The Australian Women’s Football team will compete in this fourth Games when they take part in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Quarter finalists in their last two Olympics appearances (2016 and 2004), the Matildas are looking to build on their performances at the Games.
Overview
Australia’s 22 player squad has fourteen returning members from the Rio 2016 Olympics including captain Samantha Kerr and vice-captain Stephanie Catley. The eight debutants range from the oldest member of the squad - 36-year-old veteran Aivi Luik – to the youngest member of the squad in 18-year-old forward Mary Fowler. An experienced team, the Matildas are led by Tony Gustvasson who has previously been on the sideline at London 2012 and Rio 2016.
The Matildas have spent their pre-games preparation in Sweden with their final tune up matches against Denmark, Sweden, and hosts Japan.
Women's Football Team
Ones To Watch
Leading out the team will be captain and forward Samantha Kerr. Playing for the league title winning Chelsea FC in England, Kerr’s 21 goals saw her finish the season as the top goal scorer. A pacy and exciting striker, the 27-year-old will be looking to add to her Olympic goalscoring tally in Tokyo.
Returning to the Games will be the youngest member of the Rio 2016 Australian Olympic Team, Ellie Carpenter. In the five years since she made her Olympic debut, Carpenter has grown into one of the best young footballers in the world. Lining up for the powerhouse Olympique Lyonnais, the 21-year-old defender had a stellar debut season that saw her named in the French league Team of the Season.
A veteran of the team and the longest serving Matilda of all time, goalkeeper Lydia Williams also returns for her second Olympic appearance. A vocal leader on and off the pitch, Williams is a consistent and dependable last line of defence for the Matildas.
From the debutantes, the versatile and calm Aivi Luik will be one to watch. Luik is one of Australia’s most decorated footballers having claimed silverware in Denmark, Norway and Australia. Luik is set to make her Olympics debut after coming close in 2016.
The Format
The women’s Football tournament is one of the first sports to open the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games with the Australian team kicking off their competition prior to the Opening Ceremony.
The tournament runs from 21 July to 6 August 2021 across seven venues in six Japanese cities.
12 teams qualified for Tokyo and they have been drawn into three groups of four teams with Australia sitting in Group G alongside the United States, Sweden and New Zealand.
Each team plays three matches, for a duration of 90 minutes each, in the Group Stage earning three points for a win and one point for a draw.
From the field of 12 teams, the top two teams from each groups (and the two best third-placed teams) progress to the knockout stage.
During the knockout stage, the teams go head-to-head for 90 minutes with the winner advancing. In the event the scores are locked after 90 minutes, 30 minutes of extra time is played before a penalty shoot-out is needed to separate the teams.
Eyes On The Competition
With 12 highly ranked team competing, the women’s Football tournament will be one of the most fiercely competitive at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Australia’s group stage opponents are two of the highly ranked nations in the tournament with world number one, the United States, Rio 2016 silver medallists and world number five, Sweden. Both teams boast some of the stars of the women’s game including Megan Rapinoe, USA captain Becky Sauerbrunn, Swedish captain Carolina Seger and striker Kosovare Asllani.
Outside of the group, world number four the Netherlands, hosts Japan and two-time bronze medallists Canada, will all be liking their chances of ending up on the podium.
Did You Know?
Emily van Egmond is set to feature in her second Olympics (2016, 2020) which is one more than her father, Gary. Gary played for the Olyroos at the Seoul 1988 Olympics Games with the duo the only daughter and father to represent Australia in the Olympic Football Tournaments.
What's The Story?
Group G pits the Australian Women’s Football Team against three nations that they are very familiar with.
Australia has played New Zealand 47 times in their history – the most encounters with any nation – and two countries are set to co-host the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023. In the opening match, the Matildas will come up against their former coach, Tom Sermanni, who led Australia for a cumulative 10 years.
The United States is also a well known opponent with the defending World Champions meeting Australia regularly over the last five years. An Assistant Coach with the USA for almost six years, this will be the first time head coach Tony Gustavsson will meet his former side.
Sweden also has a connection with the Matildas, as Gustavsson’s nation of birth and also a regular opponent at major tournaments. The Matildas have met the Swedes five times at both the Olympic Games (2000, 2004) and FIFA Women’s World Cups (1999, 2011 and 2015).
The Facts
Competition Details
- The tournament runs from 21 July to 6 August 2021 across seven venues in six Japanese cities
- This is the most experienced squad that Australia has ever sent to a major tournament with an average age of 27.5 years and at an average of 67 appearances per player.
- Women’s football first appeared at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games.
Football Snapshot
