Football Federation Australia (FFA) is pleased to announce that Australia’s U-23 men’s national football team will play two friendly fixtures this month against A-League clubs.
On Thursday, 12 November 2020, Graham Arnold’s Olyroos will play Sydney FC (kick-off 7:00pm AEDT) at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium in Kogarah, while on Tuesday, 17 November 2020 Australia will take on the A-League’s newest club, Macarthur FC (kick-off 3:00pm AEDT), at the same venue.
A limited number of tickets (due to COVID-19 protocols) will be available for the first fixture between Australia U-23 and Sydney FC, with tickets on sale now. All patrons are reminded to follow the latest health advice and observe , including staying home if unwell.
While the Macarthur FC fixture will not be open to the public, both games will be streamed live and free by FFA, with the play-by-play action to be called by leading football commentator, Simon Hill. The matches will also be available via Kayo Sports, the My Football Live App, and each participating club’s official Facebook page.
After a frustrating year of camp, match and tournament postponements due to the national and international effects of COVID-19, Arnold said he is looking forward to assembling an Australia U-23 selection as the road to the rescheduled Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games continues.
“It is great that we will be assembling a representative squad in the November FIFA window,” Arnold said. “The window will enable our coaches and staff to reconnect with some of Australia’s best under 23 players, and revisit some of the work that we did in January this year when we secured qualification for Tokyo in Thailand.”
“The players and staff are itching to return to the national team set-up and this camp, as well as the games against Sydney FC and Macarthur FC, will provide everyone involved with the opportunity to put their best foot forward as we resume our preparations for Tokyo.
“We are working to finalise the squad for the window and continue to liaise with authorities to seek exemptions for affected players to travel from states with border restrictions to ensure that we can assemble a squad from all over the country. While this squad will be an entirely domestic-based selection, we are closely monitoring our players abroad and hope to be able to provide those players with an opportunity to gather in the first few months of 2021,” he said.
FFA Chief Executive Officer, James Johnson, said he believes the fixtures will be welcomed by the football community.
“In the XI Principles for the future of Australian football, we highlight our intent to increase match minutes for our elite youth players to address some of the player development challenges we face today, which have been exacerbated by COVID-19,” Johnson said. “We have been working closely with our Member Federations and A-League and Westfield W-League clubs to address some of these immediate challenges and in a year where the opportunity to play the game has been severely hindered, the matches will provide a much-needed opportunity for our players to secure valuable match-minutes against high quality opposition.
“We are grateful for the support of Macarthur FC and Sydney FC as we look to prepare our team for the Tokyo Olympics next year, and we are determined to create more opportunities for our national teams to play fixtures on home soil.”
“In recent months we have won the right to host two Asian Football Confederation youth women’s qualification tournaments in 2021, and now it is great that some of Australia’s best U-23 male footballers will have the opportunity to convene in Sydney for games against A-League sides.
“With the A-League set to resume next month, this will be a great opportunity for fans to watch two high-level games featuring some of the best male players in the country, the reigning A-League Premiers and Champions, and the competition’s newest club,” he concluded.
Australia U-23’s matches against Sydney FC and Macarthur FC are being supported by the NSW Government via tourism and major events agency Destination NSW.
Australia U-23 Men’s ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Football Team v Sydney FC
Venue: Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, Kogarah, New South Wales
Date: Thursday, 12 November 2020
Kick-off: 7:00pm AEDT
Tickets: Please visit (limited number of tickets due to COVID-19 protocols available online only)
Broadcast: Live via Facebook (Socceroos, Sydney FC, A-League), Kayo Sports, My Football Live App, My Football YouTube
Australia U-23 Men’s ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Football Team v Macarthur FC
Venue: Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, Kogarah, New South Wales
Date: Tuesday, 17 November 2020
Kick-off: 3:00pm AEDT
Broadcast: Live via Facebook (Socceroos, Macarthur FC, A-League), Kayo Sports, My Football Live App, My Football YouTube
*Please note this match will not be open to the public
