Have you heard about this little tournament taking place in Brazil over the next month known as the World Cup? Of course you have! It’s the global game and perhaps the largest spectacle on Earth and I don’t know about you, but I’m excited. Every four years we get the opportunity to participate in a truly global phenomenon. Go England Go!
Here in Edmonton, we have two other major international football (soccer) tournaments to look forward to. We’re a host city for both the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Canada 2014 and the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015. These are the two most important tournaments in international women’s football, and we have front row seats.
The U-20 Women’s World Cup is taking place in Toronto, Montreal, Edmonton, and Moncton from August 5 through 24. Matches will be played at Commonwealth Stadium on August 5, 8, 13, and a quarter-final game on the 16th. Here are the matches you can look forward to:
| Date/Time | Match | Teams |
|---|---|---|
| August 5, 2014 at 5pm | Group Stage | China vs. Brazil |
| August 5, 2014 at 8pm | Group Stage | Germany vs. USA |
| August 8, 2014 at 5pm | Group Stage | Germany vs. China |
| August 8, 2014 at 8pm | Group Stage | USA vs. Brazil |
| August 13, 2014 at 3pm | Group Stage | Paraguay vs. France |
| August 13, 2014 at 6pm | Group Stage | Nigeria vs. England |
| August 16, 2014 at 6pm | Quarter-Final | Group 1B vs. Group 2A |
You can see the full calendar here. Tickets for the games range from $10 to $30, so it’s very affordable entertainment. You can purchase individual match tickets here. When Edmonton played host to the U-20 Women’s World Cup in 2002, we set the record for the largest single match attendance at 47,400. Let’s beat it!
The Women’s World Cup takes place from June 6 through July 5 in Vancouver, Montreal, Edmonton, Ottawa, Winnipeg, and Moncton. In addition to hosting the first four matches, Edmonton will also host two matches in the round of 16, one quarter-final, one semi-final, and the third place match. You can see the full calendar here. Tickets go on sale September 10, with prices for passes to all 11 matches ranging from $235 to $495.
Friday, June 6 marked one year to the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015, and to celebrate, a countdown clock was unveiled at City Hall. These clocks are pretty popular in host cities, and it’ll remain at City Hall until next year so you’ve got lots of time to take your photo with it.
The Honourable Rona Ambrose, MP for Edmonton-Spruce Grove, was selected as an official Event Ambassador for next year’s tournament. The theme for Canada’s winning bid was “Welcome the World and Its Game” and Minister Ambrose spoke quite a bit about the multicultural aspect of the game and of Canada.
There are more than 30 million women’s footballers in 185 countries, and more than 350,000 registered women footballers here in Canada. The tournament in 2015 will feature 24 nations and 52 matches, an increase from previous years.
Could the men’s World Cup be coming to Edmonton in the future too? Some suggest that Canada will bid to host the 2026 World Cup, and successful tournaments this year and next will greatly improve our chances of winning.
For now we turn our attention to the World Cup in Brazil. But once that’s all over, you can look forward to some excellent international football right here in Edmonton! You can keep up-to-date with all the news here.
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