followed suit with Maitland, announcing live sites for fans to watch the Matildas on the big screen during their Women’s World Cup campaign.
Wheeler Place will host the live sites, starting on July 20 when the Aussie women take on the Republic of Ireland in their first game of the tournament.
The other two games the Matildas will play in the first group stage of the tournament will also be streamed on the big screen – the Matildas take on Nigeria on 27 July and Canada on 31 July.
There will be added home-grown pride on the line, with Novocastrians Clare Wheeler and Emily Van Egmond this week named in the 23-player squad for the much-anticipated tournament
Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said the live site will bring the action of the World Cup to Newcastle, offering a family-friendly way for locals to enjoy the atmosphere and cheer on their football heroes with fellow Novocastrians.
“Novocastrians are passionate about football and turned out in droves in December when we held an open-air broadcast of the Socceroos sudden death match against Argentina during the men’s World Cup,
Former Matildas midfielder Shelley Youman, who represented Australia 23 times during the 1990s, welcomed the opportunity to come together at City of Newcastle’s live site screenings.
“Gathering as a community at the Newcastle live site to support the Matildas in the Women’s World Cup will ignite a power of unity and celebrate the remarkable accomplishments of women’s football and women’s sport in general,
“Newcastle has always been a fantastic sporting hub for female athletes. The Women’s World Cup on home soil will create electric atmosphere, and inspire a new generation of athletes, demonstrating that the strength and spirit of a community can transcend the boundaries of the sporting arena.”
Further details on the Women’s World Cup live site will be shared on City of Newcastle’s Facebook and What’s On websites in the lead-up to this month’s events.