{"id":319240,"date":"2023-07-27T08:12:15","date_gmt":"2023-07-27T08:12:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=319240"},"modified":"2023-07-27T08:58:04","modified_gmt":"2023-07-27T08:58:04","slug":"matildas-force-67-year-first-as-football-fever-hits-brisbane","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=319240","title":{"rendered":"Matildas force 67-year first as football fever hits Brisbane"},"content":{"rendered":"

Brisbane<\/a> is traditionally considered rugby league heartland but the city has transformed into a buzzing football hub for the Matildas<\/a>' second FIFA Women's World Cup<\/a> group match against Nigeria on Thursday night.<\/p>\n

The city is set to host over 40,000 \ufeffvisitors from interstate and abroad across the month-long tournament, with the river city booking five group matches, a round of 16 clash, a quarter final and a semi final.<\/p>\n

As one of three east coast cities fortunate to host a Matildas' group match, unparalleled crowds are tipped to engross Brisbane.<\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> The order that steeled Matildas for Kerr blow<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> 'Extremely dangerous': Unsung star can fill Kerr void<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Johns, Fittler split over $400k Luai conundrum<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

At the FIFA Fan Festival \ufeffbased at the South Bank Parklands, scores of fans have already gathered on the riverside green by midday.<\/p>\n

\"SYDNEY,<\/p>\n

Beamed up on the screens is the \ufeff2019 Women's World Cup final rematch between the USA and the Netherlands, but a sea of green and gold dulls \ufeffthe passionate American supporters and splashes of orange worn by the Dutch.<\/p>\n

Still hours out from kick-off at Suncorp Stadium, event staff say more people are here than first anticipated.<\/p>\n

They are prepared for a higher volume of \ufeffviewers with the home team in action, but are unsure how the final numbers will be influenced by the turnout at the stadium.<\/p>\n

For many visitors, this is their first stop on their way to the cauldron.<\/p>\n

Staging a firework show over the Brisbane River before the match gets underway, event staff hope the Matildas feel the support of the fans, even from outside the ground.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/emrosepatterson\/status\/1684388905397932032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a><\/p>\n

Across town, the bars and eateries along Brisbane's Caxton Street are also preparing to be inundated with stadium-goers.<\/p>\n

Synonymous with State of Origin matches at Suncorp Stadium, Caxton Street is situated en route to the ground and provides a distinctive experience on game days.<\/p>\n

With over 50,000 fans expected to pack the stands, one member of the Caxton Hotel's management team Georgie Hull is expecting a busy evening.<\/p>\n

"We're really excited, our restaurant is already fully booked. We're expecting a huge crowd to come through tonight," she told Wide World \ufeffof Sports.<\/p>\n

"There is just so many people around\ufeff, the atmosphere is really good. Everyone is in a good mood and excited to go down and watch the game.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/emrosepatterson\/status\/1684469751245062144<\/a><\/p>\n

"We're hoping that even though it is a Thursday night, people will stick around to celebrate a Matildas win."<\/p>\n

With Suncorp Stadium hosting a range of sports and teams, Georgie says each fan base generates its own unique presence.<\/p>\n

"We've found that there are different crowds from the NRL to union and the football. So there's definitely a different vibe around," she said.<\/p>\n

Scheduling the Matildas at Suncorp Stadium has seen the NRL shafted to the Gabba.<\/p>\n

As a result, the Brisbane Broncos will host the Sydney Roosters away from their regular home as rugby league returns to the stadium for the first time in 67 years\ufeff.<\/p>\n

\ufeffFor a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by<\/strong><\/em> clicking here<\/strong><\/em><\/a>!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Brisbane is traditionally considered rugby league heartland but the city has transformed into a buzzing football hub for the Matildas' second FIFA Women's World Cup […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":319242,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319240"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=319240"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319240\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":319243,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319240\/revisions\/319243"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/319242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=319240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=319240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=319240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}