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Morrison, Ardern vow support for WWC bid

3 minute read

Before FIFA's decision on the 2023 Women's World Cup host, Scott Morrison and Jacinda Ardern have pledged their support for the Australia-New Zealand bid.

Prime Minister of Australia SCOTT MORRISON.
Prime Minister of Australia SCOTT MORRISON. Picture: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and New Zealand counterpart Jacinda Ardern have written a joint letter to the FIFA Council pledging support for the trans-Tasman bid to host the 2023 Women's World Cup.

Australia and New Zealand are now red-hot favourites to win the rights to the tournament after rivals Japan pulled out of contention and pledged their support for the joint bid on Monday night, leaving Colombia as the only other candidate.

The FIFA Council will make its decision on the host in an online meeting and open vote on Thursday, June 25, with an announcement expected in the early hours of Friday, Australian time.

"An Australia-New Zealand FIFA Women's World Cup would embody our passion for women's football and proud commitment to equality and fairness, creating a profound and enduring legacy for the future of women's football within the region and beyond," Morrison and Ardern said in the letter.

"We would host a tournament FIFA can be proud of in every way possible: technical excellence, record-breaking crowds, commercial certainty and a warm embrace from our 200 different cultures.

"Football is the game that connects us all. We sincerely hope that an Australia-New Zealand FIFA Women's World Cup will bring us all together again in 2023, when we can all celebrate humanity, community and unity through football."

Last week Australia and New Zealand received the highest score in FIFA's technical evaluation of the three bids, receiving 4.1 of a possible five votes, with Japan (3.9) and Colombia (2.8) trailing.

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