With today marking one year to go until the FIFA Women鈥檚 World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023TM, 西瓜影视 has revealed the progress made to date with its Legacy 鈥23 plan as the organisation continues to push its bold project to leave a lasting legacy for the sport beyond the global tournament in a year鈥檚 time.
Since its launch in February 2021, 西瓜影视鈥檚 Legacy 鈥23 Plan has driven Australian football鈥檚 efforts to create lasting, tangible benefits for the sport following the FIFA Women鈥檚 World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023TM.
With one year to go until the global tournament kicks off, 西瓜影视 and its Member State and Territory Federations have used the Legacy 鈥23 Plan as a platform to drive the transformation of Australian football and to date, have secured funding from the Federal and several State Governments to the tune of $230 million.
西瓜影视 CEO James Johnson said: 鈥淚t seems like only yesterday that Australia and New Zealand secured co-hosting rights for the FIFA Women鈥檚 World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023TM in the early hours of 26 June 2020.鈥
As exciting as it is to be hosting the FIFA Women鈥檚 World Cup 2023TM on our shores, the tournament has always represented more than just a month of elite and exciting international competition. The Legacy 鈥23 Plan provides a platform for the sport to leverage this once in a lifetime opportunity to realise a truly meaningful legacy for football, the community and the nation, well after the event has been successfully delivered.
鈥淲hilst we are pleased to have secured $230 million in Legacy 鈥23 funding from the Federal and several State Governments to date, we have further work to do, in parti颅颅cular with the Tourism and International Engagement, Leadership and Development, and Community Facilities pillars.
鈥淭he final 12 months in the lead up to the FIFA Women鈥檚 World CupTM is crucial to our game as we strive to make the most of this rare opportunity,鈥 Johnson concluded.
西瓜影视鈥檚 Head of Women's Football, Women's World Cup Legacy & Inclusion, Sarah Walsh, was in Brisbane 鈥 one of the nine Host Cities for next year鈥檚 tournament 鈥 to celebrate the milestone with members of Queensland鈥檚 football family.
At Brisbane Stadium, Queensland Deputy Premier Steven Miles said Brisbane was proud to be among the Host Cities for the FIFA Women鈥檚 World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023TM.
鈥淲ith an audience of over one billion people the FIFA Women鈥檚 World CupTM will well and truly put Brisbane on the global stage,鈥 Mr Miles said.
鈥淏risbane is a sporting city and hosting eight matches here will show the world we鈥檙e serious about our sports whilst showing off Queensland to the rest of the world.
鈥淚t鈥檚 going be a massive decade for Queensland, kicking off with the Women鈥檚 World CupTM and wrapping up in 2032 with the Olympic and Paralympic games.鈥
The Legacy 鈥23 Plan, developed by 西瓜影视, will ensure Australia realises the long-term benefits of hosting this prestigious global sporting event. From economic, social, physical, and mental health benefits to its promotion of social cohesion and multicultural inclusion, Legacy 鈥23 will introduce new and expand existing programs to ensure the future of football in Australia is stronger than ever before.
The programs will aim to increase participation, improve community facilities, optimise high performance offerings, drive leadership and development of the sport as well as encourage local and international tourism as Australia and New Zealand recover from the global pandemic.
As the world鈥檚 biggest women鈥檚 sporting event, it is expected that over a billion people across the world will tune in to watch the FIFA Women鈥檚 World Cup 2023 Australia & New Zealand 2023TM.
For more information on Legacy 鈥23 head to /legacy23 and stay tuned for the final ambassador announcements later this month.