Tag: North Korea

Every team qualified for 2026 World Cup so far as Iran books spot at North American event

Iran became the second Asian side to secure their place at the 2026 World Cup after twice coming from behind to draw 2-2 with Uzbekistan in Tehran, handing organisers a likely diplomatic headache.

Iran, the second-highest ranked AFC side in the FIFA standings, needed only a point to join Japan in qualifying for the finals in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Iran will, however, head to North America with relations strained as US President Donald Trump takes a hard line over opening new nuclear talks with Tehran.

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SOCCEROOS: Crucial step puts Poppa’s Aussies on the brink

The Group A leaders were made to work hard at the Azadi Stadium by upward-trending Uzbekistan, with Mehdi Taremi scoring seven minutes from time – his second of the match – to seal the point.

“We have to thank the fans who filled the stadium today, and thank God they did not leave empty-handed,” said Iran captain Alireza Jahanbakhsh.

Seeking to qualify for a first World Cup, Uzbekistan opened the scoring on 16 minutes through Khojimat Erkinov, before Inter Milan striker Taremi scored his first of the night shortly after half time.

Parity lasted only one minute, with Abbosbek Fayzullaev restoring Uzbekistan’s lead.

Again, Taremi was the man to pull his team back into the game and ultimately book a spot in North America, when he finished past goalkeeper Utkir Yusupov late on.

Iran will be appearing at a fourth successive World Cup and seventh in all. Taremi expressed his “happiness” with the result but admitted his team had “tactical problems” after conceding twice.

Uzbekistan remain on course for an inaugural appearance at the finals. Sitting second on 17 points, they require a win from the concluding double-header in June either away to third-placed UAE or at home to Qatar, in fourth.

The UAE climbed to four points behind Uzbekistan following their 2-1 victory in injury time against North Korea in Riyadh, with Qatar three points further back after their 3-1 defeat to Kyrgyzstan in Bishkek.

The top two go straight to the World Cup, with teams finishing third and fourth in the three Asian groups entering a further round of qualifying.

Iran’s players celebrate after the FIFA World Cup 2026 Asia zone qualifiers group A football match between Iran and Uzbekistan, on March 25, 2025 in Tehran. (Photo by AFP)Source: AFP

Iran’s players celebrate after scoring during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Asia zone qualifiers group A football match between Iran and Uzbekistan, on March 25, 2025 in Tehran. (Photo by AFP)Source: AFP

Earlier on Tuesday, the Socceroos beat China 2-0 to boost their chances of automatic qualification, but Saudi Arabia stayed in touch in Group C with a goalless draw in Japan.

Australia’s victory, courtesy of first-half goals from Jackson Irvine and Nishan Velupillay, left the Socceroos second in Group C on 13 points with two to play, three points ahead of Saudi Arabia with a much better goal difference. Japan are already sure to finish top.

Australia host Japan and travel to Saudi Arabia for their final qualifiers in June, leaving the race for the second direct qualification place on a knife edge. China stay bottom on six points, but they can progress to a further qualifying stage by finishing third or fourth.

Indonesia moved into fourth on nine points thanks to a 1-0 win over Bahrain. Oxford United forward Ole Romeny scored his second goal in as many games to give Netherlands and Barcelona great Patrick Kluivert his first victory since becoming manager.

In Group B, Son Heung-min’s South Korea remain top and favourites to progress, but they put in another toothless performance as they were held at home for the second match in a row – this time 1-1 by Jordan.

Iraq could have gained ground but conceded late twice to lose 2-1 to Palestine in Amman.

One-nil down from the 34th minute, Palestine equalised two minutes from time before grabbing a winner in the 97th minute, for their first victory of the third round.

Iraq stay third and one point behind second-placed Jordan, who are three off the summit.

Leaders South Korea face a tricky trip to Basra in June before a final home clash against Kuwait.

Oman are fourth on 10 points following their 1-0 win against Kuwait in Ardhiyah, with Palestine fifth and Kuwait rooted to the bottom.

TEAMS QUALIFIED FOR THE 2026 FIFA WORLD CUP SO FAR

USA (co-host)

Canada (co-host)

Mexico (co-host)

Japan (AFC)

Iran (AFC)

New Zealand (OFC)

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March 25, 2025
Young Socceroos advance to Asian Cup final, ending 15-year drought with stirring win over rivals

Not content with merely qualifying for the FIFA U20 World Cup for the first time in 12 years, the Young Socceroos have booked their place in the U20 Asian Cup final for the first time in 15 years.

