Skipper Kerr leads Matildas squad for 2023 FIFA World Cup

The 29-player Matildas squad that will represent Australia on home turf in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup has been named today, with world-class striker Sam Kerr and seven World Cup debutants among the headliners.

After waiting with bated breath for quite some time now, the Women’s World Cup is finally landing in Australia and all eyes have turned to the women who will don the green and gold for their country from July 20.

Kerr, to no one’s surprise, will captain Australia. Veteran stars like Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord, Ellie Carpenter, and Katrina Gorry headline the AUS squad, while sidelined Kyah Simon also made the cut. With their inclusions, Clare Polkinghorne and Lydia Williams become the first Australian footballers to play in five World Cups.

The Matildas will begin their campaign for silverware in front of home fans against the Republic of Ireland at Stadium Australia in Sydney. They’ll then jet to Lang Park, Brisbane, to face Nigeria on July 27, and wrap up their Group B run with a battle against seventh-ranked Canada at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium.

For Kerr, the 17-day countdown to Australia’s opening match is going to feel like a lifetime.

“I’m ready, I want the game to be now,” Kerr told press in Melbourne. “It’s going to be such a big moment. Any time you go to a World Cup, whether it’s your first or third, it’s an amazing feeling.

“It’s something I will never take for granted… to do it on your home soil is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I can’t believe we are going to be hosting the Women’s World Cup. When I first started playing for Matildas I could never have dreamed of this.

“It feels like now is the time, we’ve all been fighting for a spot and can finally knuckle down.”

Matildas FIFA World Cup 23-player squad

1. Lydia Williams
2. Courtney Nevin*
3. Aivi Luik
4. Clare Polkinghorne
5. Cortnee Vine*
6. Clare Wheeler*
7. Steph Catley
8. Alex Chidiac*
9. Caitlin Foord
10. Emily van Egmond
11. Mary Fowler
12. Teagan Micah
13. Tameka Yallop
14. Alanna Kennedy
15. Clare Hunt*
16. Hayley Raso
17. Kyah Simon
18. Mackenzie Arnold
19. Katrina Gorry
20. Sam Kerr
21. Ellie Carpenter
22. Charlotte Grant*
23. Kya Cooney-Cross*

Larissa Crummer (33 caps), Emily Gielnik (57), Chloe Logarzo (55), Amy Sayer (six), Remy Siemsen (six), and Jada Whyman (zero) were cut from the original 29-player squad today. An asterisk in the above list denotes a first World Cup appearance.

You can watch the full Matildas squad press conference here: