The FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™ was officially welcomed to Aotearoa New Zealand today with a pōwhiri in Tāmaki Makaurau, Auckland ahead of the draw. 

Representatives from FIFA and the 39 qualified teams for the tournament and Play-Off Tournament were amongst the manuhiri at the pōwhiri, led by Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei at Karanga Plaza.

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s spokesperson for the FIFA Women’s World Cup, Deputy Secretary, Chris Bunny says hosting the Draw in Tāmaki Makaurau, Auckland presented a unique opportunity to formally welcome the tournament to Aotearoa New Zealand.

“The Draw is the main event in the build up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup and is an internationally significant event in its own right, with millions watching on around the world,” says Chris.

“We wanted to use this opportunity to put our best foot forward and show FIFA, the teams and the rest of the world what they can expect of us as co-host of next year’s tournament.”

The FIFA Women’s World Cup is the largest women’s sporting event on the planet, captivating an audience of more than one billion people across the globe and next year’s event will be the biggest yet, with 32 teams competing for the first time.

Aotearoa New Zealand is co-hosting the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 with Australia from 20 July to 20 August next year across nine host cities – four in Aotearoa New Zealand (Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, Dunedin) and five in Australia (Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne, Perth).

Hamilton and Auckland will also host the first ever FIFA Women's World Cup Play-Off Tournament from 17 to 23 February 2023 to determine the final three qualifiers for next year’s world cup.

Article added: Friday 21 October 2022