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The Australians picked up a 2-0 semi-final win against rivals Japan in Shenzhen, China with second half goals from Musa Toure and substitute Jaylan Pearman setting up a date with Saudi Arabia in Saturday’s final.

The Young Socceroos last made the final of the Asian Cup in 2010, when the tournament was last held in China, and Trevor Morgan’s side will be eager to go one better than the crop of teenagers from 15 years ago who fell 3-2 to North Korea at the final hurdle.

Australia has won all five of their matches to reach the final with a clean sweep of their group followed by a come from behind 3-2 quarter-final triumph against Iraq to book their World Cup berth in Chile in September and October this year, as well as the Japan victory.

Morgan’s team managed to turn the table on the Japanese after doing down 2-1 to them in a friendly earlier this month.

It was a lacklustre first half with neither side registering a shot on target, but Toure, the younger brother of Socceroo Mohamed Toure, provided a regular spark.

He scored the opener four minutes after the break as he slotted home Jonny Yull’s superb low cross.

Pearman put the game to bed shortly, only four minutes after he had come onto the pitch as a substitute, with a beautiful, curling finish from outside the box.

It was set up by Toure pouncing on a loose pass and dishing the ball off to Alex Badolato, the hero from the quarter-final.

Late in the game, Japan threatened several times but Australian goalkeeper Steven Hall, who is with English Premier League outfit Brighton, held firm to keep a clean sheet.

Their opponents in the final, Saudi Arabia, advanced via a penalty shootout after a goalless draw with South Korea.

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February 26, 2025
North Korean dictator bans Ange’s Spurs from being shown for petty reason

Kim Jong-un has banned Tottenham Hotspur matches from being shown in North Korea.

The Korean dictator has outlawed the Premier League club, coached by Australian Ange Postecoglou, because the team is captained by South Korean star Son Heung-min.

As reported by The Sun, the rogue regime leader has banned all Premier League games from being broadcast in his country — if the team has a South Korean players on its roster.

It means the so-called tyrant’s favourite team — Manchester United — will also be blacked out in his country because the Red Devils play Tottenham on Monday morning (AEDT).

A report also revealed coverage in North Korea of last year’s Premier League did not include Wolverhampton Wanderers because of their South Korean forward Hwang Hee-chan, or Brentford, who have his countryman, defender Kim Ji-soo.

Match coverage in the secretive state is shortened from 90 minutes to 60 and games are shown before news bulletins — and about four months after they are played.

Ange Postecoglou and Kim Jong-un. Photo: KCNA VIA KNS / AFP and Shaun Boterill, Getty.Source: Supplied

Son Heung-Min applauds fans. Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP.Source: AFP

With his team languishing 14th in the league, Tottenham fan Tom Bell said: “The way this season has gone for Spurs, North Koreans can count themselves lucky not being subjected to their games.”

The findings come in a report by the independent US think tank Stimson Center’s probe into North Korea.

State TV is rife with propaganda but sport is “one of the few moments each day when state TV is not trying to send an overt or underlying message to its viewers,” analysis found.

The Center’s Martyn Williams said: “We thought it was interesting.

“We just saw a lot of football on KCTV. It’s the main international sport they broadcast.”

The report says that in 2022, North Korean telly carried coverage of England’s top flight plus Germany’s Bundesliga, Spain’s La Liga, France’s Ligue 1 and Italy’s Serie A.

But the following year, KCTV settled the Premier League, the UEFA Champions League and the World Cup.

Ange Postecoglou (L) embraces South Korean striker Son Heung-Min. Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP.Source: AFP

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency photo shows Kim Jong Un visiting the Ministry of National Defence.Source: AFP

English football has also found fans among other dictators.

Late Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro was an Arsenal fan and Zimbabwe tyrant Robert Mugabe, who died in 2019, supported Chelsea.

Press coverage being diverted away from Postecoglou’s tenuous hold on his job will be a welcomed distraction for the club.

The former Socceroos manager’s second season with the London club has been a trainwreck with the side collapsing to be 14th on the Premier League table – as well as being knocked out of the League Cup and FA Cup.

Fans have turned on Postecoglou, but fans have been far more vocal in calling for Spurs chairman Daniel Levy to be ousted.

As first reported by The Sun, Spurs fans have planned a mass protest for Monday morning’s game against United, where they will demand Levy to stand down.

The club has not won a major trophy since 2008.

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February 16, 2025
‘Many will die’: Outrage over $1 trillion World Cup ‘vote’ as two strange tournaments locked in

The vote for 2034 World Cup hosting rights has descended into farce with claims a $1 trillion “atrocity” is about to be made official.

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FIFA will on Thursday (AEDT) confirm the hosts of the 2030 and 2034 World Cups and the outrage has begun before the result is even made official.

A joint bid led by Morocco, Spain and Portugal is set to be awarded the 2030 hosting rights, while, Saudi Arabia has been a controversial choice to host the event in 2034.

The awarding of hosting rights for both tournaments will go to a vote during a FIFA Congress to be held virtually, but there is no doubt about the outcomes with neither bid having a rival.

The 2026 World Cup will be co-hosted by the USA, Canada and Mexico.

Saudi Arabia’s bid for 2034 was boosted heavily as FIFA invoked its principle of continental rotation, therefore only welcoming bids from Asia or Oceania.

Controversially, the body gave potential bidders barely a month late last year to submit candidacies, and Australia and Indonesia quickly abandoned their interest.

That left Saudi Arabia as the sole candidate, clearing the way for the World Cup to return to the Gulf region following Qatar’s hosting in 2022.

FIFA also linked the 2030 and 2034 votes together meaning European nations who would otherwise object to the Saudi event would be forced to vote against the Morocco, Spain and Portugal tournament – which they won’t.

The kingdom’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has been using sport for some time now to amass influence and improve its global image.

Being handed the 2034 World Cup will be a crowning moment, and Saudi will win despite currently only boasting two stadiums with a capacity of 40,000, when a minimum of 14 are required.

FIFA seems desperate for a fight.Source: Supplied

The centre pieces of the bid were a stadium that will be built at the $1 trillion mega-city of Neom and a 92,000 seat venue to be called King Salman Stadium in Riyadh.

Beyond that logistical challenge, the baking temperatures in the northern hemisphere summer could mean pushing the tournament back to later in the year, as happened in 2022.

However, the fact that Ramadan will take place in December that year is an added complication.

Moreover, the awarding of the World Cup to Saudi will make the issue of human rights a major talking point again, just as in 2022.

Rights groups highlight mass executions in Saudi Arabia and allegations of torture, as well as restrictions on women under the conservative country’s male guardianship system. Free expression is severely restricted too.

Saudi Arabia, which is hosting several high-profile events including Formula One and the WTA Finals tennis, is often accused of “sportswashing” — using sport to divert attention from its rights record.

The push back has already begun.

Norway’s soccer federation plans to abstain from giving its approval when the vote is formalised, AP reports.

“FIFA’s own guidelines for human rights and due diligence have also not been adequately integrated into the process, increasing the risk of human rights violations,” Norway federation president Lise Klaveness said in a statement Tuesday.

Steve Cockburn, Amnesty’s head of labour rights and sport, said in a recent statement: “There will be a real and predictable human cost to awarding the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia without obtaining credible guarantees of reform.

The King Salman Stadium will be completed in 2029.Source: Supplied

The Marrakesh Stadium in Morocco has a long way to go. Photo by AFP.Source: AFP

“Fans will face discrimination. Migrant workers will face exploitation, and many will die.

“FIFA must halt the process until proper human rights protections are in place to avoid worsening an already dire situation.”

He earlier said: “As expected, FIFA’s evaluation of Saudi Arabia’s World Cup bid is an astonishing whitewash of the country’s atrocious human rights record.

“There are no meaningful commitments that will prevent workers from being exploited, residents from being evicted or activists from being arrested.

“By ignoring the clear evidence of severe human rights risks, FIFA is likely to bear much responsibility for the violations and abuses that will take place over the coming decade.

“Fundamental human rights reforms are urgently required in Saudi Arabia, or the 2034 World Cup will be inevitably tarnished by exploitation, discrimination and repression.”

The 2030 tournament, meanwhile, will mark a century since the first World Cup was held in Uruguay, and as a result the bid will also see the South American nation handed a game along with Argentina and Paraguay.

That makes it a remarkable and completely unprecedented bid, involving three different continental confederations.

FIFA already confirmed over a year ago that the joint proposal led by Morocco, Spain and Portugal was the sole contender for 2030, with all other potential candidacies having fallen by the wayside.

The Stade de Hassan will be the biggest football stadium in the world with 115,000 capacity.Source: Supplied

A joint British and Irish bid was abandoned when they decided to focus on hosting Euro 2028, while there were suggestions of a bid from South Korea, China, Japan and North Korea.

Four South American countries launched a joint bid in 2019, convinced that the centenary World Cup should entirely take place on the same continent where it all began.

In late 2022, UEFA promoted a bid uniting Spain and Portugal with war-torn Ukraine in a show of “solidarity” following the Russian invasion.

However, Ukraine was quietly dropped from that candidacy last year as Morocco joined forces with the Iberian neighbours, while South America agreed to step aside in exchange for being awarded the hosting of three games, one each for Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina.

Following these “centenary celebrations” in the comparative chill of the southern hemisphere winter, the six teams involved — along with their fans — will have to cross the Atlantic Ocean to play a part in the remaining 101 matches.

This tentacular tournament will conclude with the final on July 21, and it remains to be seen where that game will be staged.

Spain, which hosted the 1982 World Cup, is set to be the centrepiece as it boasts 11 of the 20 proposed stadiums.

Morocco — which has tried and failed on five previous occasions to be awarded the staging of the tournament — will become the second African nation to host the competition after South Africa in 2010.

Potential venues for the final include the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid and Barcelona’s renovated Camp Nou, as well as the planned Hassan II stadium between Casablanca and Rabat, which is set to become “the biggest stadium in the world” with a capacity of 115,000.

Portugal, which hosted Euro 2004, will offer two stadiums in Lisbon and one in Porto, and hopes to stage a semi-final.

— with AFP

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December 11, 2024
Matildas veteran opens up on revival and full-circle moment keeping career alive

There was a brief moment, in between Michelle Heyman’s phone ringing and the striker answering the call from interim national team manager Tom Sermanni, where uncertainty filled the void.

“I actually got really hot and uncomfortable for a minute, because it was just a nice feeling to know that he sees me as a player within this team as well,” Heyman said from the sides training base in Zurich.

A new four-year cycle gets underway this week when the Matildas play friendlies against Euro 2025 hosts Switzerland on Saturday morning (AEDT), and Paris Olympic bronze medallists, Germany, in Duisburg, three days later.

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At 36, Heyman has been given the chance to continue her remarkable return to the international arena.

Earlier this year, with former Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson looking for a replacement for injured captain Sam Kerr, she was recalled for an Olympic qualifier against Uzbekistan in Tashkent.

It marked her first appearance for Australia in six-years and came after a brief retirement from international football in 2019.

Heyman has been picked for every camp since, returning the faith shown in her, with seven goals in eight appearances, including a 90th minute winner in a 6-5 thriller against Zambia in Nice, that kept Australia’s, ultimately ill-fated, Olympic campaign alive.

However, it would only be natural to wonder whether a new era would bring generational change.

The only problem with that when it comes to Heyman, is that her international hiatus actually re-ignited her passion for the game, and the veteran feels like anything but someone coming to the end of their career.

“I want to be better.

“I want to continue to be within the Matildas for as long as possible. I want to stay as healthy and fit as I can so I can always perform.”

The first big landmark on the road to the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles is the AFC Women’s Asian Cup in Australia in 2026.

Heyman is intent on being part of that tournament on home soil, after taking in the Matildas game-changing World Cup exploits in 2023, from the stands.

“It’s massive,” said Heyman.

“It was a pretty cool experience to be in the stands for the World Cup, as a player during that time, but it did give me all the fire in the belly to want to be out on that field.

“I hold that World Cup very close to me. I feel that has changed my life and it has re-sparked that drive I had to be in this team.

“I keep that really close to me because I will use that energy that I got from watching those games to continue to push me and to keep fighting to be there for the Asian Cup.”

Sermanni, who shares a special history with Heyman, has given her that chance.

“He was the coach who gave me my debut, so I’ve got great respect for him,” she said.

“He’s an incredible human, extremely happy all the time. He brings a really positive vibe into this environment.”

That debut came in a 2-2 draw against North Korea in Brisbane in 2010.

Much has changed for player and coach since then.

“I still remember my debut and I remember feeling like a headless chook running out on the field, wasting all my energy within the first sprint because I was so nervous, and couldn’t believe I was playing for my country,” she said.

“Now, when I look back, even at our last games in the Olympics, I just feel so confident and comfortable within myself and my position.

“I know the game so well now, so I’ve got all those years of experience behind me and it just brings so much confidence for myself personally.”

The games against Switzerland and Germany represent a chance for the side to move on from their disastrous Olympic campaign.

They went to France with sights set on an historic gold medal, and instead failed to get out of, albeit, a difficult group, containing Germany, Zambia and the United States.

“I think that’s the way I’m most definitely looking at it.

“The results weren’t the best results and it wasn’t what we wanted during the Olympics.

“We really wanted to be better, we wanted to come home with medals, we wanted to be the best team possible for our country, but that wasn’t the answer for us.

“This camp, I think everyone is going to change their mindset and try and be as positive as possible, work extremely hard and try and come away with some great results.

“These are two games coming up that are going to be extremely challenging. They’re both quality countries to play against, so it’s going to be a big test for us to see where we’re at.”

The Canberra United goal-machine is confident she can continue to mix it with the best while remaining in the A-League Women competition.

A move to Women’s Super League side West Ham almost eventuated during the long off-season, but she decided against taking up a short-term contract with the Hammers that could’ve seen her potentially cut loose in December.

Instead, Heyman signed a new one-year deal with Canberra.

“The professionalism that I saw, I do believe Australia is the same standard.

“I know that within Canberra United our standards are very high. I think West Ham and Canberra are very similar, especially the facilities, the amount of staff, we pretty much are the exact same.

“I’m still able to push myself within the environment I have here in Australia and as long as I can continue to score goals, stay fit and be the footballer that I am, I see my chances of continuing to be in this national team for as long as I keep pushing really hard.”

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October 22, 2024
Not again! Socceroos cop brutal repeat group for next stage of World Cup qualifying

Australia has copped a brutal group for the next stage of 2026 World Cup qualifying.

The Socceroos will need to finish above at least one of Japan or Saudi Arabia to guarantee a spot in the USA, Canada and Mexico for the tournament.

It’s a repeat of 2022 qualifying when Australia finished third in a group with both of those nations, having to advance through the interconfederation playoff instead, which went down to a penalty shootout.

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Graham Arnold’s side will also face Bahrain, China and Indonesia as the three lower-seeded nations in the third round of AFC qualifying.

Japan, Saudi Arabia and China were the most difficult nations the Aussies could have drawn from their pots. In particular the Saudis were the clear threat in a pot also including Uzbekistan and Jordan.

The top two teams in each six-team group will directly advance into the World Cup.

The third and fourth-placed teams in each group will move into a fourth round, where two more teams will qualify, followed by a fifth round for a spot in the intercontinental playoff.

This means it would take an absolute disaster for Australia to miss qualification altogether, but their chances of advancing out of this third round would have been higher in either of the two other groups.

“It’s nice to have a clear understanding of what’s ahead of us over the next 12 months. We’ve spent the last few months looking at various scenarios on what our path might look like, which will now help accelerate our planning,” Socceroos coach Graham Arnold said.

“With that detail now in front of us to prepare, our sole focus is to qualify directly by this time next year.

“We knew this round of qualifying would present challenges however the draw panned out, particularly given the way the game is growing across the confederation. I feel it’s important we embrace those challenges; with our mindset, belief and camaraderie integral to achieve our goal of qualification.

“We’ve put a lot of work into developing this group of players, and the next 12-months is an opportunity for them to showcase their qualities as international footballers at a crucial point in our journey to another FIFA World Cup.

“I can’t speak highly enough of this playing group and their commitment during the campaign so far, and I’ve got no doubt they will bring more of the same in Round Three.”

In total eight teams are guaranteed qualification from Asia, plus a possible ninth via the intercontinental playoff.

The Socceroos will open against Bahrain at home on September 5, hoping to clinch a spot in the World Cup before the final games against Japan (home, June 5) and Saudi Arabia (away, June 10).

GROUPS

Group A: Iran, Qatar, Uzbekistan, UAE, Kyrgyzstan, North Korea

Group B: South Korea, Iraq, Jordan, Oman, Palestine, Kuwait

Group C: Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, China, Indonesia

POTS FOR AFC WORLD CUP QUALIFYING THIRD ROUND

One team from each pot placed in each group

Pot 1: Japan (FIFA ranking 17), Iran (20), South Korea (22)

Pot 2: Australia (23), Qatar (35), Iraq (55)

Pot 3: Saudi Arabia (56), Uzbekistan (62), Jordan (68)

Pot 4: UAE (69), Oman (76), Bahrain (81)

Pot 5: China (88), Palestine (95), Kyrgyzstan (101)

Pot 6: North Korea (110), Indonesia (134), Kuwait (137)

SOCCEROOS WORLD CUP QUALIFYING SCHEDULE

Venues and times TBC, home team first

Socceroos v Bahrain – Thursday, 5 September

Indonesia v Socceroos – Tuesday, 10 September

Socceroos v China PR – Thursday, 10 October

Japan v Socceroos – Tuesday, 15 October

Socceroos v Saudi Arabia – Thursday, 14 November

Bahrain v Socceroos – Tuesday, 19 November

Socceroos v Indonesia – Thursday, 20 March

China PR v Socceroos – Tuesday, 25 March

Socceroos v Japan – Thursday, 5 June

Saudi Arabia v Socceroos – Tuesday, 10 June

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June 27, 2024
LIVE: Why Matildas’ Olympic hopes still need a thumping win from final qualifying clash

The Matildas can ill-afford to take their foot off the pedal against Chinese Taipei tonight in Perth if they want to give themselves the best possible chance of qualifying for next year’s Olympic Games. Live from 10pm AEDT!

The Matildas have effectively locked in top spot in Group A and a place in February’s third round of qualifying, in which the four top-ranked Asian Football Confederation nations will be whittled down to the two who qualify for the Olympics.

It’s likely that seedings will be used to determine which of the teams play each other in the parallel home and away battles to decide which two nations are the AFC representatives in Paris.

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Goal difference is therefore set to be crucial if the Matildas want to avoid Group B leaders South Korea or Group C leaders Japan in February.

The Matildas are currently one goal better off in the for and against stakes than Japan, who are also on six points heading into its final group game against Vietnam (being played tonight from 9pm AEDT).

South Korea is tied on points with North Korea but well ahead on goal difference; whichever of the pair wins the group should finish as the third seed.

Therefore whichever of Australia and Japan performs best should face the best-performing runner-up (currently North Korea, but potentially Uzbekistan or Philippines), rather than a group winner (currently South Korea).

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Matildas vice-captain Steph Catley said her side just had to “control what we can control”.

“For us, that is winning, and that is doing it however we need to and scoring as many goals as we can,” Catley told reporters on Tuesday.

“We will focus on the task at hand, and make sure that we get ourselves in the best position possible.”

And they will have to do so on Wednesday night without talented trio Ellie Carpenter, Emily van Egmond and Cortnee Vine.

A deal was done to release Carpenter and van Egmond back to their clubs early.

The absence of right-back Carpenter will demand at least one change to Australia’s starting team for coach Tony Gustavsson, who was weighing up how many minutes to play his best players in the third clash in a week.

Carpenter’s French outfit Lyon return to action on November 6 against Paris FC, van Egmond – who was used off the bench in Australia’s 8-0 weekend thrashing of the Philippines – is about enter the US National Women‘s Soccer League playoffs with the San Diego Wave.

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Football Australia (FA) confirmed deals had already been done for the pair to return to their clubs before the Matildas’ third and final Group A game.

“Following agreements between Football Australia and their clubs, San Diego Wave and Olympique Lyon, van Egmond and Carpenter arrived earlier than normal into assembly and as a result have departed earlier,” FA said in a statement on Tuesday.

Carpenter played all 90 minutes in the Matildas’ opening clash against Iran last week and against the Philippines, and was among Australia‘s best in both victories.

Sydney FC’s Vine has also left camp after injuring her hamstring after coming on a substitute against the Philippines.

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November 1, 2023
Socceroos want PM’s help for ‘scary’ situation as qualifiers under cloud amid Middle East conflict

Socceroos coach Graham Arnold has called on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to help ensure his team play upcoming World Cup qualifiers in venues that are “safe”, with an impending clash against war-torn Palestine in November yet to secure a venue.

Despite reports that the clash could be played in Algeria, there’s as yet no confirmation and Arnold wasn’t convinced, with a venue to be announced by Friday.

The Socceroos have to play both Palestine, which is caught in the grip of war with Israel, as well as Lebanon, with a home clash against Bangladesh locked in for Melbourne’s AAMI Park.

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Arnold pointed to the involvement of Japan’s prime minister when the Blue Samurai were drawn to play North Korea and hoped there could be similar assistance from the Australian government, conceding the current picture looks “quite scary”.

He said everyone involved with the Socceroos was “uncomfortable” with the situation while casting down over the Algerian plan.

“We’ve got a pretty interesting group and we’ll need government support for those decisions where we are playing Palestine and Lebanon because what is going on at the moment looks quite scary,” Arnold said after his team’s 2-0 friendly win over New Zealand in London.

“As far as I know you have to play your qualifiers in the confederation where you play – and (Algeria) is not part of Asia, so I don’t think that’s real.

Socceroos players pose after securing victory over New Zealand. Picture: Bryn Lennon/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images

“Everyone is uncomfortable, staff, players, we are only three weeks away from it. By Friday, I think Palestine have to come up a with a neutral venue, and we have to be careful where that neutral venue is with what’s going on.

“It is terrible what’s going on, but FA (Football Australia) are working on it and let’s hope we get some support and help from the government. The neutral venue has to be a neutral venue.

“When the draw came out and Japan had to play North Korea, Japan’s prime minister straight away said ‘we’re not playing in North Korea’. It wasn’t the president of the association, it was the Prime Minister.

“We’re obviously not on top of everything that is going on in the security side of things in the Middle East, no doubt the government is more into that than we are – so give us some help so the decision is safe. We need to be safe.”

A plan by the English Football Association to make a show of support for victims of the Middle-East crisis when the Socceroos played at Wembley was abandoned, with local media reporting it was in part due to Australia having to play Palestine.

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October 17, 2023
Terrifying 4am North Korea threat rocks Boomers’ World Cup prep

The Boomers have been given a scare on the eve of the FIBA World Cup — and it’s had nothing to do with player injuries.

The Boomers are set to play Finland in their first match of the World Cup in Japan but received a 4am wake up call no one wants to receive.

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The Daily Telegraph reported that in the wee hours of the morning, residents in Okinawa were messaged by Japan’s national alert system, which automatically triggers an alarm.

The message read: “Emergency Alert: Missile launch. Missile launch. A missile is believed to have been launched from North Korea”.

But 13 minutes later, there was another alert which read: “Missile passed. Missile passed. It is believed that the previous missile passed into the Pacific Ocean at around 4am.”

“We will cancel the call for evacuation. Never approach anything suspicious and immediately contact the police and fire departments.”

The Boomers had a rude awakening in Japan.Source: Supplied

The all clear came 13 minutes later.Source: Supplied

A siren and public alert also sounded to announce the details.

The “missile” was North Korea’s failed second attempt to put a spy satellite in orbit.

The South Korean military said it detected the launch of the purported space rocket at around 3:50am and that it flew over the Yellow Sea.

It added that a search and retrieval operation for the wreckage had begun.

It’s hardly the way the Boomers would like as they complete preparations for the tournament.

The side is heading into the tournament a key NBA star down after Jock Landale went down with a horrific looking ankle injury in the final warm up game in Australia against South Sudan.

However, the World No. 3 Boomers are looking to go deep in the tournament to follow up from the bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

Ranked behind only the USA and Spain, the Boomers will be a team to watch.

The Boomers were already without Brooklyn Nets guard Ben Simmons who opted out of the World Cup, which runs from August 25 to September 10 in Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines.

But they have a slew of other NBA players on board, including veteran Patty Mills and rising star Josh Giddey.

Australia finished fourth at the last World Cup in China in 2019 and have come off four wins and a loss in their warm up games.

With AFP

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August 24, 2023